Pow Wow

week 31

Out of the list of prompts, this one jumped out. I've only ever been to one pow wow in 2006 and that was a lovely weekend, with lots of colour, dancing and creative people. I enjoyed it. I keep meaning to go to another but haven't done yet.  Is it pagan? No, not really, well not this one anyway. I should imagine like morris dancers, most of this lot were Christian.  If 'pagan' is the umbrella term for anyone who doesn't believe in one god, then are Native American's pagan?  The revere the Great Spirit. They revere nature spirits... so by definition, they aren't pagan as they have the one great spirit... pah! Pigeonholes and pedantics ... who cares?!  I don't lol.

My friend Fred told me about a pow wow at the Bison farm not far from Stonehenge. I love Native American things and went along for the weekend.  I'm not sure what I was expecting but what I found was special.  People, normal people, dressing up in traditional ceremonial dance costumes and taking part in traditional Native American grass and fan dancing.  Everyone was invited to join in, regardless of dress. And those little steps really tire you out!  Fantastic drumming and I don't mean some out of rhythm bongos or African drums, these were proper pow wow Indian dance drums. The sound was very intoxicating and I found myself trancing out at times, which is what they are supposed to do, tap into that part of you, and take you away with the beat and lead you into ecstatic dance.

The bison farm, farms bison for the meat market. Bison is a very low fat meat, dense and really tasty, there was owls and other animals there too. Anyway... the pow wow.  Feathers, tassles, coloured beads (not plastic ones either!), big elaborate costumes. No one was pretending to be an indian, which I was afraid of, but they were dressed up in the dance outfits and honouring the Dance. I've since watched Treme and seen the 'indians' that do Mardis Gras - each area has a tribe and they make huge colourful outfits, play music and dance their territories. There are many animals and birds that do this display for territory and mating purposes, so to me, this is no different.  They did it for fun though and I was envious of the efforts that had gone into these outfits.

Also there were some licensed traders of Native American crafts. Kind of like fair trade but for the tribes, you can only sell genuine crafts if you have a license.  I bought a bone, horn and glass bead Mohawk bracelet, a cedar seed and blue bead necklace and some porcupine quills.  It was at the pow wow where I met Blue Deer who made flutes. I commissioned him to make me a bog oak flute with turquoise inlay. These are all happy memories that I have just recalled after finding these pictures on my computer. I have 50,000+ images, all memories waiting to be revisited.  Here's a selection of images I took... enjoy.

My friend Fred

ever look at someone and see their totem? Guess what his is .. 

She bangs her drum

and hollers some more

Stomps about

The circle is hers

She twists and twirls and

Dances the dance of the demented

She stops to breathe, scents of nature

Bangs her staff on the ground

The earths dull thud, thud, thud

She hollers again and dances some more

Twisting, turning and spinning around

The dance of the demented

(by me, about... me?)

Ostara

week 30

It seems only the other day that the days were short and chill. And now it's August and the first harvests are already being reaped.  As the Starks say, winter is coming... you can feel it in the air at night, and it won't be long until you can taste it in the air, smell wood fires and start wearing coats again.  Summer arrives with the housemartins nesting and ends when they fly back to South Africa.  Cycle of life measured by the creatures around us and the land as it is reborn, blooms, fruits, dies and then is reborn again. This is a poem I wrote ages ago. I can't think of anything else to share, so here's the poem.


Naked trees
Bare blue skies
Last years leaves
Litter the ground

Cold winds blow
A mighty chill
Rain turns to snow
The sun climbs higher

Daffodils and crocus
Snowdrops and catkins
Life has burst thru
The cold hard earth

Life is imminent
It's waiting to bloom
Green shoots and colours
Birds return home

Colder weather will come
Life still breaks thru
Defying frozen death
Under frost and snow

New life breaks thru
Winters death begins to wane
Sunny days and blue skies
Wake us up within

New life in Springtime
The lambing season not far
Cold winds may blow
Spring has been announced

Spring is also the time that my brother died. He had cancer, he was told he had 2 weeks left in November, so we all went and said goodbye.... and then he didn't die. He seemed to be getting better! He wanted to last til Christmas. He did. He kept setting targets and shocked all the doctors by still living. He wanted to see the daffodils that he'd planted in the garden, and he did. Then he died. It was March 23rd 2013.

Owl

Week 29

OWL

Animal and human spirit guides come and go depending on where you are on your journey through life and what you need at that time.  One of the animals that seems to be working with me at the moment is owl, specifically Barn Owls.  When you are drawn to something over and over again, you have to stop and wonder why.  So I dug out my *medicine cards and read up on Owl.

Owl is 'deception'. Associated with clairvoyance, astral projection and magic (dark/light), owl sees what is really there and cannot be deceived.  A deadly hunter that flies silently, thanks to it's amazing feathers that literally absorb sound. Their prey really don't know what's coming until it hits them.

Owl has always been associated with wisdom and you must remember the little clockwork owl in Clash of the Titans.  Athena was the Greek goddess of wisdom and her owl is said to have revealed unseen truths to her and lit up her dark side so she could truly see all around.  You know about their impressive head rotation, they really do see all the way around.  If you can see it all, you can be furnished with the whole truth and speak the whole truth.  This scares people apparently as you can see through people's ulterior motives and call them out on them.

The card says that* "if you've pulled the Owl card, you are being asked to use your powers of keen, silent observation to intuit some life situation.  Owl is befriending you and aiding you in seeing the total truth. Owl can bring you messages in the night through dreams or meditation. Pay attention to the signals and omens. The Truth always brings further enlightenment."  Going on my current situation, I can certainly see why Owl is around.

Interestingly, Native American stories, which these Medicine cards are based on, have contradicting views on Owls. Owl is a harrbringer of death, so to see or hear one means there will be a death.  So I had a look into this a bit more and found a really interesting article on it.  America is a big place and there were many Indian nations, most share the same viewpoint about owls - they were either feared or embraced.

Read this great article by someone who's gleamed this knowledge from many tribal elders over the years.

I found the remains of a barn owl in 2010 in the woods. I have two wings and a foot that I have been storing, ready to turn into a smudge fan and other craft tools, for my use.  Maybe Owl is reminding me to get a move on with it, four years is long enough to dry out.

Kyle is an amazing wildlife photographer, check his website out

Nature

Week 29

NATURE

I love it. 

I love how it strokes my senses and awakens me.

Feeling down?
Go for a walk on the beach or in a wood.

Feel the wind on your face

Hear the waves crash the shore

Hear the leaves rustle in the trees

Hear Life all around you

Be still. Absorb it. Be part of it.

Watch the sun rise and fall

Watch the moon change faces

Watch the skies change colours
that makes you stop in awe

or reach for a camera to upload to facebook

to share with your friends
the beauty of the world we live in

Even in a town or city

there is nature around you

open your eyes and see

open your senses and FEEL

You love it too

You are part of it too

New age pantomime druids

week 27

NEW AGE PANTOMIME DRUIDS (NAPD)

A friend of mine was called this. He's not a druid, not sure he's even pagan. But he is a well learned individual and someone whom I respect a lot. It is now a term I use to describe the new flux of fuckwits that have flocked to our stone circles and have all the gear and no idea.  AKA Plastic Druids.

Druidry
I'm not a druid, lets get that fact out there. However, I've been knocking about with a few over the last decade and think I've had a good taster of what kind of people are out there calling themselves druids. I've stood in circle and been part of druid ceremonies.  It's alright and we share the same ideals in many areas of our paths.  But I'm not a druid and have no aspirations to become one.

As far as I'm aware, and I could be wrong (it's been known to happen), you start as a Bard, then Ovate, then after 21 years of learning, you can call yourself a Druid.  There are courses out there that can teach you about plants and all those kinds of things and some are legit and some are ripped off copies from the Internet and then sold as their own work. Plagiarism at it's finest. I hear many good things about the OBOD course from friends who are doing it.  My issue is with those who decide one day to be a druid. They buy the robes, create themselves a title and Order and then go out in to the world with the 'love and light' mentality and a shit load of glamour.  People are sucked in to their void and get ripped off.  I was contacted by a lady who had a friend who was going to spend £1200 on a course from once such NAPD.  He had only donned the robes a year earlier and yet, here he was selling 'knowledge and learning' that he hadn't obtained himself but ripped off the world wide web.  This was a genuinely nice lady and would have been £1200+ poorer if I hadn't spoken out.

I'm sure this applies to many other new age paths - New Age Pantomime Witch/Heathen/Shaman (don't get me started!!) etc etc etc.  There's always some nob out there, puffing out their chest, blowing hot air and smoke up your arse that they are the best thing since sliced bread and their way is the ONLY way.  And people get sucked in, they cannot see the bullshit invading them - glamour.  Our community seems to be blinded from seeing these people and there's more than a handful.

These so-called druids create disharmony. I've seen it countless times. They start a new group up. They get new members. There's old petty arguments that surface, then everyone gets involved and it's all out bitchcraft. This spills over in to other groups and infects everyone around it. That group then splits off and creates a new one, a new Order and more titles.  It's an endless cycle of egotesticle wankybollox - it's a fucking pantomime!  People I have been friends with have stopped being a friend on the back of these group splits. It's no wonder people sit on the fence and 'won't get involved' because it happens all the time. I know people who have completely walked away from the pagan 'scene' because of all the bitchcraft.  People I loved spending time with around the fire, drinking mead and wotnot and talking about putting the world to rights.  Those people are good people and the poison pushed them out.

New age pantomime druids - it's the latest fad in paganism. The 'I'm a shaman because I beat a drum and chant and use crystals' craze thankfully seems to be on it's way out... for now!

The point I'm making?  If you decide one day after much thought, to be a druid - great, go for it!  Deciding one day to dress up, get a sword, a staff, grow a beard/hair, wear robes and say 'namaste' all the time does NOT make you a druid.  It makes you a playgan. The same applies to so many different paths.  Granted, noobs all make that mistake (I'm fairly sure I did) and with some gentle guidance and pointing them in the direction of some good solid information, they can walk up their path with more confidence.

WALK YOUR TALK PEOPLE!

As always, I did a little research during this blog and thought you'd like to read these.  No path but your own, you decide how you want to learn.. just learn not to be a gullible muppet parting with lots of money without doing some research of the person selling 'their wisdom'.

OBOD
Druid Network
CoBDO
Guardian article

Mabon

week 26

Winds of change have come again
the russet leaves become my friends
As I walk and reminisce
the autumn equinox I dare not miss
make amends and carry on
for all too soon autumn's song has been sung
forgive and forget
wipe the dust from the shelves
ease into the season and forgive yourself!

MABON

Everyone has a festival that they are particularly attuned with. I do not know why, but mine is Mabon aka the autumn equinox.  Mabon is not wiccan, whatever wikipedia says. Mabon is part of Celtic mythology, which I really enjoy reading.  You already know my love affair with Slaine.

For me, Mabon is the time of year that every thing changes. It's almost like a new start. As always, I do a little research whilst writing my blogs to see other perspectives on it and share any interesting links. There's a fair amount of fluff out there about Mabon. This quote is from a website that claims that there's no evidence of Mabon the Welsh deity pre-1970's but I'm fairly sure I've seen him mentioned in Mabinogion. Anyway, the quote rang a bell within:

So Mabon is a celebration and also a time of rest after the labour of harvest. In terms of life path it is the moment of reaping what you have sown, time to look at the hopes and aspirations of Imbolc and Ostara and reflect on how they have manifested. It is time to complete projects, to clear out and let go that which is no longer wanted or needed as we prepare for descent, so that the winter can offer a time for reflection and peace. And it is time to plant seeds of new ideas and hopes which will lie dormant but nourished in the dark, until the return of Spring.

The part that resonated with me is the clear out and let go of things that are no longer needed/wanted. It's always a time of year when it's all change for me.  I find myself becoming very peaceful within and reflective.

Another good site I found has the story of Mabon in detail. Yep, says it in this text that Mabon features in Mabinogion and some other old texts - ha new age fluffy site - HA! In fact, Mabon is entwined in many myths including Arthur's.

Ten years ago I was gifted The Celtic Shamans Pack by John Matthews/Chesca Potter, from the lady who used to run our development circle. I pretty much balk at anything with the word 'shaman' in the title as it's usually a load of hooey but this set of oracle cards are alright.  I don't use them very often but I feel myself turning away from the Mythic tarot that I've used for 20 years, to another form of divination.  I love Celtic mythology and feel that maybe it's time I relearned these cards.

John Matthews is no stranger to our ancient stories. In the card meaning of Mabon, he says that search for the lost child (Mabon) had animal helpers, the blackbird of Cilgwri; the stag of Rhedynfr; the owl of Cawlwyd; the eagle of Gwernabwy and the salmon of Llyn Llyw. They led the heroes of the tale to the place where Mabon was imprisoned.  The cards meaning goes on to say how we lock away the inner child as soon as we reach puberty and it's all too seldom that we learn how to set it free again.  Our inner child is trapped by our own self.  Now I'm not completely sold on this inner child stuff that gets banded about but there is something to it.  If this was the medicine cards, it would be Porcupine. Childlike play, playing with innocence and abandoning your husk gruff exterior (bear) to be child like.  People say 'grow up' and 'stop acting like a child' like both of those things are bad.  They really aren't. We suppress our selves to meet some grown up world ideal.  Fuck that!  Fart humour will still have me crying in laughter and rolling on the floor like an 8 year old.  Does you good to let your inner child laugh at the absurd grown up world.  John says that by freeing Mabon, you are freeing something from within you.

Whilst having a quick google for images I could use, I found this blog. I will copy and paste it in full and credit the blogger fully, although, I'm not sure if they didn't copy and paste it themselves. It's another part of the story of Mabon:

MABON was the young son of Mother Modron. Throughout the world there was not a huntsman who could hunt with the dog Drudwyn, the whelp of Greid, the son of Eri, except for Mabon the son of Modron. He was taken from his mother when three nights old, and it was not known where he was, nor whether he were living or dead.  Gwynn Mygdwn, the horse of Gweddw, that was as swift as the wave, carried Mabon the son of Modron to hunt the boar Twrch Trwyth.   Mabon could not be sought for it was not known where he was unless Eidoel, his cousin kinsman in blood, the son of Aer, was found. 

The whereabouts of Mabon son of Modron who was taken away at three nights old from his mother were known only to the Salmon of Llyn Llyw. In Gloucester it was that Mabon the son of Modron was imprisoned; and no imprisonment was ever so grievous as that of Mabon, neither that of Lludd Llaw Ereint, nor that of Greid the son of Eri.
Arthur summoned the warriors of the Island, and they journeyed as far as Gloucester, to the place where Mabon was in prison. Kai and Bedwyr went upon the shoulders of the fish, whilst the warriors of Arthur attacked the castle. And Kai broke through the wall into the dungeon, and brought away the prisoner upon his back, whilst the fight was going on between the warriors. And Arthur returned home, and Mabon with him at liberty.

And after that Arthur went into Armorica, and with him Mabon the son of Mellt, and Gware Gwallt Euryn, to seek the two dogs of Glythmyr Ledewic. And when he had got them, he went to the West of Ireland, in search of Gwrgi Severi; and Odgar the son of Aedd king of Ireland, went with him. And thence went Arthur into the North, and captured Kyledyr Wyllt; and he went after Yskithyrwyn Benbaedd. And Mabon the son of Mellt came with the two dogs of Glythmyr Ledewic in his hand, and Drudwyn, the cub of Greid the son of Eri. And Arthur went himself to the chase, leading his own dog Cavall.
Mabon the son of Modron, came up with Arthur at the Severn, upon Gwynn Mygddon, the horse of Gweddw, and Goreu the son of Custennin, and Menw the son of Teirgwaedd; this was betwixt Llyn Lliwan and Aber Gwy. And Arthur fell upon Twrch Trwyth together with the champions of Britain. And Osla Kyllellvawr drew near, and Manawyddan the son of Llyr, and Kacmwri the servant of Arthur, and Gwyngelli, and they seized hold of him, catching him first by his feet, and plunged him in the Severn, so that it overwhelmed him. On the one side, Mabon the son of Modron spurred his steed and snatched his razor from him, and Kyledyr Wyllt came up with him on the other side, upon another steed, in the Severn, and took from him the scissors.

These pictures are from a trip I made at Mabon (2009) to the gorsedd at Avebury. I visited the beeches and there definitely felt like a passage to another place here. I don't normally sense it when I've visited before but it was definitely there in this pic. The next image is of me and my son Aaron at Waylands Smithy on our way home from Avebury.  I don't do ritual or anything like that for the changing of the seasons. I feel it, I observe it, I give it a nod... it knows what it's doing, it doesn't need validation from me.  The first harvests are already being reaped... the second harvest won't be far behind that, then it's Samhain and then Solstice... you can feel it in the air, see it all around.  It's constantly changing, as are we.

NOTE: It's 3.47am, I just looked up and it's still dark outside with a hint of a dawn. A month ago it would have been nearly sun up, it would be a light as day out and all the bird would have been up since 3am. In the space of a couple of weeks, we are already sliding towards the nights drawing in.  Righto then, I'm offski to bed!

Mother Nature

Week 25

Just wow! Raw, savage, scary as hell but so beautiful

MOTHER NATURE

Everyone's mum. I wonder when our natural world around us, was given this name. There is a story about mother nature in pretty much every culture throughout the world.  In the UK, we were a pagan nation, as in 'of the land'.  After we settled and farmed the land, our gods and goddesses reflected the harvest and the time of the year related to growth, harvest, death and rebirth.  This is apparent the world over by the many gods and goddesses that do the same job but are known by different names. It's wrong to say that Ares and Mars are the same god of war, they are not. They are two separate entities, from two different cultures and time that represent war etc.  Pigeon holing gods/goddesses is not wise, they don't have a sense of humour lol.

The mother grows, bares and nurtures.  Our sabbats and festivals reflect the turning of the year, the seasons, when things die, grow, harvested and are reborn.  It is a cycle of all things. This is true in paganism and many other religions, it's the one denominator, I think, that unites the many cultures.

Demeter - The Empress

I have been doing the mythic tarot for 20 years, it's based on Greek mythology. It's not that I have any leanings towards their deities but I like the cards and the mythology.  The story of Demeter and Persephone is as good a story as any, to explain our seasons.  Demeter is the Empress, Persephone is the High Priestess in the major arcana.  Demeter was considered the goddess of the harvest, Persephone is the goddess of spring.

Source link:

In Demeter, Greek mythology had its caretaker and mother figure. This was a very important role that other goddesses sometimes played a part of, but none as fully as Demeter. Her grandmother, Gaia, was said to be the living Earth, though Demeter's name literally translates as "mother earth". This is probably because she was so actively involved in the growth and harvest of the food grown from the earth. Though vital, it was easy for some to take the harvest goddess's role for granted. It wasn't until she stopped doing her job that both the gods and humanity realized how important to human life Demeter really was.

Hades stole Persephone and took her to the underworld (it was Zesus' fault, he's a bit of a git). Demeter, not knowing where her daughter was, turned away from nurturing the earth. Crops failed and people starved whilst Demeter searched for her daughter.  Persephone was told that if she ate anything in the underworld she would have to stay there forever, she had only eaten three seeds of the pomegranate the whole time she was there. A compromise was made and she was allowed to return to the earth but had to return to the underworld three months of the year to be Hades' queen. When Persephone walked above, spring returned, life was renewed and the world was reborn. The crops grew to harvest and then she had to return to the underworld. The world dies during this time as the nurturing mother becomes the mourning mother, dark and destructive until her child is reborn in the spring. Everything has a dark and light side. Ignore that at your peril, this has been discussed in previous blogs.

Lightning can form in ANY weather. Tornado and lightning, mother nature reminding us how small we really are.

You've heard people say about the power of mother nature, it's destructive forces at play - earthquakes, storms, floods, some call them acts of God.  You've seen the beautiful sunsets, the stunning scenery, the awe inspiring sights of our world - that is mother nature too.  Gaia may be the earth but Demeter IS mother nature.. well in Greek mythology she is.  EVERY culture has a name for her. Romans called her Tellus; then there's Hertha, Erda, Jord, Fjorgyn and Hiodyn - all worshiped as goddesses. In Iroquois folklore, she is known as Etenoha.  The Lakota indians worshiped her as Ina Maka. There's loads of info out there.. here's a good link. 

This could be a statue of me. In ancient times, I would have been a super model

Note to all you people who called our earth Gaia: that's the Greek pantheon. Why pick one name out of the air and use it to name our living world, yet give no consideration to the rest of the Greek deities?  You aren't Greek, you aren't in ancient times, you don't follow those gods and goddesses, so why? New agers, pfft! It's all very well having a varied path, finding pieces of many threads to weave your own path but come on! If you're going to make things up, why not call Her Sheila or another name lol?  Or how about just Mum?

Whatever you call her, there is some stunning imagery created in her honour. May your creative juices flow, don't become stagnant and destructive in your mourning, nurture and yield many good harvests, whatever they may be.

Living garden sculptures

Solstice at Castlerigg - dragons breath rising