Hallows Everyday 19

 Remember Witch, Remember

Take your feathers, leaves, and bones.
Add to them your roots, your stones.
Mix them in your cauldron's womb.
Dance for rain and add that, too.
Your time is now, each heartbeat rings:
Remember Witch, Remember.

You know the way, you know the song.
You've walked this path 

your whole life long.
Drumbeat sounding, heartbeat pounding
The One's before you, love resounding.
With every turn of season, moon
With every deosil swirl of spoon
You chant the words, you hum the tune:
Remember Witch, Remember. 

The stars are out, your feet are bare.
Your arms are raised into the air.
No one told you what to do.
You knew the way, the Way knows you.
So let it go. Release it down.
Heart and blood and bones to ground:
Remember Witch, Remember. 

—¤ Brandi Woolf 2017 

Hallows Everyday 9

 I found this on the Facebook group Pagan Ways. I shall also begin a tradition of posting it every year and light a candle in remembrance.

Each year they parade her about, the traditional Halloween witch. Misshapen green face, stringy scraps of hair, a toothless mouth beneath her disfigured nose. Gnarled knobby fingers twisted into a claw protracting form. A bent and twisted torso that lurches about on wobbly legs.

Most think this is abject image to be the creation of a prejudiced mind or merely a Halloween caricature. I disagree, I believe this to be how witches were really seen.

Consider that most witches were women, were abducted in the night and smuggled into dungeons or prisons under secrecy of darkness and presented by the light of day as a confessed witch.

Few, if any saw a frightened normal looking woman being dragged into a secret room filled with instruments of torture, to be questioned until she confessed to anything that was suggested to her, and to give names or say whatever would stop the questions.

Crowds saw the aberration denounced to the world as a self-proclaimed witch. As the witch was paraded through the town, enroute to be burned, hanged, drowned, stoned, or disposed of in various, horrible ways, all created to free and save her soul from her depraved body.

The jeering crowds viewed the result of hours of torture. The face, bruised and broken by countless blows, bore a hue of sickly green. The once warm and loving smile gone, replaced by a grimace of broken teeth, and torn gums that leer beneath a battered disfigured nose.

The dishevelled hair conceals bleeding gaps of torn scalp from whence cruel hands had torn away the lovely tresses. Broken, twisted hands clutched the wagon for support. Fractured fingers locked like cropping claws to steady her broken body.

All semblance of humanity gone. This was truly a demon, a bride of Satan, a witch.

I revere this Halloween Witch and hold her sacred. I honour her courage and listen to her warnings of the dark side of humanity.

Each year I shed tears of respect.

Author unknown

Hallows Everyday - 29

...All things change and pass in the end, 

and when they are past we must rest and forget. 

That too is the law of the gods.

When the Summer is over, the land must sleep,

root and stone and water and earth:

the seed in the furrow, the beast in the hole,

the leaf on the tree giving itself to the air,

lightly -  lightly - no weight staying it 

- to fall to the ground and to rest.

To rest and to rest, safe on the ground, 

deep under the snow,

with nothing to trouble it, only to rest.

...Rest, rest and forget.

The seed to the furrow, the beast to the hole, 

the leaf to the ground,

and all to rest and forget.

- from The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday - 24

Three Sisters

by Frank Howell

We are the bones

of your grandmother's grandmothers.

We have returned now

We say you cannot forget us now

We say we are with you

And you are us.

Patricia Reis

from The Ancient Ones

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday - 9

Re-Member Us

Re-member us,

You who are living,

Restore us, renew us.

Speak for our silence.

Continue our work.

Bless the breath of life.

Sing of the hidden patterns.

Weave the web of peace.

- Judith Anderson, 1990 -

Hallows Everyday - 8

The Lamp - Remembrance

The Halloween Oracle by Stacey DeMarco

Interesting, remembrance seems to be the theme so far. When I first shuffled the deck this morning, the same card from the other day, The Underworld, stuck out to the side. I turned it over and thought, well, I need to re-read and perhaps think about the Underworld a little more. For me, I am pretty sure I know what the reappearance of that card is about. Each of you will have to decide for yourselves.

I reshuffled and made clearer my intention, a message about this season for any who read this blog as well as myself. The Lamp - Remembrance. Again... interesting.

For almost all of my years involved in Paganism and Polytheism, I have left a light in one or three of my windows for the spirits. I dedicate special candles for my Ancestors. Stacey calls the lamp a symbol of remembrance, leaving the lights on for those who wish to come home. It also soothes our own mourning spirit within, sad over the loss of those who have passed. Lights at night, candles, lamps, small flames in the dark, are exactly that, very soothing.

The Lamp also represents Hekate for me, with Her torches, in Her aspect as Soteira. She lights the way for us, brightens our lives. That lamp is also a call, I feel. She is saying, "come, be with Me, immerse yourself in the Mysteries I have to offer. Time for some journey work.

The Lamp card also tells us that there is no need to continue to be sad when remembering those who have passed. Certainly we must mourn, release that sadness, experience it and let our feelings release in an appropriate manner. But, in the end, we will be reunited with those we mourn. They are on a new journey, and they do come to visit now and again. When we need them, they are there, we simply call to them. This is why an Ancestor altar is so important, in my opinion, it becomes a strong connection. 

Light your lamps or candles, call them home. They await your summons with love and blessings.

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday - 6

Hallows Journey

The rain falls down and down,

running, rivulets racing,

spattering leaves and windows,

patter, patter, whoosh!

Sheets of droplets scatter across the hedge.

The lake moves across itself.

Something opens, something calls.

I am weaving, casting threads,

clack, clack, the loom sings.

The threads move of their own volition,

twining about my fingers, wrists and arms,

dancing through my hair.

I am of the threads, their magick embraces me.

The dried corn on my door

knocks, knocks, knocks in the tireless wind.

Like a skeletal hand, bony and white;

Like a grandmother from the grave,

Holding high a lantern light.

Knock, knock, knock.

The Hallows bones… they are here.

I've lit the candles and sang the song,

the ghost roads appear before my eyes.

I've opened the portal, time to pass through the gate.

This road before me is earthy in scent,

tickles my nose with the aroma of the old and long gone.

Roots, like threads, all around me hang, 

stones and bones lay sleeping in the earth;

I grasp those roots as they reach for me,

and pull myself along.

On to the river I glide across.

Beside me, a companion who does not speak 

yet I can hear Her.

The shore is dark, but the way is lit,

The grandmother's lantern guides me.

I follow to the knocking of those bones,

trailing threads, leaving snips and bits as I walk.

Another gate and then a door,

I pass through hoping for what awaits.

Yes… they are all there,

Ancestors of blood and ways,

pale white, glowing and iridescent.

They are chatty and welcoming, but I am not surprised.

They touch my face, they take my threads.

They offer white seeds, milk and bread.

Willingly, I partake.

Like Persephone, I am aware of what I do.

For a time I am home, this Hallows Night.

copyright E A Kaufman 2011

Early Hallows morning, 2011

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday - 4

Remembering To Remember

This is the time of year when the veil between the worlds is thinest. Our Ancestors and other spirits are easier to communicate with. This is the time when we should remember those gone past the veil more so than any other. Ancestor veneration is not so common, we remember them occasionally, yet most of the time we forget them. We need to think about that, why are we afraid to remember? Why would we forget? We all will be Ancestors one day. None of us wishes to be forgotten.

If you begin a regular practice of remembering your Ancestors now, keeping to it through this Hallows season, it will likely stay with you through the rest of the year. It will become a daily or weekly practice. Simply lighting a candle, speaking their names, and spending a moment with them can be enough. Of course, more elaborate devotions are beautiful too.

If you've had difficulty communicating or connecting with them before, at this time they will hear you easily and you will hear them as you have not heard them before. This is the time, make it so.

To the Ancestors in the Scrapbook
by Ashleen O’Gaea

On the simple grey pages of history,
your pictures are framed in unconscious confidence
that someone will remember your names,
and your faces will shadow in another generation’s light.
You are young in your pictures and earnest: 
you accepted your duties, lit your candles.
Dearly departed, you are present in us in the usual course of Nature:
you begat us, you were our primal seas. 
Cryogenitors, you are frozen,
your breath and years caught in single crystals affixed to this page.
You are still real.
But I have so short a memory of you
that the fraction must comprise the whole.
You are real; you are real among
faeries and gods;
you are the muses and ghosts beyond our pale and ken. 
You are the few moments of your life
that someone photographed.
You are in them, truly:
these are the moments that eternally reveal you, 
reveal what your lives meant.
Our blood courses on.
Flesh becomes photograph, effect becomes legend, 
and you are still real.
I too will be real some day,
on the simple grey pages of history. 


from the anthology
Calling to Our Ancestors
Edited by Sarenth Odinsson, available as download or paperback at
http://www.asphodelpress.com/book.html?title=calling-to-our-ancestors

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday 26

Hearth - Happiness in our hearts and homes,

The Halloween Oracle by Stacey DeMarco

The hearth was and still is the heart of the home. This is where the family gathers, where we are drawn to, even if it is the stove in the kitchen. Here is the place that offers us sustenance; we gather around the stove to see what's cooking or baking. Usually it gives a positive feeling. If one is actually lucky enough to have a real hearth, it too is a gathering place. We can't help but sit around or nearby, watching the dancing flames, taking in the aroma of the burning wood, feeling the warmth, listening to the crackle and pop as the fire burns.

For me, my hearth is a place for devotional work, a portal for my Ancestors, a true place of comfort. I live in a condo, Toadstool Condo, and my hearth is a ventless fireplace that uses a natural grain alcohol gel instead of wood which crackles and pops just like a real fire. It is SO soothing. My stove is also an altar, where I take care of my family and friends by preparing meals and goodies. But even if you can't have a real fireplace or a ventless one, a small chiminea, available in many home decor or garden stores, can be used with a candle - voila! Instant hearth. I had one before I purchased my ventless fireplace from Plow & Hearth. It changes the energy in the home, especially when you make it an area for devotions as well as comfort. Don't forget your stove, though, the modern hearth.

When the Hearth card presents itself in divination, we must look to home, family, and Ancestors. Are we remembering those who have passed with regular devotions? Do we need to more fully acknowledge relationships? Is there a conflict within the family that needs work and resolution? This is the time to build up the loving home fire. Even if you live alone, your Ancestors are there, you have relationships and family; take time to care for these. Family, which includes special friends, is a priority, make it so if you have been too busy lately. Nothing is more important than love and being with those we love and live with or spend time with. Remembering those loved ones who have passed is an important part of living, don't forget honoring them.

This card also tells us that our home and family is watched over, by the Goddesses of home, hearth, and family, as well as by our ancestors. Honor them all by making time for them, for saying "I love you" and "I'm grateful you are part of my life." We are protected.

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday 19

The following invocation was adapted by me from one written by Rev. Judith Lewis. She wrote it for invoking the God at Samhain. I have it in my Book of Shadows and when I reread it I thought it would make a wonderful ancestor invocation after a few changes.

Death walks among us as you pass your way.

Your time has come and gone, the wheel turns.

You have been the spring, the rejoicing summer,

the dying autumn, the still, deep winter.

You are the sorrow, the sadness,

and the coming of death to us all.

Back to the Mother who gave you birth

and nurtured you upon this earth.

Back to the womb of the darkest night,

Back to the chamber of rebirth.

And in that sleep which so restores,

You pass once more, as do we all,

to the Mother to be reborn.

Join us now, before you leave us,

Join us in rejoicing in life.

For without it, there is no death and rebirth.

And so is the cycle and the Lady's way.

Blessed be you, our Ancestors.

Blessings darks and deep!

Hallows Everyday 16

An Herbal Ritual For Remembering the Dead

This ritual may be performed on or near Hallows/Samhain or when

someone you know passes. I found this on the internet years ago, but

no author was listed; I have made a few adaptations. 

If you cannot obtain some of the herbs, simply use 

another with similar properties and make the 

change in the prayer.

Gather the following for the ritual:

A tea light for each person to be remembered

rose petals, bay, oregano, parsley, elder,

rosemary, basil

Cast your circle using rose petals and rosemary to define it.

Be sure to clear the space well beforehand. 

Arrange the tea lights on your altar along with photos

or other remembrances of the dead.

Light a tea light and call the name of the person 

you are honoring.

Stand at your altar and  recite this prayer:

The wheel of life turns,

The cycle of life continues.

Those beyond life, beyond the veil,

You are remembered today.

Gifts of love and hope

are offered with love and honor.

To those I remember,

To those I do not,

to all those I have lost.

Hekate, guide them home with Your torches.

Persephone, take them in Your gentle embrace.

My dead You have taken,

The Fates have cut their threads,

And now spin and weave the threads anew.

May the wheel turn and begin again.

I give freely these herbal offerings,

May they be acceptable and assist you.

(as you recite, scatter the herb to the wind)

Rose petals for love,

Elder to guide your journey,

Bay for strength,

Parsley for honor,

Basil for peace,

Oregano for happiness,

and Rosemary for remembrance.

So mote it be!

Sit now and remember your beloved dead.

Let the peace of the ritual embrace you. Perhaps

perform some divination to receive a message.

Let the candles burn out. Open your circle.

(adapted from a ritual found on the internet, author unknown)

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday 2

Winter from the Halloween Oracle

by Stacy DeMarco

Today I asked the Ancestors for a message and they give me the oracle card, Winter. Most appropriate at this time as we begin our descent into the quiet of the year.

We are living in a time of dying now, plants are dying back, leaves drifting from trees, the Earth has given all She can give for now. The days are becoming shorter, and the beautiful, velvet night longer. Life is slowing its pace. We enter the time of metaphoric and literal death as Winter comes. Death, for most, is frightening despite the fact that we will all face it. Winter is the dead of the year, life slows almost to stillness. 

I remember as a child sitting in our back yard or walking through the woods nearby in Autumn. It was a special time; the scent of the air, the falling leaves, the crackle of the dying plants and grasses beneath my feet, the scarcity of animal life. I remember the utter stillness though, that is what stays in my mind, everything but the wind, halting, dying away.

The Ancestors have given us this card to remind us of what lies ahead, what is inevitable, and that we do not have all the time in the world. We need to look at ourselves, our lives, the way we live. Are these things, are we what we take satisfaction in? Do we appreciate what we have? Do we look at all the good there really is or do we focus on what we don't have, what we can't have, and the negatives? This is the time to let go of what stops us from living fully, what really doesn't serve us. It is natural and right and part of the cycle of our lives to move on, let things drift away, especially when they no longer benefit us. Too many live in a state of wanting what cannot be.

It is time to reassess our lives, let the past that holds us back die away and take the necessary action to make ourselves as happy and fulfilled as we can be. The burdensome past is over and cannot be changed. Let it go. Make the choice each day to see the beauty in our lives, and there truly is so much. This does not mean living in a fantasy world, but getting out of the fantasy. You have what you have, you are what you are, move forward with appreciation and make the best of your life.

Sit back for a bit as Winter moves in, contemplate and consider, plan and be what you wish to be within the bounds of reality. Appreciate every day you are given.

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday - 1

Welcome once again to my Hallows Everyday series of postings. I believe this is the third year I am indulging in this wonderful countdown to that most sacred of days, Hallows, Hallowmas,  or Samhain, whatever your tradition may call it. I consider the entire time from the Autumn Equinox to about the 13th of November to be the Hallowtide season.

This year, along with the poetry, historical tidbits, humor, or whatever I feel like posting, I will include a small devotional practice to add to your own devotions, be they daily, weekly, or haphazard.   Join me if you will and leave a note about your experience if you are so inclined, I'd love to hear about it. So, let us begin with some autumn poetry.

The leaves of red, bright gold, and brown,

To Mother Earth come tumbling down,

The breezy nights, the ghostly sights,

The eerie, spooky, far off sounds

Are signs that it's October.

from It Must Be October by Pearl N. Sorrels

I live in South Florida where we have no Autumn, no turning leaves, no discernible change in weather. Oh, how I miss the Autumn! And so, I make Autumn inside Toadstool Condo - the scent of simmering spices touched by the kiss of apple; pomanders drying in bowls of spices add to the warm and comforting aromas. Apple cake bakes, spiced tea brews, a fire in the hearth, autumn and Halloween theme stitching add to the atmosphere made merry by the Hallows decorations.

The shrine for the goddesses I am devoted to has been decorated as well; branches, acorns, sheaves of wheat, candles of orange, gold, red, brown, and black. My Ancestor altar has been cleaned and rededicated, and decorated for the season. After all, this is the time They are most active.

Devotional activity: Dedicate an orange candle, preferably scented with spices of the season, to your Ancestors. Light it each night, or just once a week, letting Them know They are welcome. Leave a little offering of cake or cookie, bread or a bit of your dinner. Let it stand on the altar until you extinguish your candle, then take the offering outside and leave it in some special place: the base of a favorite tree, a hedge, garden.

Blessings dark and deep!

Charge of the Dark Goddess

Charge of the Dark Goddess

by E. A. Kaufman 

She is stillness and silence.

Her voice older than time, yet young and sweet.

She is knowledge of the ages and Mother of Rebirth.

She is the heart at its deepest core,

and desire and need.

She is the the Dark Lady, the Dark Goddess, 

the Darkest Mother of the Seed. 

She is who we long for, never truly understanding,

Yet full to overflowing with need and fear all at once.

Listen to Her speak, hear Her words,

Let them seep into you like the night, 

The night that spills and stains the day.

I am the darkness and shadow beneath the night sky.

I am the absence of awareness in your deepest sleep. 

I am the Ending and the Beginning, 

the decay that feeds and enriches. 

I am the endless cave, the hidden hollow, the moon unseen.

I am all that is hidden, dark, and deep. 

Yet, I am the key, the torch, the lost dream remembered. 

Come, be with Me on the night of the Dark Moon.

 Walk with Me along the Ghost Roads, 

Know that which is seen, See that which is unseen. 

Face your fears and know that you are not alone. 

Walk to me through the blackest night,  

to the center of My Mysteries, 

 I will hold the torch and light your path. 

Find your way to Me through those fears, 

and yours will be the understanding of My Mysteries. 

Think of Me and know that I am the shadow at your back. 

And at the time that is proper and right,

When you have accomplished the tasks I have set for you,

Then shall we meet at the Crossroads betwixt and between,

and then, shall we begin again.

copyright E A Kaufman, 2014

Blessings dark and deep!

Hallows Everyday 29

Yesterday I did not want to post Hallows Everyday. I learned that Layne Redmond had passed and I wanted to pay tribute to her instead. It occurs to me that since Hallows is about honoring the dead, I did, indeed, do that.

Layne, it seemed from what I read, spent her last months doing what she loved, working on the revision of her book, When The Drummers Were Women. In a video I saw of her, she appeared to be happy, almost joyous. I didn't know her personally, only from her writings, Facebook, and especially, her music. I know she was with people who loved her and took care of her. Really, I thought she would just go on. Instead, at this sacred time, she left. If one can choose, this seems the perfect time.

We are in the Autumn of the year, the quiet time when all that dies lays to rest. So the dead sleep, but come spring, all that dies will be reborn, and in that we, the living, can take comfort.

Samhain Evening Prayer

Lady, You are Prophetess and Queen.

The Final Harvest has been met;

the land lies sleeping, expectant.

In the Winter stillness

You will conceive tomorrow's hope.

Receptive and quiescent, 

Your dream unfolds as a counterpoint

to the Dark Night that will enshroud us all.

Life and Death are balanced.

Endings and beginnings are wrought.

Your blessing weaves all into a holy tapestry,

complete and irrevocable.

by Galen Gillotte,

from Book of Hours, Prayers To The Goddess

Blessings dark and deep.

Heartbroken...

Layne Redmond

Just heartbroken. Layne Redmond passed away this morning. She was an inspiration and a beautiful person. Blessed journey, Layne, may Hekate guide you. 

Pride & Prejudice Documentary

Here is a most informative radio documentary about Jane Austen and her novel, Pride and Prejudice, this year celebrating the 200th anniversary of its publication. A great deal of interesting information with lovely music and clips from various productions pepper the documentary. Something I learned and I didn't realize, there is a Pride and Prejudice opera!!! Jane and opera, I am beside myself that two great loves are combined. This will be a must listen to, at least, if I cannot find a DVD or live performance.

And why am I posting this here, a witchy, goddess blog? Well... in my opinion, Jane was definitely a sorceress, weaving words into magick. Perhaps you agree?




Blessings nine!

Time of the Old Women

A beautiful lady in lace.

Today is the celebration, Time of the Old Women. I believe it is Moroccan in origin. I have celebrated it for many years to honor my own ancestors and relatives of blood, but also all women of a certain age. These women are forgotten, disparaged, and disrespected by most of the world today. However, in the past, the elderly were revered for their wisdom and honored all the time. Even in the Pagan community, where I would expect better, I read and hear such disrespect and nastiness toward older Pagans. This day is very important to help dissipate that negative energy.

Tonight I will sit at my hearth, my ancestor altar decorated with photos of my grandmothers, as well as photos of Doreen Valiente, Sybil Leek, and other long gone women. Also on my altar will be photos of my mother, aunts, and other older women, especially those involved in the craft, that I wish to honor. I will light candles and thank them for their wisdom, bless a plate of goodies as an offering, and bless wine and tea for libations. Prayers and poetry will be recited, but then I will just sit and be with them. I will send out a blessing and healing energy to all elderly women for protection, peace, good health, and happiness. This is a celebration honoring the living and the dead, so honor both.

Mom!

I will call my mother today and a few elderly friends just to say hello and let them know I am thinking of them, that I love them and am happy to have them in my life. I will also go to the cemetery and visit my mother-in-law's grave. While there, I will walk around and visit the graves of those women I don't know, but would like to say a blessing for. And... I will be sure to smile and say hello to any woman I encounter throughout my day, sending a little blessing to them too. Nor will I forget myself, no spring chicken, but not elderly either! ; )

A busy day and time to get back to it, as well as planning to honor Hygeiea tomorrow - it is Her day on the 26th!

Blessings nine!

My friend, Helen, with her button necklace. She is an avid button collector and 

has taught me so many things, as well as adding to my own button collection!

Farewell Patricia Monaghan

Into the arms of the Goddesses, November 11, 2012

Yesterday, I read the extremely sad news that author Patricia Monaghan, author of The Book of Goddesses and Heroines, had passed away earlier in the morning. I, among many others, felt very shocked, disbelieving at first; some mistake, some other Patricia Monaghan, not our Patricia. Her other works included, The Goddess Companion, The Goddess Path, and The Red Haired Girl From the Bog. 

The original Book of Goddesses and Heroines has been a sort of bible to me over many years, referred to often. Now, with yellowed and worn pages, it will become even more of a treasured book. I have studied her other books and shared their wisdom with many women, as well.

Patricia, I wish you beautiful and exciting adventures. I send your family healing and loving blessings in this difficult time. You will be missed beyond your knowing. May the Goddesses you loved so much guide you as you continue on, on this new journey, but always in our hearts.

I will be sitting down later today with her books, not only to remember, but to prepare for my monthly discussion group. Funny, I decided last week to begin a series on heroines of mythology, pulling her books off the shelf, ready to peruse in my quest to share stories of those heroines. We will remember Patricia at the gathering, placing her photo on our altar, hoping she will be there, in some way, to lend her guidance.

Blessings nine! 

Hallows Blessings!

Hallows Blessings,

Blessed Hallowmas,  Happy Samhain,

Happy Halloween!

Whatever your tradition, May the blessings of the Goddesses and Gods be upon us all and may we remember those who have passed to the Otherworld. Tonight, they come again to be with us once more. Let us light a candle in our windows to guide them home. Let a place be made at our dinner tables for them. Let us think well and give thanks for all we have harvested this year and begin the journey within that Winter brings.

Blessings nine!