Imbolc

The North American Midwinter

Midwinter is usually a synonym for Yule or Winter Solstice and where I can see that working for places where it is in the 50’s (degrees Fahrenheit) in October. I haven’t lived in a part of the US where late December felt like the middle of winter. Winter Solstice on most modern calendars is listed as the first day of winter and that seems more fitting for North America in my opinion.

Seeing as every state I have lived in January though March are the coldest months of the year Imbolc really doesn’t fit as being the start of Spring or even showing signs of it. In fact the first signs of spring really don’t pop up till March or April in Indiana. Snow Drops and Daffodils not sprouting till well after St. Patrick’s day. As I build my relationship with the Sothern Indiana wheel I heard Imbolc referred to as Midwinter and that really stuck with me.

I am currently writing a curriculum for a class on Imbolc to present at my local occult shop next week and I seem to have forgotten everything I know about the holiday. I seem to have the same memory problem whenever someone asks me what my favorite bands are. So in an attempt to refresh my memory I have been reading the Llewellyn’s Sabbat Essentials and listened to my own podcast episode. I somehow became more preoccupied with the fact that the episode was published in February of 2020 then the words that were coming out of my own mouth.

With all that aside as I sit to put knowledge to PowerPoint I become lost in what Imbolc means to me and what I want out of my own observance instead of what others will want to know. Maybe if I get it out I can start making slides about ewe milk instead of focusing on New Moon planning. That’s really the feel of Imbolc though. Its the New Moon of the year. Where you plan the seeds to sow. How your going to do it and what you need to plant. With a snow wash to cleans last years stagnation.

My desk overlooks our neighbors field, one they plow and bundle. It is currently powdered with a few inches of snow. I have a cup of lavender tea warming on a hot plate beside me and I know the temps will not go above freezing this enter week, but this is just the start. Sure the sun has started to say in the sky longer but at work we have entered the slow season. This is when I truly get to rest in my bones and snuggle in for the cold. I will plan what I will plant and at Ostara take those first steps toward what I want to become this year, but we don’t literally plant here till after Mother’s Day. We know the chances of an early April freeze are high. May is when we really buckle down. For now I welcome the middle of winter.

Autumn

Life is like a box of Crystals

Hello!

Is anyone out there? Its been a long time since I have published anything on this page or on MPP and there is a reason for that. Although maybe not a good one. Even in todays age moving far away can change friendships and people move apart. Looking back on the past two years I can say a lot of the changes in my life were probably needed.

Do I like it? No, and I do miss working on MPP, but at this time there is no plans to bring it back. I don’t think the door on podcasting is completely closed for me. Maybe something will come up in the future. It is time however for me to come back to working for “the pagan community”.

Being settled in Bloomington and going though the wheel of the year twice has shown me what to expect and look forward to in the seasons. As most of you know my practice is very seasonal. I have, in fact, committed myself to teaching a wheel of the year class at my local occult shop. I’ll be doing a class for each of the eight “traditional” neo-pagan holidays starting with Imbolc.

For those wondering, the people who owned the moving company have been sentenced to to prison after pleading guilty. I guess that means justice has been served. I have had to find resolve to move forward whether I believe that or not. Strangely in all that loss I have found a new appreciation for antiques and vintage things.

Today is is one of the coldest days of the winter. There is snow on the ground, tea next to me, and an open Canva presentation I should be finishing. Instead I felt an overwhelming need to write this down. I have been feeling the itch to write on hear for a while. Maybe I miss sharing my witchcraft?

So like a box of assorted crystals I have spilled my thoughts on to the electronic paper to see what sticks.

Autumn

A Witch with Covid

As listeners of Millennial Pagan Podcast know I tested positive for Covid-19 a little over a week ago. I would be lying if I said my experience since has been easy or as expected. The most surprising thing I have experienced so far is how long I have felt sick. We keep seeing 14 days as this magical number of how long we should stay quarantined or out of work after experiencing symptoms but as my 14th day nears I know I will not only not be symptom free but unable to go back to work.

The symptoms I was most unprepared for and I noticed is least talked about is the feeling I have called Covid brain. Even when I am feeling better I am exhausted and unable to focus. Thoughts leave before I can follow up on them and I am to tired to try and track them down. I went into my quarantine with lofty hopes of getting so much done. I have had to find grace to give myself for not meeting my own expectations. Projects will be left untouched for naps and reading will be ignored for TV shows that do not require me to think, but even with that said I have done a lot of thinking and planning for 2021.

It goes without saying I am unable to do any magick at this time. I struggle with normal activities such as laundry and eating so drawing a circle and raising energy is completely out. Instead I have laid out the road map for the next part of my magickal journey by choosing my next few books to read and what I want to work on. I have also done similar for MPP and the soon to be debuted sister podcast, but it is a struggle to not do anything with my plans or to help myself.

My entire house is sick. We all feel the same way, doing a little then sitting down out of breath to just rest. We are restless. I don’t feel cabin fever for which I am grateful. I do feel I am wasting time feeling sick and confused for why I don’t feel better. We are lucky, we have a tribe able and willing to reach out and do anything we ask or need. We are taken care of and loved. We will get thought this.

Health and Safety to you,

Autumn Wolfe

My 201 Reading List

If you have read my post on my 101 Reading list then you know this is not a suggestion or a course but what I choose I needed to read next. I find the number of Pagan and Witchcraft books I want to read daunting and want to keep with a similar theme for a while. So I develop lists, this one I just completed has a lot of history and older publishings on it. If you have heard me on Millennial Pagan Podcast then you know how I feel about preserving our history. With that being said lest dive in.

• Buckland’s Complete Book of Witchcraft by Ramond Buckland

Commonly referred to Uncle Bucky’s Big Blue Book, I read this in hopes to have another reference on the basics of the craft. I would say it is a good book for a newbie but some of the sections did not age well and overall the book has a big emphasis on how to do High Magick. It’s not fluffy feelings and lacks in a bit of the visualization work. After reading The Big Blue I do have a better understanding of how American Wicca developed.

• Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches by Charles Godfrey Leland

At the time I was planing this list there was a movement developed at PanthaCon of witches crying out “We are Aradia”. So I clearly wanted to do my research. The Gospel of Witches is a compilation of poetry by Godfrey Leland that he claimed was told to him by a Herititary Italian witch that came from a line of pre-Christian witches. The book holds stories of Aradia, daughter of the virgin goddess Diana who sent her down to the humans. Diana sent Aradia to the humans to teach them witchcraft so they could fight injustices and class structure. I genuinely enjoyed reading this and loved the stories. Where I did not incorporate Aradia into my own working Patheon I do hold her in my version of the Roman Patheon as a true DemiGod. 

• To Walk a Pagan Path: Practical Spirituality for Every Day by Alaric Albertsson

This book had a lot of practical advice on how to construct a daily practice and how to see magick in your daily life. There are some sections including chapters on canning and livestock raising that have misinformation. I suggest if you do read this book and are interested in some of the homesteading practices that you read other books on that topic and look up to up-to-date information.

• The Witch’s Coven: Finding Or Forming Your Own Circle by Edain McCoy

I hope anyone planning on running a coven or joining a coven reads this book. You have heard over and over again on MPP about how important communication is in any relationship, well this book takes it a step forward and addresses the who, what, when, where and how of building a group and keeping a healthy environment.

• The Wizard and the Witch; Seven Decades of Counterculture, Magick & Paganism By John C. Sul

Wow did this book change my view on a lot of things! If you want to read about the practically imposable lives of some of NeoPaganism’s founders this is a great book. It is a big book! It covers Oberon Zell and Morning Glory’s entire lives up to the publishing and they lived. It was messy, crazy, and hard to fathom at some points but it is a joy of a read. I will say Oberon got a bit more page time and that might be due to him still being alive but when you get to Morning Glory’s early life it is half the information in comparison. I learned a few things about child-rearing from their failures that I would not have and came to terms with a potential path of my own life. Of all the books on this list, I think this one was the most transformative for me.

• The Rebirth of Witchcraft by Doreen Valiente

Do you want to read a polite gossipy tell-all about the rise and downfall of Gerald Gardner by someone who was closest to him? Not only is the Rebirth of Witchcraft a great snapshot story of what was going on in the UK during the Wicca bubble burst and Occult revile it feels like Doreen really letting out how it was working with Gardner. I truly enjoyed reading this piece of history.

• Buckland’s Book of Saxon Witchcraft

Boy was I hoping for something revolutionary out of this book, and boy was I disappointed. I picked up Saxon Witchcraft to hopefully feel more at home with it then “normal” Wicca. It was Norse flavored Buckland Wicca. I guess I should have known but it wasn’t what I was looking for. I feel that is how a lot of books turn out. You pick it up hoping to find what you’re looking for but in the end, you are what you are looking for.

• Moon Magick: Myth & Magick, Crafts & Recipes, Rituals & Spells by D. J. Conway

Is it good to just say it is by D.J. Conway and be done? No? Ok, great for correspondence and newbies.

• Initiate: A Witch’s Circle of Water by Thuri Calafia

This book is supposed to take a year and a day to complete going through lessons of the moons and the months. I ended up reading other books in between the months at first. Somehow the books I read every month were exactly what I needed that month. I don’t know when that stopped but at some point, it became harder to do the lessons, harder to read, till finally, I realized somewhere in that year I had completed an initiation of my own and it wasn’t into Calafia’s brand of Wicca. I don’t have strong relationships with deities or the “Lord and Lady” and am not interested in developing them. This book was heavy on that to the point that Calafia makes you feel you can not continue to progress unless you have those relationships.

 

I will be starting my next list for reading shortly but first I need to finish reading Glamor Magick by Deborah Castellano. Good thing I am in self-quarantine after a Covid-19 exposure. I feel fine and have been tested. I hope all my readers and listeners are doing the best they can and hanging in there. I am always available on social if you need me and I hope you will pick up one of these books and enjoy them too.

Blessings and Health!

Not Everyone Needs to be Third Degree

Yep, you read that right. Not every witch or Wiccan needs to rise to the level of third-degree! Most newbies hear about the importance of education, and tradition-based Wicca does sit heavy on their degree systems, but what we forget to tell newbies is that third degree is not for everyone nor should it be.

The degree system Gardner created was based on the Masonic degree system. Put in place so practitioners can tell who is allowed what knowledge and who knows what. This system defiantly does not work for all of Neo-Pagandom. In fact, this is a strong form of gate-keeping. In non-traditional groups, there may still be a degree system in place but used more like grades in school. To help you elevate your knowledge and work on prerequisite skills. Degrees have a place, but not everyone needs to graduate to a third degree.

Different traditions or groups will have different ways of structuring their degree systems. The coven I started out with had Seeker, Dedicate, Initiate, and then First though Third degrees. In that system, it was set up in a way that at the beginning of your first degree you have enough knowledge and experience you could start teaching the people below you and as you went a natural progression of responsibility in the coven and pagan community followed. I believe this natural progression occurs with or without the structure of a coven and even as a solitary at some point you reach where you begin to act as a teacher, leader, or organizer in the community. With third-degree as the level of clergy in the community.

This is why third degree might not be for everyone. Not everyone wants to lead or be clergy. This pressure of growing to the rank of third-degree is not obtainable for everyone nor does it have to be. Forgive me for using Christian imaginary but some of us have to be sheep. Some of us have to be just participants and observers, and a lot of people only want that. Not everyone has a calling to be clergy of anyone but themselves and that’s okay. Our community needs strong motivated leaders and helpers, and you don’t have to obtain a third-degree to be a leader or organizer. I surly have not yet. I have heard the call from the Goddess to work on her behalf. At some point, I will hopefully rise to the rank of third-degree or equivalent but not everyone has had the experiences I have to motivate them to that goal. That does not make you any less Witch!

 

Autumn Wolfe

Reaction: Choosing Horoscopes and Crystals

Recently on Millennial Pagan Podcast’s Facebook page, I shared an article by the LA Times titled How millennials replaced religion with astrology and crystals. The only comment I put with it at the time was “haha” being amused that a major news publisher gave us such great advertising and let it go. Until a follower commented on the article. Berate me later for sharing something without reading it. Thanks to that comment I actually did open the link with the picture of several amethyst stones piled on top of one another.

The article, written by Jessica Roy, was apparently the product of surveying people between the ages of 18 and 40 years of age and multiple interviews. The focus of the article was however mostly on subjects Ana Lilia a breathwork teacher, Chini Nicholas an astrologer and app developer, and Leah Garza a crystal jewelry maker and podcast host. As I read I found the same thing my follower did. Roy skirted around witchcraft, never really saying it but looking at different forms it takes. At the end of the article, I wasn’t pleased with “And no, they don’t particularly care if you think it’s “woo-woo” or weird. Most millennials claim to not take any of it too seriously themselves.” Since I do take my practice and these subjects seriously and so do most people I interact with but I brushed it off as mainstream media.

Until a friend shared an article almost identical in title published on Patheos. In fact, I clicked the link to see if it was a republishing with different pictures. Young People Are Choosing Horoscopes and Crystals Over Fundamentalist Religions, by David McAfee, with its photo of a woman with crossed legs in front of a sound bowl and crystals is not the same as the previously discussed article by Roy but a reaction to Roys work in the LA Times. I can’t say I was surprised to see an article on Patheos about the LA Times piece since their slogan is “the premier online destination to engage in the global dialogue about religion and spirituality.” However, I was surprised at the quality of McAfee’s piece.

McAfee threw around words such as nonsense and quackery to describe New Age Spiritualism while also commenting he felt nothing was wrong with the movement away from traditional dogmatic practices.”Believe it or not, I don’t oppose this. We should be moving away from fundamentalist adherence to ancient dogmas, and more toward this type of relaxed take-what-works-and-drop-the-rest approach. . .But I’m also not going to pretend like all these practices are truly beneficial to society, or that they are more effective than a simple sugar pill.” Devaluing the movement with his words at the same time as dismissing it entirely.

His reaction was just that. An emotional reaction and it is clear that it should have no place on a well-read and established page such as Patheos. I would have like to see something more rounded and thought out then what McAfee chucked at a wall in frustration and an attempt at drumming up publicity for his book. Do I agree with his statements about some New Age practices not being very effective? Sure but at the same time your attitude or belief the sugar pill is going to cure your (insert illness here) is what magick is about, and magick is the fundamental backbone of any religion. Pagan or otherwise. (The millennial brat in me wants to yell fight me b!tch.)

I don’t think I really have a true conclusion to write. Older generations keep coming up with new things to point at and say millennials are doing wrong, or different; are we killing Nestle yet, and we are going to keep being different, surprised, protective, or disgusted that they don’t see the problems with what we are turning away from. Some say it is just the nature of living and growing but as we’re watching today teens, millennials want to shed a proud tear at the things they are fighting for at the age we were when memes started to become a thing and we were defending Britany’s right the have a public breakdown. Hears hoping we as a species are becoming better. For the world’s sake.

 

Autumn Wolfe

 

Don’t forget the listen to my podcat Millennial Pagan Podcast where ever you listen to podcasts.

 

 

How to Recover After a Pagan Event

Okay, the title is a bit click bait-ish. Instead of giving you tips on how to recover I wanted to take some time to write to you, dear reader, about my recent experience in attempting to recover from one of the most extraordinary experiences I have had as a pagan. Only two days back and I am still trying to revert myself back to my “normal” routine and maintain the feelings, experiences, and power I gained on my journey.

If you listen to my podcast, Millennial Pagan Podcast, or follow me on social media, you know I went camping! But not just any type of camping. I was blessed to go to Pagan Perspectives Arizona‘s Midsummer Gathering. I had a wonderful time and you can hear about my experience there on our next upcoming episode along with Jera and Sunshine’s experience at Reclaiming Witch Camp.

After attending a public ritual, there are a few self-care things any magickal practitioner needs to do, but when returning from a multi-day magickal event, these things become even more pertinent and difficult to do. I left the event in a way that I hate to do: feeling like there was still something to do. I have had that feeling at the end of events before and have taken time to make sure I have found and completed the remaining task. This time, however, I did have an obligation I could not be late to, so I had to leave at a certain time. Thus making it difficult to hang around, help break down, and find what I was missing. This was the first thing I did wrong. Something I would always caution against.

The second was out of sheer stubbornness. I wanted to carry the feeling of being at camp for as long as possible so instead of changing my music to normal rock or mediation, I continued to listen to Pagan music such as Damh the Bard, SJ Tucker, Wendy Rule, Spiral Rhythm, and our good friend Badger Bard sing the songs of community and the Gods. Not only were these songs stuck in my head for days the refusal to change to non-magick music made it harder for me to change out of a magickal mentality.

When I returned home it took me a few hours to realize there was something wrong. I unpacked and chatted with my roommates then I asked my roommates a question. That’s when I realized there was definitely something wrong. I was met with negativity for the first time in 4 days. My roommate was not feeling well and her answer was not rude or out of line but it was negative and I suddenly felt slapped in the face. I knew my feelings were unnecessary and an over-exaggeration but I was upset. I went into my room and started journaling my experience. This, I strongly advise. You want to write down how you felt, what you saw, and what you did so you can remember and compare. I took the time to write everything over the past 3 days to get everything out of me and on paper where it could live forever.

After some retrospective thinking, I realized why I had such a reaction to negativity. I had, over the weekend, let down all my shields. Something that, as an empath, is hard and very dangerous to do. My refusal to change music allowed this mistake to go undetected until it was too late. It took the rest of Sunday night and Monday for my shields to return to normal and I had an overwhelming feeling of mourning for the remainder of that evening. I was lucky that I had the day off on Monday from my mundane job and the knowledge to meditate and pray.

I hope that I will continue the practice of prayer and meditation before bed and keep this feeling of spiritual connection. I have also learned to listen to my gut more. If I have a need I must fulfill it.  I have come away from this experience with homework in the form of books I must read and shadow work I plan on doing. I hope my experience helps you see the importance of self-care and knowing what your limits are before you go to your next event.

 

The Problem with Pinterest Witchery and Tumbler Spells

A new age of witchcraft is upon us! I speak for and with Millennial Pagans on my podcast, post Pagan events on Meetup, and network with my community constantly through Facebook messenger. Witches of all ages are heading to the internet to meet and interact with fellow magick workers; so it is only natural that a few spells be shared. Tumbler witches, Facebook Covens, Pinterest boards ext. are chock-full of spells and rituals for any need or occasion. However, with great access and reach comes great responsibility. Tee Hee Spidy reference! Everyone is one click away from a sigil to bind your “true love” to you, banish a harassing coworker, or win the lotto, but is real knowledge being shared?

I, like every savvy witch of the 21st century, has Googled a spell. What I am surprised comes up in my search is more whats not part of the spells I find. The real magick is usually missing from these quick and easy recipes. This can be a safeguard from the untrained utilizing magick but it can also develop a dependency. What I mean by this is, the small posts like what you see on Pinterest only has so much space. So, the spell is laid out as “you do this physically”, frequently without the visualization aspect described. Any effective magick worker knows the mindset and visualization is power. Spells lacking this are not useful to beginners and in some cases can distort the outcome of the spell. If a beginner gets nothing out of this widely circulated spell is it truly beneficial use of digital space?

I would at one point had said no. That without explaining the visualization and the believing of the magick written down the spell is useless in this form. I have since changed my mind. I can hear the oh no that sounds kind of like gatekeeping already but let me explain why it is not. There is plenty of resources for new witches to learn these important steps to casting a spell. In magick, if you want to be successful there is already a huge cultural understanding that you will have to do your own homework. It’s not gatekeeping or hiding secrets if Pinterest doesn’t have space to teach basics when even Micky Mouse had to pick up a one-o-one book or flood his basement.

So the Mouse flooded his basement. We’ve all been there with a spell that didn’t work or work exactly how we would have liked it. That’s how we learn and grow as witches. The quick and easy spells have there place even if they only keep us trying, learning and changing our magick. So go pin a sigil and don’t forget to google or read a book on how to use and work with sigils first.

 

 

Reading as a Magickal Practice

I have been described as a book witch, and have been an avid reader since I could read. Usually, I am seen with a book whether I am camping, going on vacation, or sitting in the break room for lunch. For the past few years, however, my reading has been solely Pagan and Wiccan literature with little deviation into Syfy, mystery, romance, or horror. It’s easy to see why I host a book club that focuses on Pagan reading and enjoy having something new to share with my members. There is so much to read in the p-word world I know I will never read everything I want but I keep finding new books.

Which made me realize the majority of my practice revolves around reading. Books, blogs, talking about books, writing this blog; Pagan reading is my Pagan practice. Where I have said I do intend on doing more magick this year and I do go to a few local circles for Sabbat ritual I tend to read more than any other work (podcast listening is just reading with your ears right?). I have a bookcase in my room filled to overflowing with just Pagan books, and there is a local used bookstore that I go to to find treasures. A recent visit had me walk out with books by Z Budapest and Pensky. Books I do not intend on reading in months but could not leave them in the store. They belonged in that overflowing shelf in my room with others just like it.

I do tend to read more than the average witch and feel it is essential to do so when you are a Solitary.

I have currently taken a short break from Pagan literature to read American Gods by Neil Gaiman, but once complete will dive back into a new list of books I want to read in a certain order. The lists I write are intended to give me a group of books at a similar level of education and theme. I call my current list a 102 list due to the material not being very introspective for the reader but also not being beginners material.

Thanks and Blessed Be,Autumn Wolfe

As always please feel free to comment and share! If you have any questions or wish to get in contact with me please email me at autumn.ironwolf@gmail.com, follow me on Twitter @AutumnIronWolf, or friend me on FaceBook!

Soft & Hard, Polytheism

Sorry, I couldn’t help myself with that bad pun. As I was being interviewed by a local college student recently (more about that later) she asked me a question which led me to describe the difference between soft polytheism and hard polytheism. Later I realized I haven’t heard this topic being talked about recently and figured it would be a good subject to cover for the 101 students.

First, let us start with the dictionary.com definition of polytheism; the belief in or worship of more than one god. The majority of pagans do define themselves as polytheistic and can be further categorized in one of two camps, hard polytheists or soft polytheists. Hard Polytheism in Neo-Paganism is the belief that every God and Goddess ever named or ever known are their own God/Goddess. Venus is a separate person from Aphrodite even though they have similar traits. Such as you see in American Gods. Odin has his own life separate from other creation gods in other pantheons and so on.

Where is Soft Polytheism is the belief that every God and every Goddess are just faces of the one God and Goddess. Think the Many Face God of Game of Thrones. Soft Polytheism can become monotheism when the believer sees these faces as belonging to one God, like with the Many Face God. A large majority of Neo-Pagans, however, do believe in the duality of there being a Goddess and a God who embodies all the other deities and traits of their gender.

Along with many other topics up for debate in Neo-Paganism Hard or Soft Polytheism is a very individual decision however it could be difficult to be in a Pantheon tradition such as a Norse or Roma tradition and be a soft polytheist. I personally can identify as both. I believe certain deities lived on earth, possibly as human and due to their deeds or fame ascended to deity. The purpose of life is to connect to deity or return to deity and their stories are that of such successes. They have returned but their essence was once separate and we can call upon them to assist us with earthly matters or understanding. I also can see where some Gods’ stories were traded throughout many cultures but their names changed with the cultures. Are you a hard polytheist or a soft polytheist?

Thanks and Blessed Be,

Autumn Wolfe

As always please feel free to comment and share! If you have any questions or wish to get in contact with me please email me at autumn.ironwolf@gmail.com, follow me on Twitter @AutumnIronWolf, or friend me on FaceBook!