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 Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2005 5:18 am
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The Magickal Apple
Source Unknown
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Imagine the perfect apple, ripe and bursting with life. Sliced in half,
it reveals a beautiful five-point symmetry-a star formed by the seeds
inside. In fact, each of these five seeds may be seen to contain a
symbolism of its own mirroring the spiritual aspects of this universal
symbol: idea, sustenance, life, secret knowledge and the hidden
mysteries within the earth.
" An apple a day keeps the doctor away, " you say ? Did you know that
people who work in cider, vinegar and applesauce plants often suffer
fewer colds and other respiratory ailments than the rest of us? Or that
if apples and apple juice are substituted for citrus in the diet,
arthritic conditions are improved ?
A little apple juice boiled with cinnamon helps settle an upset stomach.
As early as the 13th Century, baked apples served with a few caraway
seeds were recommended for post dinner digestive. The tradition of
serving applesauce with pork and goose stems from the fact that the
acids in the apple help the digestion of other foods.
Indeed, the unsweetened juice of the apple can help reduce acidity of
the stomach. Raw sour apples are stewed apples help cure even severe
cases of constipation. Hot apple juice with or without honey helps sooth
sore throats.
But apples are cultivated not only for their medicinal properties and
culinary uses, they can also have a very important place in myth and legend.
Apple is one of the Celtic holy trees, one of the woods from which magic
rune staves could be carved, and from which the Druids gathered their
secret mistletoe symbol of healing and fertility.
Avalon, the island to which the dying King Arthur was taken, was called
" The Isle Of Apples "; it was thought to be the Garden of Hesperides,
where Jason and the Argonauts came to find the golden apples of immortality.
The much maligned apple of the Garden of Eden was probably a
pomegranate. Other, familiar legends have evil witches and sorcerers
poisoning or turning apples into love charms to surprise the unwary.
At one time, I actually came across an old spell for making a love apple:
Take a 2 colored apple. Breathe on the green part and rub the red part
with red flannel. Then say, " Fire sweet and fire red, warm the heart
and turn the head. " Kiss the red part and give it to your intended.
When it's eaten he/she is yours !! Enough tales. Let's take our apples
to the kitchen. |
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Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2005 5:19 am
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Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2005 5:21 am
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Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2005 5:23 am
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HALLOWEEN CHANT
Valiente, Doreen; "Witchcraft for Tomorrow"; Phoenix Publishing 1985
This chant can be outdoors around a bonfire or inside around an extra
large altar candle.
Fire red, summer's dead, Yet shall it return.
Clear and bright in the night,
Burn, fire, burn!
Dance the ring, luck to bring,
When the year's aturning.
Chant the rhyme at Hallowstime,
When the fire's burning.
Fire glow, vision show Of the heart's desire,
When the spell's chanted well Of the witching fire.
Dance the ring, luck to bring,
When the year's aturning.
Chant the rhyme at Hallowstime,
When the fire's burning.
Fire spark, when nights are dark,
Makes our winter's mirth.
Red leaves fall, earth takes all,
Brings them to rebirth.
Dance the ring, luck to bring,
When the year's aturning.
Chant the rhyme at Hallowstime,
When the fire's burning.
Fire fair, earth and air,
And the heaven's rain,
And blessed be,
and so may we,
At Hallowstide again.
Dance the ring, luck to bring,
When the year's aturning.
Chant the rhyme at Hallowstime,
When the fire's burning.
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Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2005 5:24 am
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Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2005 5:25 am
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Communing with My (Your) Ancestors:
A Samhain Meditation
by Boudica
As we come to the End/Begining of the next Turn of the Wheel of the Year, a personal,
private meditation on those who have come and gone before us can give us perspective
and direction as we start on yet another cycle.
In a room where you feel most comfortable, on a couch, in a chair or on the floor, day
time or eventide, in front of a window, or beside a fire, make yourself comfortable.
Patchouli incense, or maybe you have a favorite oil that you can warm in a pot, throw
some herbs on the fire, wear a perfume that has meaing to you, or to someone who has
passed through the veil, some candle light, or sunlight, whatever it is that makes you
most comfortable and connected with those you wish to remember. Music can bring back
memories, recent or old. While you may want to have this rememberance of someone
special, you can use it to connect with all your ancestors, not just someone specific.
You may want to have pictures of those who have crossed through the veil around, gaze
at them a while, fix faces and/or names in your memory if you wish to include them.
Once you are settled in and comfortable then close your eyes. The first thing you want
to do is relax. My favorite relaxation technique is walking along a beach, breezes off
the water, smell of salt air, sand beneath your feet. As you begin to relax, scoop up
a handfull of sand. Feel it in your hand, open your fingers and as the grains of sand
fall between your fingers, allow them to represent the cares and worries of the day,
and let them drop from you to the beach, freeing you of any burdens or concerns you may
have.
Allow the scene to shift to a place you love, or move to where you feel most
comfortable. A grassy meadow, a wooded forest, pick a season that you associate with.
Fall, with the leaves covering the ground, cool, this would be appropriate to most, as
Samhain falls at this time. But you may have a season or place you hold special for
someone who has crossed the veil. Place yourself where you feel the most attraction
for what you are about to do.
Seated in your comfortable place, call to mind the face(s) of the one(s) you want to
remember. Think about what they looked like, what clothes they wore, how they did their
hair, what scent they prefered. Give them special consentration, looking into the
distance. Look around you. Do you see someone coming forward out of the distance?
Can you make out someone coming towards you? Are they waving? You can run to meet
them, or you can wait for them to come to you. Is there something you wanted to say,
something special you wanted to share? How about just a hug, or a smile. This is your
personal rememberance, there is no need to tell you what to say or do, you know what to
do.
If you look around, you will find many more people coming towards you. Aunts, uncles,
moms and dads, brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, grandmothers and grandfathers,
husbands and wives. There will be faces you will recognize, there will be others you
will not. Ask them who they are if you do not kow, I am sure you will find out they
are a distant relative who you may or may not have heard of or remembered. Smile, and
remember that we are made up of the genes of many people who have gone before us who's
names have been lost in time. It is good to thank them all for coming and sharing
their special place in your family with you. I have found from time to time that if
there is music playing in the background, Ancestors will dance, and you will be swept
up in the dance. Some may even sing. Look at all the people who have come before you,
who have laid out the chain of events that have lead to you being reborn this lifetime
as you are. They may have different forms from their different lifetimes, but they
will show all them to you as you dance and talk. You may even glimpse a past life of
your own that you may have been part of.
There will come all too soon in your meditation a time to return. Again, thank them all
for coming, kiss the ones who are special to you, and ask that they come again sometime
and share a special evening with you. Wave good-bye to them as they return to the
other side of the Veil. It will darken as they go, and you will realize that it had
been much lighter while they were there, it was the merryment and mirth that they had
brought, it will go with them, but it will not be darkness you are left with. Some
light left from the laughter and joy you felt having enjoyed their company.
Allow the special place to fade, as you bring yourself slowly back to your sitting
room. Walk back along the beach, feeling the sand under your feet, the warmth of the
sun, then the warmth of the room, the softness of the chair or the carpet beneath your
feet. Open your eyes slowly to the sunlight or the candlelight. Feel the joy left in
your heart as you feel connected with a bit of your family, your ancestors, those who
have gone before you and will be with you again.
One of the things I feel I need to do after a meditation is to have something to drink,
something warm and relaxing while I ground and come back to the mundane. I also want
to take a portion out to the back of my house, and leave it with some sweets for those
who wish to join me in a snack. If it is on Samhain, leaving food for those who have
crossed the Veil is not unusual, and for the most part, it is usually gone by the
following morning.
While this is meant as a meditation to be had with relatives whom you can joyfully
associate, there are those of us who have relatives with whom we have issues.
Sometimes in a meditation you can work out those issues, other times it can be a
serious issue that can not be worked out in meditation. This can lead to a problem
with the meditation and I suggest that if such a problem exists, maybe you may want to
wait till another time to approach this relative, a time when you may have support from
another on this side of the veil and you can work out this problem with help. Not all
relatives are easy to deal with, and issues of this nature should be dealt with on a
more professional level. But sometimes, when we do this meditation, a relative with
whom you have had an issue may come over to work out the problem, it can be resolved
easily enough and this meditation can be a usefull tool. If you suspect you will be
dealing with issues that are not easily resolved, look to a professional who can walk
you through this meditation, guide you, talk to you as you work out your issues, and
help you to resolve, or try to resolve the problems.
If you find you are alone, and a relative tries to force an issue, back away and
suggest that they wait for another time when you can deal with them on a one on one
level. Many will agree, and wait till such a time.
This is a time of renewal, when we will rest the winter, and gather our strength for
the next season of growth. It is a time to celebrate the year, and look forward to
another new one. We learn from our successes and from our mistakes, and we move forward
to face what challenges we may have. Celebrating the season by remembering those who
are our ancestors is our way of connecting with the earth, our roots and our heritage.
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