Offerings at Sacred Sites
[Fair warning, I’m a bit ranty about this topic, so if you aren’t in the mood, just move on.] Please, by all that is holy, stop making offerings at sacred sites. Just. Stop.
Setting Boundaries
One thing that often gets overlooked when talking about magick is the “why,” the underpinnings, structure, or foundation of the technique being enacted. This post is about why we create sacred space, usually in the shape of a circle.
What if I fly?
The other day I got a question from a longtime reader. J. (the reader) asked me how I “do it,” by which they meant how it is that I not only teach and write, but publish and do anything in the public eye. Later that same day, one of my coven members reached out to […]
Annual Review & Goal Setting 2023
Each year at my birthday I review the previous year, celebrate my accomplishments, and set goals for the coming year. (Here’s my post from last year.) Sometimes I adjust those goals a bit at the witches’ new year (Samhain). Over the years I’ve learned to set fewer and smaller goals to allow for new opportunities […]
Ritual Thoughts: Leto
One of my coven members wrote an unusual ritual for their student project, and they led it today. A Ritual for Displaced Peoples, it called upon Leto to work with us in creating energy to assist the millions of people who have been ousted, or fled, from their homes. We kept the “assist” as general […]
You Are Allowed to Leave
An oft-overlooked aspect of working with others in a spiritual group is consent. For many of us, the spirituality of our family of origin was unsatisfying; for too many it was also full of toxic messages and behaviors. It lacked consent and taught us that “higher authority” could do as it wished, ignore rules, while […]
Article: Magick Online, A New Perspective on an Old Tradition
(This article first appeared on WitchVox, April 3, 2005) The world of online magick is just about 20 years old, having begun in the ‘good old days’ of Compuserve, when BBSs were the primary mode of transmitting information. Rituals were held online as early as 1985, with participants have reported highly successful results, akin to […]
Year’s End
Last year, in the light of the moon peering through the towering pines behind my house, I offered myself up to Deity in a ritual I have done every year since 1980. I pledged myself then, and renew that vow in recognition of Their regard of, and for, me. In my spiritual tradition, this is […]
Mysteries & Monsters podcast
I was a guest on this delightful podcast. I think you’ll enjoy hearing me natter on.
Article: On the Nature of Tools in Witchcraft
Llewellyn Worldwide chose to publish an article I wrote, “On the Nature of Tools in Witchcraft.” You can see it here: https://www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/3050 Part of preparing for my retirement involved storing my decades-old altar and traveling for an extended period. A box of incense with a flat ceramic holder tucked in the corner stood in for […]