See now the world in a new light,
As most of it is hid from sight,
Like some darkly cancerous blight,
The fog that descends in the night!
Wrapped in veils of frigid moist air,
The fog now holds you in its snare,
Of world around, you become unaware,
Barely half seeing all that is there!
Sounds now deadened by the mist,
Noise of footsteps cease to exist,
You are too powerless to resist,
As reality succumbs to subtle twist!
Grey blanket covers all like a cocoon,
Then through the fog the trees do loom,
Skeletal branches seen through the gloom,
Like fingers silhouetted against the moon!
Cold air in your throat like a blade,
Within your lungs it does invade,
Feeling like your flesh with ice is flayed,
I bet you wish inside you'd stayed!
Streetlight gives off sickly lurid glow,
Illuminating nothing that you know,
Leperous light it does bestow,
Neath it nothing good will grow!
Temperature drops a little more,
Frost coats all with spikey hoar,
Myriad details it does now obscure,
With crystals so small and so pure!
Winter scene from Christmas Card,
Now the ground is frozen hard,
All around with light is starred,
Like glints from a crystal shard!
Suzanne Read
6th December 2010
Inspired by the recent unending fog we've had for the past few days, I hope you like!
Showing posts with label worldview. Show all posts
Showing posts with label worldview. Show all posts
Tuesday, 7 December 2010
The Holly King - A Poem
Hidden deep in the forests darkest gloom,
Will you find a special, secret room,
Walls of trees, overhead branches loom,
Like some strange Hall or wooden tomb!
In the center stands great blaze,
Into the air the flames do raise,
Painting all with deep bronze glaze,
Lighting all in these dark days!
Laid on tables oh so wide,
Feast of fruits down each side,
Forest residents with hooded eyes,
At this feast are now all spied!
Beyond feasting tables lies a large throne,
Made from wood and bone and stone,
Over all of it the Ivy has now grown,
On top of it the snow has blown!
Sat in throne looking so very fine,
With eyes so brown that they do shine,
Lined face of beauty, so benign,
How could he be thought so malign?
Frost lies coating old mans beard,
He is One who's coming is feared,
The land below He has cleared,
As with snow it is now smeared!
Winter is a needed part of life,
Cold months with all their desperate strife,
Hunger abounds and is now rife,
As it cuts at belly like a knife!
He is Winter incarnate, Holly King,
He doth death and cold now bring,
Yet in depths of midwinter do we sing,
Of returning Sun, of coming Spring!
Dark half of the year doth He rule,
From summer heat to frost so cruel,
Yet think him not some kind of fool,
His reign doth end at coming Yule!
He does no more than play his part,
Coating world with His works of art,
Then for other lands he doth depart,
As growing season does now restart!
To his brother he does now atone,
As Oak king now doth take the Throne,
Once more his solar might is now known,
And once more are the crops now grown!
Suzanne Read
7th December 2010
Inspired by the recent cold temperatures and snow, hope you like!
Will you find a special, secret room,
Walls of trees, overhead branches loom,
Like some strange Hall or wooden tomb!
In the center stands great blaze,
Into the air the flames do raise,
Painting all with deep bronze glaze,
Lighting all in these dark days!
Laid on tables oh so wide,
Feast of fruits down each side,
Forest residents with hooded eyes,
At this feast are now all spied!
Beyond feasting tables lies a large throne,
Made from wood and bone and stone,
Over all of it the Ivy has now grown,
On top of it the snow has blown!
Sat in throne looking so very fine,
With eyes so brown that they do shine,
Lined face of beauty, so benign,
How could he be thought so malign?
Frost lies coating old mans beard,
He is One who's coming is feared,
The land below He has cleared,
As with snow it is now smeared!
Winter is a needed part of life,
Cold months with all their desperate strife,
Hunger abounds and is now rife,
As it cuts at belly like a knife!
He is Winter incarnate, Holly King,
He doth death and cold now bring,
Yet in depths of midwinter do we sing,
Of returning Sun, of coming Spring!
Dark half of the year doth He rule,
From summer heat to frost so cruel,
Yet think him not some kind of fool,
His reign doth end at coming Yule!
He does no more than play his part,
Coating world with His works of art,
Then for other lands he doth depart,
As growing season does now restart!
To his brother he does now atone,
As Oak king now doth take the Throne,
Once more his solar might is now known,
And once more are the crops now grown!
Suzanne Read
7th December 2010
Inspired by the recent cold temperatures and snow, hope you like!
Sunday, 5 December 2010
Tru;y a Witch, a poem
Truly a Witch
by ~RavenSummerisleWhat does it mean to be a Witch?
Its not about chasing a golden snitch!
Lucky Black Cat and Pointy Hat?
There's no real need for all that tat!
Watching Charmed on the telly?
Tattooing triskelle on your belly?
Singing along to Practical Magic?
Oh, dont be so bloody tragic!
Watching Twilight and New Moon,
Cant wait for the next one 'coming soon'?
Angel and Buffy are your Heroes?
Get a life, their only TV shows!
Hung with Silver everywhere,
Eager for disapproving stare!
Teenage fad thats 'oh so cool'?
Dont be such a rebellious fool!
Bookcase filled with TeenWitch books?
Huh, money taken by corporate crooks!
Shelves filled with crystals so fine?
Dont so waste your bloody time!
All these are thing any Witch may choose to do,
But doing them does not a Witch make you!
Being a Witch means none need see,
Being a Witch means you have to be free!
If you truly seek to be a Witch,
And you need to find your own niche,
Then it is inside that you must look,
Wisdom does not come from a book!
Look to the Old Gods to light your way,
Listen carefully to what they might say!
Pay heed to who They really are,
Walk with them as you journey afar!
Honour Maiden, Mother and Crone,
Now within the seed is sown!
Honour, Child, Hunter and Sage,
Learn the wisdom of every age!
To see your future then look to the past,
Look to the Ancestors, legion so vast!
Honour them all in your own Rites,
Connect with them at Sacred Sites!
Learn from those who came before,
Take heed of their experience and their Lore!
Practice your Art by night and by day,
But form your Rites in your own way!
Learn to listen to whisper half heard,
See the real in picture half blurred,
From your eyes let the blinkers fall,
Let yourself truly perceive it all!
Become aware of all thats around,
The Other realms you have now found!
Learn the ways to travel between,
Learn from all that you have seen!
Honour the Sabbats of the wheel,
They will truly help you to feel,
Learn from the changes of the Seasons,
Learn the lessons and their reasons!
Get out into the Woods late at night,
Beneath full moon, oh so bright!
In the darkness work your Rite,
Within the Goddess's sacred sight!
Find your connection to the ground,
Make your own roots viable and sound!
Connection to the land growing so strong,
As you write your own individual song!
To your own heart you must be faithful,
Even if others find it really distasteful!
The Crooked Path you've chosen to walk,
Will wind along with many a fork!
Let the ego deep inside die,
Let your spirit soar and fly!
Loosen the fetters of society,
No need for personal notoriety!
If these things you so choose to do,
Then to Old Ones you will show honour true!
You will no longer have need of labels,
As their blessings are enabled!
Then Pagan Priest(ess) you will become,
To Your true self you will succumb!
Druids, Witch, Heathen and Shaman!
All good labels for any honest Pagan!
This of course is my own take,
Tis not Mankind who a Witch do make!
Your own choices you must make,
Whether within you wish the Gods to awake!
But be aware that oaths do bind,
That the Old Ones will again you find,
In future lives you will return,
Once again a Witch, once more to learn!
Suzanne Read
29th November 2010
Saturday, 13 November 2010
Shadowy Worlds Half Seen
Shadowy Worlds Half Seen
In Shadowy Worlds only Half Seen,
Abide those who before have once Been,
All they were and all they Mean,
Are still aware in waking Dream!
With passion and lifeforce they once Shined,
The Ancestors, legion in rank, deeply Lined,
Make contact, share with your Mind,
Wisdom once more for you to Find!
All their hopes and all their Thought,
All they were can still be Sought,
Their presence still can Forth be Brought,
Once more to speak, for us to be Taught!
Aware again of visions from unseen Cast,
Listen hard to the Legions so Vast,
Learn well the lessons from the Past,
Take the wisdom thats meant to Last!
Suzanne Read 13th November 2010
Greetings and welcome once more Seeker! I'm inspired today to look at the existance of the Other Realms, the Ancestors, and the very nature of Balance and Responsibility that exists. A big topic, one that the time of year naturally brings to mind (with Samhain and Remembrance Day and their focus on those who have journeyed from this mortal coil) and a topic that truly can only be understood by the individual when trusting to their own individual worldview and their own Personl Truth. None but yourself can choose what and how you believe in regards to anything, and your own experiences will obviously bring forth your own unique viewpoint, so all I can do here is share my worldview, and some of those experiences that have brought me to my own understandings. I hope they are of some use for you!
If we look to Newtonian physics we find the laws of conservation of momentum, and Einstein points us to the fact that energy cannot be created or destroyed, merely transformed into another state of existance, these all point to the fact that anything that exists must continue to exist in some form when physical life ends. Granted our bodies decompose, we return to the elements that we are made of and become a one with the mundane world around us, but personally I think there is something more to life, our intellect, our thoughts, our very essence and spirit I believe is separate to our physical existance, certain memories and experiences I can remember that I have never experienced in this lifetime point me towards concluding that I have existed before, not as I am now, but as another being, living and learning lessons, some of which I am able to access, some of which I am fated to relearn, but as one who is Witch I do believe I have been recalled to life by the Old Ones, reborn once more to play my part, to do that which They require of me in Their names!
Our bodies are grounded in the mundane, their flesh resident in the world of the mundane, of physics, chemistry, biology, of the 5 physical senses, a product of evolution as much as the shaping hands of the Old Ones, yet our spirits are something more! Our minds, our awareness, our very spirit has the ability to ponder and work within and without the fabric of the mundane natural world around us. Our imagination is boundless, confined only by the limits you put upon it, this ability to transgress the finite and touch the infinite, allowing ourselves to truly become all that our potential suggests is one of our greatest strengths, allowing us to perceive more than absolutes to work in the face of infinity and find our way forwards! As much as our intellect allows us to process the All around us to make sense of it, there is also more that we are capable of, we are capable of abstract thought, belief in concepts that cannot be proven to exist or physically seen, yet we know exist. In the same way that we cannot focus our eyes to a level to allow us to directly observe an atom, yet we can see experiments that prove they make up the fabric of our mundane reality, so it is with the 'realms' in which we reside, we can physically perceive the mundane realm of reality around us quite easily, yet other realms exist that we can become aware of, sometimes by accident, sometimes by deliberate choice!
Science itself is still finding what it believes, string theory, general relativity, multiverse theory, all are plausible, yet we still have no absolute theory of everything, no set of rules that works on all levels of the mundane, yet the universe works without one, minds much superior to my own spend countless hours on finding an understanding of the universe on a physical level, yet most of it is still a mystery to us all!
The first realm beyond the mundane that we can show exists is that of the mind, the seat of our spirit within the physical body, its science is psychology, it exists, it allows our awareness to be and to travel within and without the body, yet cut open a skull and disect the brain and you cannot point to one thing that can show the physical existance of the spirit or intellect in physical existance, it is more ethereal. The firing of pathways in your brain, the electrical activity that forms your conscious thought and allows you to remember, the feelings that make us human, all this still cannot be fully explained by science, yet we know it exists, we have personal experience of it!
It then follows that for anyone who has an open mind, no matter how skeptical they are as an individual, that there must be the possibilities of other realms of existance. Most people will profess a disbelief and some will ridicule those who have a belief (or more). Many who would reject out of hand anything other than physical reality do believe in an afterlife, but what else is a belief in an afterlife other than a belief in another plane of existance?
Take any person, even one with no belief in other realms, and who is unaware on many levels, put them into an environment where they are subject to the influences of Other Realms, and although they may profess that they felt nothing, look to their heartrate, their breathing and let the truth of it actually come forth! Imagine putting them into a darkened haunted house at night, or taking them for a walk in a graveyard at night, their senses will be heightened, they may experience fear, or the feeling that they are not alone, all of which could be explained as nothing more than fear of the unknown. But there we have our clue, they have possibly acknowledged that its the 'unknown' that causes their breath to catch, their eyes to widen in fear, but another name for that 'unknown' could be a touch from the Otherworld, the merest hint of breath from another realm of existance!
Christianity tells us there are 3 realms (if we simplify things a bit for the sake of brevity), the physical world, and then Heaven above and Hell below, yet is this a Truth? Is this all there is, or is it something else, possibly a construct in order to use a carrot and stick to convert and subjugate native peoples to their religion? Only your own worldview can answer this for yourself, but I know what I believe!
As Witch I am somewhat aware of Other Realms, Other Worlds that surround me, a part of who I am is that my awareness is present in more than one reality at a time, though my focus may stray from one to another when I will it. My own personal experiences have proven to me (beyond doubt) that Other Realms, Other Worlds exist, exactly how many, where they lie in relation to one another, whether you can journey (physically or mentally) to them and what rules apply when you are there I will leave to the individual to decide for themselves, I have my own experiences of some of them, that tell me they are real for me, but only you can make your own journeys to experience them and garner whether their 'Truth' becomes a part of your own!
I will however talk about 3 of the Realms I have had the most experience with, the Astral Realm, the Otherworld and the Ancestral Realm. Some consider them to be the same, but for me they are 3 separate realms, akin to each other, but different in how I perceive them and interract with them.
For me the Astral Realm is a place I can journey to through meditation, guided visualization and through pure thought processes, it is a place where I can interract not only with those who reside their, but also a place that I can experience contact with others of the mundane world who have also journeyed their. Constructs can be made and left, and will still be there when you return, places claimed and used, and magick exists in all its forms, the mundane laws of physics can be suspended, if you know how and will it to be. I have journeyed here to a friends Astral home, and recounted the experience, including descriptions of what he had changed recently and left there for me to see, and had them confirmed when I next spoke with him!
The Otherworld is another thing, it shares similar facets with the Astral, but generally is inhabited by those not of our mundane world, it is a place that some of our Beloved Dead and Ancestors also visit, a place you can interract with them and with other inhabitants, those of the Shadow World, the Fae (not fairies, but the Aelfkind, not the benevolent 'fluffy' otherkin of fantasy literature, but the tricksters, the fierce and proud inhabitants worthy of respect and honour in their own right! The Otherworld is all around us, a shadowy reflection of where we are, our perceptions are heightened here, it can be journeyed through without moving in our mundane world, and magic again is rife here!
The Ancestral Realm is a shadowy place for most, some see it as the Summerlands, some as the Elysian fields, some as heaven, it is a place that those who we have loved have journeyed to, to rest, recouperate and reflect before they move further on (either to rebirth or to another level of existance, or simply to be absorbed back into the All). It is not a place ot journey to easily, normally those who reside here will meet us halfway, coming when the veil is thin to the Otherworld in order to communicate with us, as happened at the Goddess Hall Samhain Rite a few weeks ago for myself! It is a place where we do not belong until we are called to pass over, it is where those who now reside their make their choices and decide what they need to experience next, it is a place we should honour and respect and leave alone, it is not for us........ yet!
Having said that though, for me personally I feel we do need to acknowledge and pay repect and honour to 'Those Who Came Before', the legion upon legion of our Ancestors, both those of blood (from who we physically descended) and those of Spirit (who shaped our world, the knowledge and wisdom within it and our own personal beliefs) and Whom now inhabit those shadowy worlds half seen and often unperceived by most. I may light a candle in their names, or choose to include them in our Rites, not just at Samhain (when it is traditional to do so), but whenever I can!
Without our Ancestors, then we would not exist, without their passion, their sacrifices, their triumphs and failures, their will and intent, then we would simply not be here, either as human beings or as Pagans in the modern world! Yet many folks rarely think upon them, rarely honour them and rarely seek the wisdom of ages past, either within their workings or within modern life! As has been said many times by many people, 'If we do not learn from the mistakes of the Past, we are fated to repeat them!' (Look at the Easter Islands and the deforestation and environmental calamity that the islanders brought upon themselves, yet as a species we do not seem to have listened to the lesson and seem intent on repeating their mistakes, but perhaps this time on a global scale?)
Now when I speak of the Ancestors, I am not just talking of the nameless and faceless multitudes from distant past, those from prehistory (whom are those I usually visualise) but also those of a more modern era, those who have died in all walks of life, those whose contributions were small compared with others, but wove with the all to create the rich tapestry that is the world we inhabit. I include those on all sides of all the wars ever fought, I honour their sacrifice and beliefs, the fervour and honour they showed in their beliefs and commitments and the price they paid for it, I honour those they left behind to suffer grief, and those who whatever the circumstance tried their best and did right as they saw it. No-one ever truly starts out as an evil person, we are all victims of Fate, doing our utmost to be the best we can, yet things do go wrong, folks learn behaviours (or fail to learn lessons well enough) that brings their worldview out of alignment with what we perceive as right or wrong, yet who are we (without their experience set) to judge them?
From a spiritual viewpoint I include within the Ancestors all those who sought to truly follow their beliefs (whether I agree or disagree with them) and did their utmost to follow their beliefs and share their worldview, but only when it was done out of a sense of wonder, awe and love, something not all religions can truly claim.
I also include within my Ancestors all those whose work has now been discredited, think of Margaret Murray, she did what she could using what was available to bring back some interest in Pagan beliefs and the Divine Feminine, her intent and belief I believe were true, for her worldview, yet other scholars took delight in shooting her ideas and theories down. Perhaps at that time they were not yet ready for a Reconstructionalist viewpoint.
In fact, although we individually can honour those Ancestors that are our direct kin (in both blood and spirit), those who inhabited the Land we occupy before us, in order to truly grow as a species, we should allow our net of influence to go wider, accepting all those who have ever lived in this world, accepting their truth, their honour, their beauty and their failures, their depravity, their mistakes and the horror of their actions! Only by all upon the planet accepting them all as our forebears, by accepting that we also have a responsibility to learn from their actions, can we as a species learn from the past and grow to fulfill our potential! If we believe that anothers actions have no effect upon us as individuals, allowing others to commit atrocity without our sanction, then we are pacitly giving our permission for them to continue!
We should be aware of the world around us, active in our observation and active in using our voices and energy to share our observations and effect change wherever we can! Without our actions, then the world will remain out of balance, those who have will keep it and remain comfortable, those who have not will live their lives in poverty and fear! Thise who are safe will stay that way, those in peril will have to fight to protect themselves and to remove the threat, and as always when it comes to conflict, those who are stronger will dominate the weaker, both physically and economically. As the world approaches an energy and resource crisis as the population outstrips the planets ability to support us, then things can only descend into darkness as we loose our balance! Only if we begin to act now, finding other ways to live that reduce our impact upon the planet, that live with the Land instead of raping it for our harvests, respecting the Land and all those who live in it, can we possibly find a way forwards, one that will allow us to respect and honour each other and for all to continue living, finding a balance that prevents others from gaining power over us!
This brings me onto my final point, we are all damaged by being out of balance, in the mundane and in our spiritual lives, the mundane is not something I can talk about for your own individual circumstance, but the religious / spiritual side of life is one I can comment on, if only in general terms!
For the past 2000 years or so, since the start of the prevalence of the Patriarchal religions, we have become something less on a spiritual level than we once were, with the rediscovery of the Divine Feminine we have a chance to regains some of what we lost, honouring the duality of Deity as much as we honour the duality of the sexes, we are one species, but two (or more?) genders, we need to be as balanced in our mundane as we do in our spiritual, and vice versa! The Samhain Rite we attended at the Goddess Hall in Glastonbury a few weeks ago brought a vivid and deep experience our way, a connection to the Goddess that made me even think of looking to complete their Priestess Training at some point in the future, but on reflection and having searched my own soul I find that although I admire what it is that they are doing, for me personally it is not a Path I can take. The reasoning, simple, they are (at least it appeared to me) solely Goddess focussed, I admit that in the current world it is probably something that is desperately needed, for some to be so focussed that they begin to redress the balance in favour of the Goddess, returning the world itself to a balance of sorts, but for me I have to find that balance for and within myself, I could not choose to be solely focussed on one side or the other, I have to follow both the aspects of our natures, honouring both the Divine Feminine and Divine Masculine, the Lord and Lady, the Goddess and God, as the messages I received said,
'I am the Mother, from whom all that exists flows, for without Me there is nothing, Fear me for I am the destroyer, Love Me for I am the provider, I nourish and nurture, I bring change and growth but also death and decay! Worship Me in all My Glory and Might, Cower before My awesome power, Take comfort in My dark embrace, Draw Power from Me when you have a need, but never ignore Me!'
'I am the Horned One, I plant the seed from which all grows, for without me the Mother is barren and life cannot exist! I am the Hunter, the protector and the Horned One of the Forests and green places, I am He who is cut down so that all life may continue!'
Without both aspects we are nothing, without both sides of our nature being equally honoured we run the risk of repeating past mistakes, swapping a Patriarchal society and religious focus to one of Matriarchical and Feminine focus, no bad thing in itself, but allowing the swing in polarity to go too far would I feel be as disastrous as it has been for the past 2000 years! We need to find that balance, to honour both sides and to work with both!
Thanks for reading, I hope something within caused you to pause for thought or stimulated some process within!
Dark Dreams
Suzanne
Wednesday, 10 November 2010
Have you seen the film Earthlings?
Lost a balance, then cruelty be sure to happen!
Nature be red in tooth and claw,
This we know, of this we're sure!
Playing their part, Hunter and Prey,
In darkest hour and on brightest day!
Herne, Cernunnos, Cern and Pan,
Woodland Gods, half beast half man!
Bringing meaning and something more,
To those needed deaths, something pure!
Playing their part the dead doth go,
Their blood taken so others may grow!
Horned One comes to take them home,
Where once more they may roam!
Returning once more to the Spirit,
A part again of the world and all in it!
Birth, life and death all play their part,
As its always been from the very start!
Yet today something is very wrong,
One species has grown far too strong!
Mankind is king of all they survey,
This is all for us, so some say!
Lost a balance, lost our way,
Cruelty happens every day!
Far from the eyes of us most,
Far removed from Sunday Roast!
Harm is done in our name,
And we must all share the blame!
Cheap goods come from questionable sources,
Yet there are other resources!
Only alone can we play our part,
Choosing things with unburdened heart!
Buy from those you can trust,
But only buy if you must!
Reduce your burden on the planet,
You can if you try, come on now damnit!
Other species are also here,
They too should live without fear!
There is nought that can taken for granted,
Not meat on plate or seed you've planted!
Chemicals use now out of control,
Are we signing our death roll?
Permaculture shows a new way to live,
Harvesting what crops willingly give!
Living in harmony day by day,
Surely this is a better way!
If we change the way we live,
Take what is given and freely give!
Respect all life in myriad form,
Treat it well should be the norm!
Pagan world views these may well be,
But this is how it doth feel to me!
The world itself needs none to save,
Its Man who will end up in his grave!
Its time for us to make our choices,
Tis time for us to raise our voices!
Its time for us all to be heard,
Tis time for You to spread the Word!
Suzanne Read
9th November 2010
Surfing the net yesterday evening I came across Damh the Bard's Blog, and reading a post brought me to watch a film for free on the net, not something I usually do, but Earthlings is something the like of which I have never seen before! Beautifully shot, narrated with empathy and feeling, covering a difficult subject in a non-judgemental yet sympathetic way, horrific and thought provoking, its something that all should watch, but I warn you, it is disturbing, visceral and portrays our stewardship of the world and all those Earthlings in it in a way that shames me.
As a person who consideres themselves both Pagan and one who takes personal responsibility for their actions, I feel as though I honour Nature, paying homage to the Gods and Goddesses of the forest, doing my bit to protect the wild and reducing my impact upon the planet (growing as much of our food as is possible, keeping bees, recycling and reusing, etc), plus having an interest in ecological issues and nature, yet after watching this film I have to admit, there is more I can and will do!
I'm not saying I will turn vegetarian (I tried it for a month or so once, it wasnt for me at the time), but I will pay more attention to how the food we buy is produced, how the animals are treated and what respect is shown them as they are killed. I will also pay homage to the life that was given in order to feed me, paying respect and using it fully! I know I can live without meat, but a part of my own Truth is that I take responsibility for the death, something I have done in the past to remove a pest (rabbits on the allotment) in a humane way and to use the animal fully once it returned home with us! This may not be for all, nor should it be, but for me it was an important part of acknowledging who I am and my place in the world.
I will also look closer at what clothing and other goods I buy, cheap leather is something I will look at deeply, if I am not happy with how its been produced, then it will no longer be for me! Other goods we normally buy are from sustainable sources whenever possible, but now I think I'd rather do without if its been produced in a way I cannot condone!
I am not saying that others should do the same, nor feel obliged in any way, its up to you to make your own choices, its up to you to use your voices! Yet if you do watch this film, then be prepared to have your eyes forced wider open, not all these practices happen everywhere, there are those who respect and humanely treat their livestock, and its towards these as enlightened consumers that we should turn, I know our Pagan pounds are hard earned, and wont go as far compared to the cheapest food from the supermarkets, but to my mind its a price we have to pay!
http://www.earthlings.com/earthlings/video-full.php
Dark Dreams
Suzanne
Tuesday, 9 November 2010
A Gentle Touch from the Old Ones....
The Gentle Touch
Walking along the Crooked Path,
With Knife and Cup, Stang and Staff,
Old Ones walking by my side,
Taking me along, far and wide!
Time to Learn, time to rest,
Trust the Old Gods, they know best!
Finding Knowledge along the way,
Hearing what the Old Ones say!
Heed Their Words, listen hard,
Wisdom found in words of Bard,
Simple things, nothing much,
Yet feel the tingle in gentle touch!
Feeling warm breath from a child,
Seeing beauty in the wild,
Gentle touch of the Mother,
Lying together with your lover,
Sensual meal by candlelight,
Shooting Stars in the Night!
Spending time in good company,
Sharing laughter, You and me!
Moonbeam glinting on the water,
Autmn colours, days become shorter,
A shaft of sunlight in the Mist,
A glimpse of Stag, you get the gist!
Wisdom comes not from a Book,
No matter how hard you care to look,
Knowledge holds dubious value,
Until you know whats true for You!
Only by Doing can we really Be,
Experience begats Wisdom, dont you see?
Live your life with open eyes,
Live beneath wide open Skies!
Take every chance you may get,
Dont live like some coddled pet!
Growth is seldom without strife,
Thats a part of every life!
Call of the Gods, getting Stronger,
You cannot ignore it for much longer!
Let yourself really feel it all,
Summer, Winter, Spring and Fall!
Be open to a sense of Awe,
Follow your heart, live your Lore!
Heed my words I ask of thee,
As you will it, so mote it be!
Suzanne Read
8th November 2010
Welcome once more Seeker, to my musings, my ramblings, I hope you find something that resonates for you!
Today, after writing the above Poem last night, my thoughts swing to how we each individually perceive our experiences, how they effect our 'worldview' and thus affect our 'personal reality' or as a friend put so well, our individual 'Truth'!
We all see and experience the world around us (seen and unseen) through our own individual eyes, our perceptions coloured by our own individual past experiences, filters laid in place by our beliefs and current 'worldview', our own personal take on reality, our own personal 'Truth'. For each one of us this personal Truth, this personal reality is perceived as an absolute, for us this IS our world, our own reality, created by our learnings, our experiences, the hurts and joys that have shaped us as individuals, it is how we understand the world around us, how we make sense of things on a daily basis. It has meaning truly only for ourselves, nothing exists in 'absolute reality' that does not enter our own personal 'Truth' without our own meanings and perceptions being assigned to it.
Yet for each of us, our personal 'Truth' is different, no two individuals can ever have had the same experience set, nor had it affect them in exactly the same way, we may find congruity amongst others who walk a similar Path, find shared experiences that resonate, touch others whose spirits are familiar to us and experience moments (or longer) of absolute true understanding, where empathically we understand exactly the mindset and personal reality of another, but these occurrances are the exception rather than the rule.
For most folks (especially those without an active spiritual path) their personal reality will be very mundane focussed, rooted in the hear and now, they will not feel the touch of those realms beyond the mundane, they will not hear the call of the Old Ones, not because they are unable to, but because they are not currently open minded in that aspect of their life (Im not making a judgement or criticism here, merely looking at how our 'worldview' affects our perceptions)
As children we are unaware of the existance of our own personal 'worldview', we take most things on face value, experiencing everything new with a sense of wonder and awe that as we grow up usually becomes jaded and blase, our experiences colouring our perception and our reality can quickly become so rooted in the mundane that life can become almost meaningless.
For those of us whom have found an active spiritual path (of whatever form) our personal take on reality can be radically different from the mainstream, so much so that others can perceive us as 'weird', 'naiive', 'deluded' or just 'different'! This can manifest itself in various ways, from the odd glance you get from another through to being held up as an objet of ridicule, yet allowing ourselves to become open to other influences, to perceive more than most yet do has its own rewards!
Think back to when you first discovered your personal Path, think back to the sense of wonder and awe, the heartfelt joy you discovered in your connection to all that surrounds you, from those things gross and blatant through to the gentlest whispers, half heard in the night, for most they would have no meaning, but to those who live with an awakened and aware consciousness then we know that there is nothing we experience that does not have meaning on some level! Witchcraft, paganism, spirituality, call it what you will, is not all bangs and whistles, indeed most of the time it is not, yes, you will occassionally experience something transcendant, something that is overwhelming in its power, symbolism and personal meaning, but for most of the time its the smaller simple things we experience that tell us our feet are walking the Path they are meant to be! Im talking of being open to seeing the touch of the Goddess and God in all you experience, from the beauty of a single flower, the power of a storm, the simplicity of a lit candle, the majesty of a stag in the woods, the touch of a moonbeam on your face, the kiss of the wind on bare skin, the smile of an eye, the smell of the woods on an autumn day, all simple things, yet things with meaning if we care to touch upon them!
I'm not advocating abandoning yourself to unlimited beliefs in every concept you are brought into touch with, nor abandoning your intellect or scepticism, but if you truly allow yourself to Be, grounded in your own personal reality, your individual Truth and in Realism, experiencing all that surrounds you with wide open eyes, then you will perceive much more than most!
Personally I find myself an open minded skeptic, I do not easily believe in things I have not experienced, yet my own experiences, the places and things I have touched, my connection to other realms and to the Old Ones teaches me that they do exist, even if others do not perceive them or believe in them. I try to live my life with wide open eyes, alowing myself to be open to all the influences (seen and unseen) that I come across, sometimes they resonate within and I find myself delving deeper, sometimes they leave me cold and I leave well alone, which is how it should be! Following your own Crooked Path is very much a personal journey, it has to have personal meaning for yourself, what others think or believe really should have no influence on yourself unless you find it also has personal meaning for you aswell!
Only by allowing ourselves to be open to what is around us, to feel and see what is really there (on all levels) and to 'Be' who and what we really are can we truly grow. Knowledge is fairly easy to gain, there are books aplenty on almost every aspect of our life and craft, yet book knowledge in itself does not make one wise. Only through personal experience can we commute knowledge into wisdom, without hands on experience, without knowing exactly how something works for us as individuals and what it means to us personally, then knowledge is nothing more than theory. Personal experience allows us to truly feel and assign true meaning to anything we have learnt, allows us to garner its truth and beauty and thus to integrate it into our personal Truth, making it a part of ourselves and our own personal wisdom.
For most of us this is something we acchieve for some of the time (myself included), for the rest of the time we are focussed on too many other things, work, family, mundane life all impact upon how much we can focus our intent, yet for some it is a state of being that they have acchieved, their focus is firm and their Path impacts every second of their day. They are able to see the hand of the Old Ones in everything around them, something the rest of us would love to do but have not yet attained!
In an ideal world, those of whom are attuned and awakened (at whatever level they perceive) would be eternally free to follow that which pulls us, having time and energy to do so at any moment, but in the current world we live, with its distractions and the way we are forced to live, conforming with societal norms in order to provide food and lodgings for ourselves and our loved ones, many of us find ourselves limited in what we can acchieve, yet yearn to do more, but even by spending nothing more than a few moments each day being totally aware, we can increase our sense of connection and our participation in the All around us! Lighting a candle and some incense, spending time reading something spiritual, meditating or even writing a journal or blog (and thus spending your energy on spiritual matters and really thinking and working through your thoughts and intent) are all good and simple ways to honour the Old Ones on a daily basis if you are unable to do more at any given point!
It is Our intent, our focus, our commitment that is of the utmost importance on our individual Paths, the Old Ones understand all that pulls upon us, the myriad distractions we are forced to deal with, in fact you could argue that sometimes They have placed them in your way to test your resolve and see whether you have the will and commitment to overcome them, sometimes on your own, and sometimes with a little prodding (or perhaps more than a little, the cosmic 4by2 comes to mind here)!
Sometimes life can seem to become derrailled, both on the mundane and spiritual levels, personal and familial disasters occur that seem to have nothing to do with our Paths but do take our focus away from where we wish it to be, but listen deeper, look harder, at some level there will be a reason, it may be a lesson you needed to learn, a change required in your direction, a trial you needed to face, a sabbatical you need to take, or perhaps it is time for you to be melted once again in the forge, annealled into something new and stronger (as Nietsche said 'What does not kill me, makes me stronger')
As I once wrote many moons ago............
'Always remember, no matter how far along the Path you travel, from the valleys of ignorance to the peaks of enlightenment, around the next corner will be another steep and rocky path for you to follow! Sometimes you may need to sit and rest by cool waters, other times you may slip down the path, loosing your footing, other times you will stride firmly onwards and upwards, but remember to always do so with an open heart and mind, for the day you close your mind, believing you know all you need to know is the day you may aswell fall upon your sword and remove to the Otherworld, for from that day forth you will be dead inside!'
Thanks for reading, I hope you found something of interest!
Dark Dreams
Suzanne
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