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Pleasure is not the absence of pain, but the result of it.

As someone with chronic issues, I can’t help but notice all the ways the pain in my life can quickly turn around. The relief I feel when I, or someone else, massages my head when I have a headache. The addiction to tattoos despite being stabbed by a needle a jillion times. The relaxing feeling of someone brushing my hair, even if they catch a knot. Falling down in a way that makes you fear you might’ve hurt yourself but then realize you’re fine, feeling your anxiety ease. The pain of piercing your body, with the joy of seeing the result afterwards. The feeling of taking off your bra after a long day. Ripping off sweaty/wet/dirty clothes and hopping in the shower, drying off and getting into your comfiest pjs. Getting sick from accidentally forgetting to take your medicine (or not taking it purposely) and then realizing how much it truly helps when you take your dose again. And one of my personal favorites, laying down in bed after a long, exhausting day and feeling the tension just flee your body.

It’s a great way to shift perspective, because this is true for everything. Sunshine all the time creates a desert. Without pain and suffering, there would be no joy, relief, or happiness. Everything that functions in nature is balanced, and this is but one aspect. It’s not a dysfunction of life, but a feature. And when you stop fighting it, and tune in, you’ll notice the suffering doesn’t stop, but it’s not as great as it was before. It’s easier to bear.

I started to write this with a headache, for example, and now as I finished up, my headache is gone! Sorry guys, they were really right about gratitude practice. 🥲

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God: is the alpha and the omega.

Christians: ☺️

God: is the male and the female.

Christians: 😡

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The Akashic Records aren’t real.

This one might definitely get me into some trouble, but I think it’s time we be mature about this. The Akashic Records stem from the cult of Theosophical theology, which has its roots in the early 20th century among some of the most deplorable people the spiritualist community had to offer. It’s where we get the terms like “black and white” magic, it’s where we get magic spelled like “magick” for no good reason, and was home to the likes of Aleister Crowley. These people were incredibly racist, groomed children, and were a literal cult.

If that wasn’t enough of a yikes for you, the fact of the matter is, is that I have never seen cohesive information about the Records. I looked, years and years ago. Because of course I did. Everyone was talking about it back then. Some sources would say that you had to get permission from this angel, and this guardian. Some said you had to have a special key to get in. Some said you needed to enter a special state of being to gain access (whatever that meant). Many people on the internet disregarded all that and said that it was freely accessible to anyone. All that inconsistency is questionable as is, but consider this:

If the Akashic Records were real, and held all the information of the universe that had been, is, and will be, why didn’t anyone use it for more than just past life stuff or whatever folks were doing? If I had access to that kind of information, I would spend a crazy amount of time there. I would gather as much information as I could. Study hard and apply it to every inch of my life. I could see how each route of my life would play out and I would choose the best one. I would manipulate things to work out in my favor. With that kind of information, all spellwork, divination, divine relationships, etc. would become OBSOLETE. Why bother using divination if I can just look in the records for what I need? Why make petitions to the gods when I know how to make it work myself? Why would I even need witchcraft to make things work in my favor when I just know how to make it happen anyway? It would take away all meaning of life, all purpose and drive would be lost, the inherent power of uncertainty that is intrinsic in nature would be removed. The very concept of the Akashic Records goes against nature.

[rue-with-the-tarot]

I’m going to be frank and say that a great deal many of you should not be teaching others. Many of you are not qualified for it, suited for it, ready for the challenges it will inevitably present, and if I’m being really honest, a lot of you aren’t as advanced as you think you are. Certainly not in a position of authority to lead and guide others on their journey.

There are too many folks out there that make it painfully obvious that they haven’t done their research past theoi.com. Many people still hold on to Theosophical ideologies that originated in the 20th century by cultists/racists/groomers, and tout them as “the ancient ways”. Many people are recycling things that have haunted internet spaces for over a decade and have no verifiable weight to them, or are just blatantly false. I’ve been around for a while. Seen a few things. The same people who worship fake gods invented on tumblr, or claim to make love to angels in the astral plane, or say they are spoused to fictional characters are not in any position to give advice.

The function of these communities is ominously similar to a cult in that everyone gets trapped in an echo chamber/endless game of telephone in which everyone is just repeating the same thing over and over, and at this point, much of it is nonsensical.

[rue-with-the-tarot]

✨Incorrect Greek Mythology Quotes✨

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takes like 2 seconds 2 block someone it's not hard lol

It’s also not hard to understand the idea of “no means no” you fucking weirdo. It took you more than two seconds to find my ask box and haunt it with your freakishness, grow some balls and turn off anonymity if you’re going to be a keyboard cunt.

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I very much dislike when people insinuate that gods were solely invented by man, because that completely misses the mark when you take primordial gods into account. The Primordial Divinities are called that because they transcend time. Khaos exists as the literal body of the cosmos from which there was nothing, and then came everything. That means that they existed before creation itself. That dark nothingness we imagine the world to be before the Big Bang? That’s Khaos. Tiamat and Apsu, the bodies of saltwater and freshwater respectfully, come from a time so long ago that we cannot comprehend it. One could also argue that the vastness of the universe itself could’ve been relegated to their roles. But they existed back when it had rained for millions of years and all of earth was water, back at the start of all things. These are not just beings that were thought of for funsies. These beings are the embodiment, the limitation that we can conceive, of a force of universal power. Don’t even get me started on the deities of the sun, who has been here so long that they nurtured probable life on Mars that came and went long before we arrived. Yes, Mars, that lives in the habitable zone and had an atmosphere once akin to ours before the sun wore it down to nothing. The spirits of the stars, which are so far and unreachable that we can only ever live in the distant path for each other. The furthest star we can see with our naked eye is 16,000 light years away. Meaning when we look at it, the light we see is from the near end of the Ice Age. Of course we “made gods”, because we have long since noticed the unimaginable realities of our world, that could only ever be understood as divine in one way or another.

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The idea that some pagans have that you cannot view a deity as a lover, a close friend, as your child, as your parent, is so funny to me as someone who is both Hindu and pagan

In bhakti, there are different types of Bhava, or feelings. There is Shanta Bhava, where the devotee is peaceful. Dasya Bhava, where one serves the deity wholeheartedly and finds joy and bliss in service. Sakhya Bhava, where the deity is a friend of the devotee. Vatsalya Bhava, where the devotee sees the deity as their child. Madhurya/Kanta Bhava, where the devotee sees the deity as their lover.

And to call these practices "humanization of deities" just feels disrespectful to me. If you don't understand it then that's completely fine. But to disrespect forms of devotion just because you think it's "too weird to be real" is just not okay.

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how do you feel about ‘godspouses’? to me personally, i just don’t see how you can be in a romantic relationship with a god…unless i’m getting the meaning wrong? but i’ve seen people call one of the Gods their girlfriend/boyfriend so…

To me, godspousal is a very limited term for a very broad-reaching practice. I don’t want to get into the whole “it’s been a practice for centuries” thing because whatever the case may be, it’s definitely real. But like how the Greeks had many words to denote the different meanings of love, I’d think it would be preferable to have many meanings associated with godspousal. Because there are many contextual relationships one can have with a deity both within and outside of godspousal. Relationships can be mentor/mentee, teacher/student, master/servant, parent/child (some cultures even have a child/parent dynamic), friends, casual acquaintances, enemies, lovers, queerplatonic, platonic, on and on. Godspousal is a limited term as well considering that gods are not the only types of spirits relegated to this type of role. You could potentially godspouse a daimon, a demon, angels (in an explicitly non romantic/sexual way as they are forbidden from it), djinn, faeries, etc.

In my opinion, this form of practice is very sacred, very uncommon, and VERY ADVANCED. It should be 90% private, but much of it isn’t because I guarantee that folks haven’t even asked their gods if it’s okay to share. Learning to keep secrets is very important. I see many go about this in the entirely wrong way. I have seen minors participating which is very wrong. I see people making relationship blogs. I see MANY people say that you need to have a potential godspousal “confirmed” by an outside source, and in my opinion it is nobody’s business. What you should do is have outside confirmation that you are sane and not in spiritual psychosis. Study the symptoms, know the signs. Having a pagan do a confirmation for you is useless if you’re both having psychosis. But I do have schizoaffective disorder, which I don’t wish to recount, but I am medicated and well and mentally sound in my practice and decisions, which is VITAL.

You have to understand your motives behind it. Sure it sounds fun and interesting to be married to a god, but are you ready for what that entails? I feel like there is a good amount of people who are desperate for connection, for someone to know the in and outs of your deepest insecurities and problems and love you anyways. That’s a fantasy many of us have, and in many ways the god can give us that. But are you prepared for them to push you past comfort to better yourself? Are you ready for all the problems that come with such relationships? Are you ready to reconcile your human relationships with your divine ones? Are you ready for no one to recognize that relationship? Are you ready to have a secret love that you have to keep quiet about, potentially forever? Have you even completed a courting period where you made sure you were compatible? Are you adept enough at divination and psychic skills in order to communicate effectively? Are you ready to devote yourself to something many people don’t believe in? Are you ready to look crazy to the outside world, even in witchy spaces? Would you risk outcasting for this relationship? There are numerous factors. And if the answer is no, that’s PERFECT. You are not better than those not godspoused. You are not more advanced than others. You are not a higher priority for a spirit with many duties and responsibilities. If people knew all this, I think less people would identify with being godspoused.

My opinion? It’s valid and real and beautiful, but I really do believe at least 70% of people are cluelessly lost on the issue.

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This!!! I need people in 2024 to finally move past the virtue signaling of the whole Wiccan rule of three bs. A person can never, ever, ever exist solely in the “light”. It’s in direct conflict with nature. Not just human nature, but Nature Nature, with a capital N. Is Nature all rainbows and flowers and puppies? No, nature is hailstorms, tornadoes, death and destruction too. I would sooner trust a witch who curses for a living than a witch who calls themselves a “white/light” witch, any day. Because one is honest, has self reflected, has accepted their true nature, while the other has gaslit, judged, minimized, and manipulated those around them in an attempt to sanitize their image and the image of the Othered Witch.

Also, karma is a very specific term from a specific belief system and philosophy from the Indian culture. White western folks with no knowledge of its origin and culture speaking on karma always gives me the nastiest ick.

I could go off for days about this but I won’t! 💖💖💖

💋 Love Spells are BAD because FREE WILL

There is nothing wrong with this kind of spell. Not sure why witches of all people on planet earth get so f*cked up over it. 🤷‍♀️

I hate that witches say not to do magick that takes away the free will of another.

Like what is the point of witchcraft then?

To passively let life pass you by and continually get screwed over?

When someone isn't benefiting your life, but is trying to remain a part of it, I say do the spell.

They want your attention, time and affection. So ensure you're getting it back from them.

Why even get involved with magick if you're going to play so small that you won't allow it to "interfere" with your interactions?

This is no different than going for your dream job and doing a spell that will help you get noticed instead of someone else. That takes the "free will" of the person who is hiring and the person who wanted the job in the first place. I can't stand virtue signalers.

I am a woman's woman, I support any witch who wants to attract a man for personal reasons or otherwise. The "free will" argument seems to me like it's just people trying to be so politically correct that they allow the patriarchy / society to police their and others' own personal, private craft.

In fact, the Veil is a place where witches are welcome to discuss things like this. I genuinely want my Vixens to have a leg up in the world, no matter what fear-mongering witches say.

And no, Karma isn't real unless you believe it is. Careful what you manifest, beauties. <3

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I will never, ever trust anyone who calls themselves a priest(ess) unless they have a myriad of qualifications and experience behind them. Are you aware of the kind of responsibilities you’re accepting? Are you able to comfort the downtrodden effectively and not just say “the gods love you” and leave it at that? Are you able to keep your composure and not allow the plights of others to affect you so you can better be of service? Do you have experience in counseling and leadership? Are you prepared for when someone comes to you with a pile of woe upon their shoulders? Do you have experience or knowledge about community building? Are you well studied in both the culture, history and religious traditions of your chosen religion? Are you able to guide and nurture countless individuals and modify your knowledge and beliefs to fit into their lives? Are you able to continue the work of uplifting a whole community even when you are tired, depressed, or going through hardship yourself? If you are not able to be initiated and guided under a trove of elders and the more experienced, what are you going to do to combat that problem? Who are you responsible to? What are your morals for leadership? Are you able to admit when you are mistaken? Have you been acknowledged by others to be worthy of that title? How are you enriching someone’s life and practice outside of the culture of doomscrolling on the internet? Do you know how to write sermons? Do you know how to lead prayer and ritual for a lot of people? What will you say when a congregate comes to you, devastated by death? Rape? Trauma? Mental illness? Can you recognize the signs of spiritual psychosis? Do you know how to navigate that? Can you spot cultural appropriation? Have you deconstructed from white supremacy and colonialism? Do you have connections with others that have experience in other belief systems so you can direct people to where they need to go? Have you and the gods ever discussed what you are willing to sacrifice in order to hold this position? Are you aware that you will make sacrifices at all and that this isn’t just a cozy, fun thing? Are you even old enough? Do you have enough life experience? Are you able to guide someone older than yourself effectively? How will you serve your community outside of religion?

I know everyone is different in their religious lives, but for me personally, it took me 5 years to answer the call of priesthood, and I AM STILL NOT A PRIESTESS. I am unable to be initiated, so my path involves seminary and intensive theologian study for what will likely be about the next 10 years of my life. Under no circumstances will I set up a group chat and call myself a priestess, no disrespect, but the ease of it takes away from the sacredness. In ancient times, priests were educated from CHILDHOOD and assumed their duties in ADULTHOOD.

At best it feels self-serving and at worst, cultish, to just set up a digital server, call it a temple, and give yourself a flashy title.

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I share this personal journal entry with the permission and encouragement of my goddesses.

Extending both my hands, I could feel Athena take my left, and Aphrodite take my right. Athena’s power felt like the flame that keeps you warm, and shields you from the cold; not necessarily burning high and bright, but burning consistently, its temperature just right to nurture you. Aphrodite’s power felt like the flame that burns so hot it’s like ice, as if you can’t tell whether you’ve just been burnt to the third degree or if you’ve managed to get frostbite.

They are both Justice.

Athena is the law, the symbol, the spiritual embodiment that Justice cannot be removed from the law, lest it become profane. It is ordered, done with due processes and balances, through the eyes of both gods and mortals. It demands to be seen, recorded, heard and remembered. Athena asks to be remembered as a lesson, as importance, united with humanity’s desire to Never Forget, despite our nature. Because Justice Athena shouldn’t be forgotten, lest injustice seep in. If we forget we’ll do it again. So we try, oh how we try, and we beg for her guidance, although it may not be her name they utter, it is her spirit that listens. The Dependable Flame.

Aphrodite is also Justice. It is in her forms from the East; Astarte and Ishtar-Inanna. The Ladies whom are more than just fair. The Just Ones. But Ori, you ask, in all of their myths they don’t act super justly. First lesson of theirs: look further than skin deep. They are the Lovely Ones and Love, they tell me, is directly tied in with Justice. Not Justice Athena. They do not operate in courts, although they can be seen there; as a woman divorces her abusive husband or when a doting father is given custody of his children. They have been in the highest echelons; ziggurats and temples, paraded through cities, and have been nameless in brothels and on the streets. Helping prostitutes get clean and protecting sex workers from the hazards of the trade. They give justice where you have been harmed, and they are whom Athena often goes to when the law has forgotten. Because justice is not just written, it is spoken, whispered, screamed. It does not care to be remembered, rather it demands to be felt. Our brain capacity is limited but our hearts are boundless, as vast as the oceans they’re born from. The sea foam like the foam at our mouths when we are ravenous for Justice. When we are mad with the need to be avenged. The Vigilante Blaze.

Praise be their names.

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30 Tried & Tested Tips for Becoming a Great Tarot Reader

Stop bullshitting people.

Aim for truthful readings.

Be confident when giving a reading.

Avoid blanking when reading.

Avoid the most common mistakes.

Always trust your cards.

Don’t make your cards hate you.

Create a bond with your decks.

Learn proper tarot etiquette.

Don’t believe in superstitions.

Don’t mistake honesty for hate.

Master the Celtic Cross.

Predict timing accurately.

Read reversals the right way.

Treat rogue cards the right way.

Never pull clarifiers.

Never assign a yes or no value to cards.

Learn how to read feelings, thoughts & intentions.

Learn how to read physical appearance.

Learn tarot's astrological associations.

Know the cards’ literal meanings.

Know the meanings of tarot’s colors.

Know the meanings of tarot’s numbers.

Read one spread in many ways.

Deal cards the traditional way.

Have your own reading ritual.

Properly close every tarot reading.

Gauge yourself.

Master tarot.

Be the best reader you can be.

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There were times I thought I killed that girl, but in actuality, she is my shadow, the spirit that follows me. She is not there because she clings to life, nor is she there because of the tribulations of others, but rather because I came to the realization that an eternal death wasn’t entirely necessary. She is perfectly content living a half life, sometimes gone into a world kinder than the one she lived in, and other times, back by my side because her wisdom, her resilience, her heart, were all things I didn’t wish to part with. She is not a zombie, but is more akin to a faerie, like a wisp, her light cannot be seen by those whom she does not wish to see. She is a weaver who moves in and out of the Veil. To see her is a privilege. She is mostly there for me, as a guide, as a reminder, as the spirit of my former self, the soul of a child that I nurture. She walks between the worlds, in the world of spirit where she found home, and the world of the living, where she makes an impact. She is my other half, the part of me that I adore because I gave her the freedom to leave the flesh and to become something new. She has a name, one that was inspired by the one we both left behind. It is a name that evokes my spirit, that none who live in flesh shall ever know, besides myself. It is a name of power, spoken like an epithet of my immortal, divine spirit. I have many names that suit my body and mind, but when those things are gone, I will become her again, and we will merge in a visage of love and happiness.

whats cool about being trans is my parents are totally right. i did kill their beautiful son. im the thing that animates his corpse in an ever more convincing parody of a happy girl. i devoured him from the inside out and now there is nothing left of him and he is dead dead dead and there is only me, with my hollow eyes and dark eyeliner and long hair, and my big smile. my limp, effeminate gestures belie the marionetting of the boy they loved. my fagginess is his death. already his body becomes a fitter home for my parasitism in full; the tits, the hips, the thighs. sorry about your kid. thanks for the biomass <3

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If I’m conflating anything, it’s not Helios/Apollo, but rather Helios and Ra. In my worship I call them Helios-Ra, because for starters, subsuming Greek gods with Egyptian ones is a historical classic (despite there being no evidence Helios-Ra shows up in any inscriptions or archaeological record), but because to me, Apollo is young. Powerful, elegant, but more akin to the Sun that shines at 10am when it’s not reached maximum heat, or the rays that fall between the tree canopies. I honor Apollo as the light brought by the Sun that fuels life around us, as his powers of poetry, music, and healing are fueled by that celestial body. But Helios and Ra feel older, Helios feeling like the Sun at high noon when it is at its peak of power and might. When it’s so hot you want to retreat, but the day has only just begun and there’s much to do. Standing watch over us all on his high throne, and it’s no wonder the gods go to him when they need information. Helios stands as the very Sun itself, his form greater than we have always imagined because the Sun was just a speck in the sky but only fairly recently have we discovered how it dwarfs us. Ra is inconceivably ancient, an old man that rides in his Sun boat and traverses the underworld every night, mythologically retired, yet never able to remove himself from the position, wise, still a King even after removing the crown. Ra is the Sun in the afternoon, the heat of midday cooling ever so slowly, until it’s suddenly night and then you can really feel his absence. So to me, Sun gods aren’t so much the same in my eyes, but rather, as diverse as the cultures they came from.

This is my very polite and formal invitation for Apollo and Artemis followers to remember who Helios and Selene are. If you're syncretizing that's all fine and dandy but recognize that you're syncretizing! Question your view of the mythology of your religion! Greek mythology varied by region and time, there is no one "definitive" story or version... so of course the interpretation of the "sun god" or "god associated with the sun/light" or "moon goddess" or "goddess associated with the moon" can become blurry and conflated, but like... you think you just feel out of a coconut tree? you exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you. /ref /hj

Helios and Selene are Titans. As far as I'm concerned, they deserve respect. If you're making choices to view Apollo and Artemis as sun and moon gods, I just want to make sure you know that choice is deliberate and there are other (in my opinion cooler - points to Helios and Selene) options. But that's just my rant and personal opinion. Religion is personal and individual, but I will say that it does frustrate me to no end sometimes to see new worshippers babble about Apollo Sun and Artemis Moon and when you ask if they know who Helios and Selene are they stare at you blankly. Now let me say one last time before some rabid Apollo and Artemis devotees start barking - the interpretation of the Twins as solar/lunar deities is not incorrect, it was just not a part of the "original" versions of the gods. If you're reading this as a follower of either Apollo or Artemis and you don't know the Titans I'm talking about... my dear friend it's time to do some research once more. Blessings to you all on this nice summer afternoon. I'm gonna go squint at Helios in my yard now.

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Pagan syncretism is the best. I love being able to worship whomever, whenever. I love being able to study occultism from around the world and put together a practice that is so unique and special to me. I love being able to worship gods from ancient societies like Greece. I love the even more ancient gods from Egypt. And we can go back further and revive the gods from Sumer! I love honoring spirits of the sun, and moon, of death, and love. I love being playful with the faeries, soaring with dragons, and meditating with bodhisattvas. If it is open to me, I am willing to learn and boy has it enriched my life tenfold! I don’t ever want to stop!

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What do you mean it’s not a good idea to fall asleep to the soft glow of candles??? Fire hazard? But think of the ambience.