#branch and poppy the god and the goddess of the Love

[stalkerofthegods]

Lady hera deep dive.

Lady Hera is the queen of the gods and goddesses and the shared ruler of the skies, she deserves respect, and I adore her, as a researcher, and as a person in the community, I do not worship her, but she is welcoming, she is a wonderful goddess and kind, and as a mother and a ruler, she is amazing.

Herbs • lilies, poppies, irises, white roses, waterlilies, Golden roses and white roses, Vitex agnus-castus, poppies, stephanotis, cypress, coconut, maple trees, all white flowers, Marigold, Patchouli, Sage, Rosemary, Frankincense, oak, asterion flower, hyacinths (from when Zeus swept her up in a cloud in Bed of hyacinths in the Iliad 14.340-50)

Animals•peacock, the crow, the cuckoo, carrion-crow, Cow, snake, dragon, crab, snail, and other shelled creatures, eagle, young cow or lion, Wide-winged hawk, Cranes, heifer, goat

Zodiac • Cancer 

Colors •White, royal blue, purple, dark green, grey, and silver, yellow, gold, red,  blue, purple, rose.

Crystal• pearls, garnets, citrine, amber, diamonds, star sapphires, platinum, Morganite, Rose quartz, Lapis lazuli, Peacock ore, herkimer diamond, iris agate, apophyllite, morganite, turquoise. 

Symbols• the crow, the cuckoo, the peacock and the pomegranate, Milky Way, the cow, the seasons of the year, Lotus-staff, the scepter.

Jewelry you can wear in their honor rings• wedding veils, and veiling in her honor. 

Diety of • marriage, women, childbirth, and family, she also used to be an earth goddess, Matriarchy, fertility

Patron of • married women, presiding over weddings and blessing marital unions, bringing a woman fertility, protecting her children, helping a woman find financial security, overseeing both private and public affairs, and protecting women in labor. She also has domains in life, death, and the rebirth cycle. And is the patron of earth and cows before marrying Zeus, the Air, Clear skies, Rain, Storms, the Constellations, Maidens of marriageable age, Maiden virginity, Betrothals, Bride-price (dowry), Widows, Menstruation, Heirs, Dynasties, Fidelity (legitimate heir & not the product of adultery), Inheritance, sanctity of the home, kings, empires, heaven, showers, and breezes, prosperity, progeny and military victory, luck in battle, heroes 

Alter ideas• She likes big alters, and I would put them near a lake, she was raised near a lake, and she likes extravagant things. 

Offerings• Honey, Breads, grains, homemade sweets, Pomegranates, Fruits, Milk, Wine, Pure water, Peacock paintings, peacock statues, peacock patterns, Cow paintings, cow statues, cow print patterns, Cuckoo bird art, cuckoo bird statues, Cuckoo clocks, Diadem (crowns), Throne imagery, Framed family photos, Chocolate, Pomegranate seeds, Peacock feathers, Peacock jewelry, Cuckoo feathers, Snail and hermit crab shells, Cow jewelry, Toy peacocks or cows, Perfumes, Silver and gold jjewelry (especially rings), White or gold rose petals, Golden roses, Art that you’ve created (especially if it is an art of Her), Poems are written for Her, Any crafts you’ve made, Stories that you’ve written, Photos of your S.O. and children, goat meat, goat cheese, the asterion flower, Nemean lion imagery, shields/shield imagery, wedding related (ex- rings, veil, garter, copy of vows), she likes sweet things, snail shells, any shelled animal leftover shell

Devotional• Donate your time or money to charities that help women and children, find a fallen branch and burn a small part of it as an offering to Hera (based on the festival Daedala), don’t cheat, don’t make others cheat (don’t be a side chick), tame your jealousy, Read the story of Zeus and the Daidale (“wooden bride”), As you make your bed ask Hera to bless it and Bring romance to your marriage bed, Take a day to indulge in love, keep your home clean, be kind to children, do house chores, take care of your physical health, take care of your mental health, speak your mind, donate to and support domestic abuse victims, write her poems, donate old maternity clothes and baby clothes, Campaigning for women’s rights and equal marriage, gardening, painting, making music, do colour magick, Celebrate solstice and changing seasons, Setting a boundary in life (especially in love).

Ephithets•  Cow-Eyed, White-Armed, The Virgin, Queen of the Gods, Protectress, Queen of Heaven, Protector of Women, Hera Alexandros (Protector of Men), Lady of the Beasts, Of The Golden Sandals,   Ἀλέξανδρος (Alexandros) - Protector of Men, Αἰγοφάγος (Aigophágos) - Goat-Eater, Ἀκραῖα (Akráia)- She of the Heights, Ἀμμωνία (Ammonia), Ἄνθεια (Antheia) -  flowery Ἀργεία (Argéia)- She of Argos, Βασίλεια (Basíleia)- Queen', Βουναία (Bounáia)- She of the Mound, Βοῶπις (Boṓpis) - Cow-Eyed or Cow-Faced, Λευκώλενος (Leukṓlenos)- White-Armed,  Παῖς (Pais)- Child (in her role as virgin), Παρθένος (Parthénos)- Virgin, Τελεία (Teléia)- as goddess of marriage, Χήρη (Chḗrē) - Widowed, Τελχινία (Telchinia) - She was named like that because according to a legend, that the Telchines were the first in the island and also the first who created statues of gods, Ζυγία (Zygia) - as the presider over marriage, Hera Nympheuomene - Hera the betrothed bride, Hera Pais - Hera the girl, Hera Parthenia - Hera the maiden

Equivalents (not the same but alike)• Hathor (Egyptian), Juno (Roman), Frigg (Norse), Isis (Egyptian)

Aspects• Khaos-Aer (the Air), Hemera (Day), Nyx (Night), Titanis Rheia (Flow), Selene (the Moon), Eos (Dawn), Mother of Typhon (Typhoon, Smoke)

Attendees• Eleithyia (Goddess of Childbirth), Hebes (Goddess of Youth), Iris (Goddess of the Rainbow), The Horai (Goddesses of the Seasons & Heavenly Law and Order), Okeanides (Cloud-Nymphai)

Signs they are reaching out• Sudden imagery of peacocks and her animals, sudden mentions of what she is the goddess of, feeling an intense pull to her 

Morals• Morally grey 

Courting• Zues

Personality• Hera has a fast temper and is quick to administer justice

Mortal or immortal • immortal 

Fact• Hera’s temples may have been the first to be roofed, her temples were some of the largest ever built (she is very big on big alters and on temples) 

Blessings• Good betrothal, Marital harmony, Successful birth, Heirs, Dynasties, Birth of a male heir, good luck in battle, successful birth

Curse: Marital discord, Punishment of adulterers, death in birth, Protracted labor

Roots• her origin could’ve been as a Pelasgian goddess, she was nursed as an infant by the three daughters of the river Asterion: Euboia, Prosymna, and Akraia. But in the Iliad, Hera states she was given by her mother to Tethys to be raised, aspected to be raised in Argos in Argolis Greece and her birthplace being Samos on a Greek island. She also claims to be the oldest, but so does Hestia.

Parentage• Kronos and Rhea

Siblings• Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hestia, and Demeter, half-siblings with Chiron 

Pet• peacocks (peacocks pull her chariot)

Children • Angelos, Ares, Eileithyia, Enyo, Eris, Hebe, Hephaestus, and the Kharites, many say she adopted Heracles, (he built a temple for her and etc)

Appearance in astral or gen• in Greek and Roman art as a large woman, fully clad, wearing a diadem radiantly beautiful woman, shining like the sun, however, she is also a shape-shifter with many forms and is usually wearing a veil. She also has 3 aspects, the Maiden, Mother, and Crone aspects, She comes with the scent of flowers, and the earth blooms at her every step.

Festivals • Daedala, Heraia, and Anthesphoria were also common in the Peloponnese (where it was celebrated in honor of  Hera Antheia at Argos, and of Aphrodite Antheia at Cnossus.)

Month• June 

Sacred places• Heraeum at Nemea in the Argolid, the great temple on the island of Samos, and the temple at Olympia. A sanctuary at Argos, a seventh-century BCE temple built over an earlier shrine, is among the oldest Greek temples, Argos (Samos).

Status• Queen of the gods, and a major deity before and after marriage. 

What angers her • Cheating, the Trojans. 

Music she likes• wedding music. 

What she likes in people• Women, heroes, moms.

Planet•  Venus, and the full moon 

Her Tarot cards• The empress, the world. 

Scents/Inscene • rose, iris, myrrh, civet, jasmine, and patchouli, Rose, stephanotis

Prayers• 

Hera, queen of Olympos, the bride of thundering Zeus, protector of marriage, of the joining of hearts and the creation of bonds, of the building of home and the finding of family. Great Hera, whose presence honors any wedding day, whose favor graces any marriage, I pray to you, O goddess, grant to me a joyous union, a love to last, a harmonious home. I ask your blessing on my household, O Hera–may it be a place of happiness and affection. I ask your blessing on my marriage bed–may it be a place of joy and pleasure. May my mate and I share our lives; may we grow old together, merry and content; may our words be honey-sweet, and may our love be ever strong. Shining Hera, I ask your blessing.

“O Hera, Queen of Gods, divine protector of marriage, From your throne above, look upon us with favor. Majestic and exalted, cloaked in unyielding loyalty, Bless the bonds we forge, and the promises we make. Grant us the strength to uphold love’s sacred vow, To support and cherish, through trials and time. May our hearts reflect your undying commitment, As we seek harmony, guided by your wisdom. Hail Hera, the eternal matriarch, in reverence we call, With offerings of peacock plumes and lilies white. Embrace us in your grace, bestow upon us unity, As we honor you, now and in all our days.”

I praise you bright and noble Hera, great lady of Olympos, gracious queen of the deathless gods, dark-eyed goddess, fairest of the children of Rhea, graceful and comely, cloaked in the starry skies, garlanded in poppies fragrant and blood-red, crowned in brightest gold, the lotus wand in your hand, your form ever draped in the finest of silks, majestic one whose blessing is sought by all, whose gifts are treasured, whose favor is a surety of good fortune. Hera, champion of great cities, gurardian of ancient Argos and the pretty isle of Samos, warder of the bounds of marriage, protector of women in the old world and the new, unparalleled goddess, white armed one, sovereign of the high-reaching heavens, I honor your might. 

Deep-eyed Hera, beloved bride of mighty Zeus, mighty goddess, fair of face and silent of step, noble your manner, stately and poised your form, a queenly presence is ever yours, godly in glory, womanly in grace and beauty. Beloved Hera, patroness of kings and princes, friend of women, of mothers, upholder of marriage, of the right of lovers to join hearts and hands; lavish your gifts, liberal your hand, limitless the blessings you bestow on those you favor. Hera, the broad sky is yours, and the sweet air we breathe; to you we turn to for harmony and wedded bliss; to you we turn to for strength in the passion and turmoil and hard work of marriage; to you we offer our thanks for a life of love. Well-crowned Hera, beautiful one, revered one, greatest of goddesses, I praise and honor you.

Hera of the deep heart, the beautiful goddess whose true radiance would blind mortal eyes, whose steps fall softly in the golden halls of storied Olympos. In silks your fair form is draped, O Hera, heavy with jewels is your crown, the sweetest of perfumes surround you; in ancient times you received the highest honors, the finest of offerings were ever yours, your shining temples stood across the land. Hera, defender of cities, protector of marriage, champion of the love that upholds a family, that cherishes a child, you are the friend of those who hold the household dear. Queen of the heavens, holder of the lotus staff, the poppy and the pomegranate have you in hand. Hera, supreme in dignity and grace, unsurpassed in goodness and kindness, I praise you.

credits • https://spells8.com/lessons/goddess-hera-queen-of-the-gods-symbols/https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/classics/intranets/students/modules/greekreligion/database/clunas/https://www.learnreligions.com/hera-greek-goddess-of-marriage-2561992https://www.tumblr.com/septemberfaerie/649491140077338624/simple-offerings-for-hera-honey-pomegranate https://www.learnreligions.com/hera-greek-goddess-of-marriage-2561992https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herahttps://www.reddit.com/r/Hellenism/comments/htocze/a_general_guide_to_crystals_and_which/https://vocal.media/futurism/ways-of-worship-hera https://vocal.media/futurism/ways-of-worship-hera https://screeching-0wl.tumblr.com/post/667043639626743808/a-guide-to-worship-of-hera-cheat-sheets/amphttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/649676050026086400/anthesphoriahttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/640526545372479488/daedala-festival-of-hera-zeushttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/640096332349079552/hera-epithets-of-life-stages-hera-ataurote-hera https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/640148785696276481/hera-aegophagos-goat-eater-i-was-so-curious-about https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/686092860730327040/hera-and-the-river-gods-of-argos-i-go-now-to-thehttps://thegodsaremyhome.tumblr.com/post/690029452553601024/hera/amphttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/650505716453474304/heras-asterionhttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/644802181317427200/in-olympia-the-women-celebrate-their-hera-festival https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/655772113984159744/heraia-games-festival-sanctuary-of-hera-argos https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/640021251498377216/i-am-a-fan-of-the-uncommon-belief-that-herakleshttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/642832991542984704/ive-just-been-called-to-hellenistic-paganism-i https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/649311039464325120/in-truth-three-cities-are-dearest-to-me-by-far https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/657033826078425088/months-before-each-games-the-olympic-flame-is-lithttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/646526356035862528/the-nemean-lionhttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/639110878639407104/notes-from-understanding-greek-religion-by https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/645426513103208448/hi-violet-what-kind-of-offerings-does-hera-love https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/648506401237385216/hi-violet-ive-been-curious-about-something-and-ihttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/687644696777031680/socrates-swore-by-herahttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/643457315969908736/zeus-and-heras-marriage-zeus-and-hera-are-the https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/638657086154309633/zeus-heraios-i-got-too-far-down-a-tumblr-rabbit https://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/646775981494992896/the-myth-of-the-daedala-the-separation-of-zeushttps://verdantlyviolet.tumblr.com/post/646580512604995584/hera-and-the-cuckoohttps://pieandhotdogs.tumblr.com/post/86517296169/hey-can-you-tell-me-things-about-hera-anything https://natural-magics.tumblr.com/post/79253398032/i-think-hera-has-been-trying-to-contact-me https://www.theoi.com/https://www.theoi.com/greek-mythology/olympian-gods.htmlhttps://www.theoi.com/Olympios/Hera.html https://www.theoi.com/Summary/Hera.htmlhttps://www.reddit.com/r/Hellenism/comments/m00r3t/looking_for_hera_upg/https://athenaswisdom22.wordpress.com/list-of-prayers-to-the-gods/hera/#:~:text=I%20praise%20you%20bright%20and,your%20hand%2C%20your%20form%20everhttps://www.tumblr.com/tarotbee

I use resources, I do not own the info, and most deep dives have UPG (that I use in my work.) And I only take some information from sources. I am 14, this is my hobby, I am learning but I spent many hours and days on this, and I am always open to criticism. I have been doing worship for 5 years. Please know you can use the info, I do not sue, but I will take action if this work is used without permission and not put as a resource if used in any work. without permisson and not put as a resource if used in any work, for the public.

[razzle-zazzle]

I refuse to have this brain rot idea in my head especially when I can't fucking write so I'm inflicting it on you instead

Sun and Moon Trolls au with moon "god" branch and sun "goddess" poppy, all they can do is control when day/night comes but they're considered "gods" but it's more like they're just vessels for the actual gods (i.e. they can be possessed by the sun/moon)

The moon "gods/goddesses" are feared for going bat shit insane (mostly because idiots hurt/kill their family) because of this branch hides the fact that he's the moon "god"

The sun gods/goddesses are loved for providing daylight and uh ...... killing the moons when they lose their shit (justified or not) Poppy's secretly afraid of hurting/killing the moon god/goddess but doesn't hide the fact that she is the sun goddess

OOOOO 👀👀👀

[the-mortuary-witch]

DEITY MASTERLIST (PART TWO)

📿 Kuan Yin

Goddess of: mercy and compassion

Culture: Chinese/Buddhist

Symbols: vase, rosary, willow branch, fish basket, and pearls

Plants: lotus, willow, and bamboo

Animals: horse, peacock, dragon, and birds

Colours: white

Tarot: Judgment

Offerings: oranges, pomegranates, spices, oolong tea, incense, and love and compassion for both yourself and others

🌱 Lada

Goddess of: spring, beauty, love, and fertility

Culture: Slavic

Symbols: Lada Star, bells, and Spring Equinox

Plants: linden, dandelion, peony, and birch

Animals: lark, deer, ant, and eagle

Colours: red and white

Tarot: Page of Cups and The Lovers

Offerings: honey, music, mead, apples, sweets, lemon balm, cherries, and chestnuts

🌉 Lilith

Goddess of: love, demons, beauty, wisdom, life, rebirth, fertility, motherhood, inner-strength, illumination, mysteries, spiritual initiation, the night, and The Evening Star

Culture: Demonic

Symbols: sword, pentagram, scythe, moon, dragon, snake, crossroad, dark moon, and pentacle

Plants: apple, poisonous plants (belladonna, hemlock, and mugwort), sandalwood, rose, dandelion, red hibiscus, witch hazel, lilac, and patchouli

Animals: black cats, snakes, owls, dogs, spiders, bats, and goats

Colours: red, black, purple, blue, green, silver, and gold

Tarot: The Devil

Offerings: black candles, black stones, or black crystals, honey, champagne, seductive perfume, fancy jewelry, tea, exercise, having sex and/or masterbating, swords and daggers, pomegranates, dark chocolate, sex toys or other items related to sex and pleasure, dragon’s blood, flowers and herbs: lilies, red roses, sage, basil, mugwort, and rose, dancing, red wine, clay, depictions of owls, snakes, cats, dogs, bats, dragons, and spiders, mirrors, apples, red or black silk, and poetry.

🤘 Loki

God of: mischief and trickery

Culture: Norse

Symbols: serpents, wolves, ax, raven, masks, fire, Bjarken and Logr Runes, fishing nets, earthquakes, infinity snake and ouroboros, number 8, chaos star, runes that spell out his name: Laguz, Othala, Kenaz, Isa as well as the rune Hagalaz, and Helmet of Dread or the Helmet of Horror

Plants: mistletoe, birch, common Haircap moss (Loki’s Oats), bentgrass (Loki’s Grass), cinnamon, dandelion, beech, blackthorn, elder, elm, ivy, juniper, mullein, thistle, mint, holly, cedar, juniper, elder, clove, patchouli, tobacco, willow, and yew

Animals: salmon, crows, , ravens, falcon, vulture, flies, goats, flea, horses, wolves, foxes, and spiders

Colours: green, gold, black, violet, yellow, orange, and red

Tarot: The Fool, The Tower, The Devil, The Wheel of Fortune, Page of Cups, and Seven of Swords

Offerings: candles, especially black ones, incense, a musky or mysterious scent would be appropriate, red fruits or flowers, gems or metals, herbs, such as dill, ginger, and mugwort, art or poetry, toys, such as the ones you used to play with as a kid, acts of chaos, subversion, or mischief, flowers: daisies, roses, and lilies, crystals, hanging mistletoe at Yuletide, foods and drinks: sweet foods, alcohol, spicy rum, candy, mulled wine, chocolate with nuts or funny names, spongecake, coffee or other caffeinated beverages, honey, and pastries, knives and daggers, doing something you are scared of (safely), and cinnamon.

🌅 Lucifer

God of: illumination, light, darkness, change, rebirth, challenges, innovation, logic, truth, knowledge, wisdom, strategy, persuasion, revolution, luxury, pleasure, freedom, The Arts and The Morning Star (“Morning Star” is another name for the planet Venus)

Culture: Demonic, Pagan, and Greco-Roman

Symbols: Sigil of Lucifer, The Morning Star, violins and fiddles, dragons, wings, serpents, black goats, inverted pentagram, light, and the pentacle.

Plants: belladonna, mulberry, patchouli, myrrh, min, tobacco, marigold, lilies, hyacinth, rosemary, and black poppies, lavender, mint, blackberries, sage, apples, pomegranates, lilac, rose, black pepper, hyssop, gardenia, geranium, garlic, yarrow, and cypress.

Animals: black animals in general, snakes, spiders, ravens, wolves, dragons, eagles, crows, goats, bats, rats, moths, flies, peacocks, insects, and swans.

Colours: blue, red, black, gold, emerald green, and silver.

Tarot: The Devil.

Offerings: candles or torches, sweet treats like dark chocolate or pastries, red, black, or dead roses, incense like sage or cinnamon, red wine, whiskey, especially Jack Daniels, champagne, pomegranate/pomegranate juice, black tea, especially earl grey, cooked goat meat, venison, apples, honey, good quality cigars, tobacco, daggers and swords, silver rings, emeralds and emerald jewelry, goat horns, black feathers, seductive colognes, crow skulls, bone dice, devotional poetry and artwork, and classical music, especially violin.

🦁 Lugh

God of: the Sun, The Arts, storms, The Harvest, oaths, Kings, justice, craftsmanship, smithcraft, light, and warriors

Culture: Celtic

Symbols: spear, harp, and slingshot

Plants: apple, oak, hazel, holly, marigold, goldenrod, sunflower, carnation, rose, gorse, bay, basil, allspice, rosemary, and cinnamon 

Animals: lion, horse, raven, stag, crow, hound, and lynx

Colours: brown, gold, yellow, green, red, and blue

Tarot: The Emperor, Justice, Strength, The Sun, and Suit of Wands

Offerings: wine, mead, apple cider, corn, bread, apples, berries, potatoes, beer, harvested fruits and vegetables, corn dolls, cloves, gorse flowers, and handmade crafts

🪐 Ma'at

Goddess of: truth, justice, cosmic order, harmony, wisdom, morality, and balance

Culture: Egyptian

Symbols: scales, ostrich feathers, Ankh

Plants: papyrus

Animals: vulture and ostrich

Colours: purple and black

Tarot: Justice, Temperance, and Judgment

Offerings: no drugs and alcohol, cold water, tea with milk, dates, plums, fish, chicken, olive oil, vinegar, hummus, barley biscuits, reeds, gold jewelry, and white linen.

🦭 Manannan Mac Lir

God of: the sea, weather, navigation, and Guardian of the Otherworld

Culture: Celtic

Symbols: cups, cloak, a silver branch with three golden apples on it, and mermaids

Plants: alder, apple, hazel, blackberry, bramble, reed, meadow grass, yellow flowers, and seaweed

Animals: horse, pig, cow, seal, crane, swan, boar, dog, dolphin, sea horse, and whale

Colours: blue, silver, and gold

Tarot: The Chariot

Offerings: yellow flowers, sea water, bread, ale, and mead.

🌒 Máni

God of: personification of the Moon and protector of children and the mentally ill

Culture: Norse

Symbols: silver, the Moon, and astrology

Plants: jasmine, carnations, night-blooming flowers, and aromatic flowers

Animals: horse, rabbit, and wolf

Colours: blue, silver, black, lavender, and white

Tarot: The Moon

Offerings: peppermint-flavored sweets, peppermint Tea, angel food cake, relaxing tea, and salt

♟️ Marduk

God of: justice, compassion, war, healing, magic, storms, and agriculture

Culture: Mesopotamian 

Symbols: lightning, war chariot, and weapons

Plants: grain

Animals: horse, dog, dragon, and eagle

Colours: gold

Tarot: The Emperor

Offerings: beer, ale, daggers, golden jewelry, bread and grains, coffee, artwork and poetry, feathers, meat, and fruit.

🕯️ Medea

Goddess of: Witch and Priestess of Hecate, invoke for justice, vengeance, and protection

Culture: Greek

Symbols: poisons, cauldrons, and golden fleece

Plants: juniper, olive, and wolf’s bane

Animals: dragon and snake

Colours: gold and white

Tarot: The Magician

Offerings: wine, frankincense, milk, honey, poisons, artifacts of Witchcraft, flowers, and snake and dragon imagery.

🤰 Mokosh

Goddess of: spinning, weaving, fiber arts, moisture, shearing, protection, childbirth, spell casting, fate, fertility, life, death, and rebirth

Culture: Slavic

Symbols: mokosh tones, rain, solar and earthly symbols

Plants: local seasonal plants

Animals: sheep, cat, and horse

Colours: gold, white, and red

Tarot: The Empress

Offerings: personal needlework, wool and flax, grains and bread, salt, oilseeds, dairy, berries, eggs (especially Pisanki), porridge, milk, honey, herbs, fruits, vegetables, a lock of your own hair, and locally sourced seasonal crops.

☃️ Morana

Goddess of: winter, death, and rebirth

Culture: Slavic

Symbols: poppets (spell dolls) and water

Plants: evergreen, berries, grass, rosemary, cypress, wormwood, mandrake, and elderberry

Animals: snake

Colours: white, red, black, and grey

Tarot: Death

Offerings: tea, water, rocks, bones alcoholic beverages, bread, oats, seeds, fruit, and homemade foods and baked goods.

🪄 Morgan le Fay

Goddess of: Witchcraft

Culture: Welsh/Arthurian

Symbols: artifacts of Witchcraft

Plants: honeysuckle, henbane, reed, aspen, oak, and willow

Animals: crow, crane, raven, black dog, horse, cow, and wolf

Colours: red, black, and lavender

Tarot: The Moon and The Magician

Offerings: red ribbons, crow and raven feathers, whiskey, rum.

✊ Nemesis 

Goddess of: retribution, fairness, and Punisher of Hubris

Culture: Greek

Symbols: sword, lash, dagger, scales, and apple branch

Plants: Apple Tree, Thistle

Animals: griffin and goose

Colours: red, black, silver, gold

Tarot: Justice

Offerings: wine, olive oil, water, fruit, honey, milk, feathers, apple seeds, apple blossoms, bones, scales, chains, daffodils and narcissus flowers.

😷 Nergal

God of: war, death, plagues and disease

Culture: Mesopotamian

Symbols: lion-headed Mace and sword

Plants: thistle, grapefruit, and pomegranate

Animals: lion, bull, and bat

Colours: red, black, silver, and gold

Tarot: The Tower, The Devil, and Death

Offerings: animal bones, thorn branches,  bitter lemonade, absinthe, and pomegranate juice.

🏋️ Nike

Goddess of: victory

Culture: Greek

Symbols: balm branch, wings, a wreath, sash, and lyre

Plants: palm tree and laurel tree

Animals: horse

Colours: silver, gold, and blue

Tarot: Wheel of Fortune, Justice, and Strength

Offerings: feathers, trophies, medals, palm branches or leaves, and athletic equipment.

🪴 Ninhursag

Goddess of: the Earth, motherhood, childbirth, fertility, nourishment, agriculture, and vegetation

Culture: Mesopotamian

Symbols: omega symbol, bow, and mace

Plants: all grown vegetation

Animals: Cow, Lion, Fish, Serpent

Colours: green, gold, white, and silver

Tarot: The World, The Empress, Suit of Pentacles, and Queen of Pentacles

Offerings: wine, beer, fresh water, cooked fish, eggs, vegetarian foods, bread, honey, butter, myrrh, and all flowers.

🐚 Njord

God of: the sea, the wind, abundance, and wealth

Culture: Norse

Symbols: ships

Plants: avens, ferns, oak, oak moss, polypody, verbena, rosemary, reeds, and bay

Animals: fish and aquatic creatures

Colours: blue

Tarot: King of Cups

Offerings: fish, seafood, pork, chocolate coins, sea salt chocolate, dark beer, gin, golden items, beads, shells, tobacco, and fishing gear.

🌃 Nut

Goddess of: night 

Culture: Egyptian

Symbols: Ankh and water pot

Plants: sycamore and fig

Animals: boar, cow, vulture, and hippo

Colours: dark blue

Tarot: The Star

Offerings: milk, cool water, star-shaped foods, blue goldstone, and blue flowers

🌌 Nyx

Goddess of: the night 

Culture: Greek

Symbols: crescent moon, mist, darkness, and stars

Plants: poppies, night blooming lilies, moon flowers, and gladiolus

Animals: owl, crow, and bat

Colours: dark blue and black

Tarot: The Star

Offerings: milk, black coffee or tea, dark chocolate, silver jewelry, dragon fruit, dew gathered before the sun rises, wine, dark beer or liquors, and starry and celestial items.

📖 Odin

God of: wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, frenzy, knowledge, war, battle, victory, sorcery, poetry, and Runic alphabet

Culture: Norse

Symbols: valknut, right-legged horse (Sleipnir), wolves, ravens, spear (Gungnir), and the Othala Rune

Plants: mugwort, plantain, wormwood, chamomile, pine, apple, fennel, juniper, elfwort, and wotan’s herb

Animals: wolf, raven, snake, bear, and horse

Colours: grey, deep blue, and black

Tarot: The Hermit, The Magician, and The Hanged Man

Offerings: red wine, mead, beer, ale, quality alcohol, whiskey, smoked salmon, red meat, beef, leeks, asparagus, garlic, and honey

💦 Ọṣun / Oshun

Goddess of: water, purity, fertility, love, sensuality, freshwater, wealth, diplomacy, and The Osun River

Culture: Yoruba

Symbols: seashells, and amber beads

Plants: cinnamon, sunflowers, oranges, yellow squash, marigold, pumpkin, rosemary, and lantana

Animals: peacock, vulture, catfish, river fish in general, cricket, leopard, and crocodile

Colours: white, gold, amber, yellow, and coral

Tarot: The Empress

Offerings: honey (taste before you offer it) , bowl of water, flowers, seashells, beauty items, chamomile tea, cooked shrimp and spinach, yellow and orange fruits and vegetables, sliced orange drizzled with tasted cinnamon honey.

⚰️ Osiris

God of: the Underworld, death, resurrection, fertility, and agriculture

Culture: Egyptian

Symbols: crook and flail, atef crown, ostrich feathers, mummy gauze, and djed

Plants: willow, tamarisk tree, and many types of houseplants

Animals: bull, ostrich, and dog

Colours: black and green

Tarot: The Emperor, The Hierophant, The Lovers, The Hanged Man, Death, and Judgment

Offerings: green and black crystals, bread, beer, beef, bird meat, and nice clothing

🌫️ Ọya

Goddess of: weather, death and rebirth, a psychopomp, and patron of the Niger River

Culture: Yoruba

Symbols: lightning, sword, machete, and fly-whisk

Plants: akoko tree, camwood, camphor, cypress, marigold, and mimosa

Animals: water buffalo, antelope, sheep, and locust

Colours: purple, burgundy, and the rainbow

Tarot: Strength, The High Priestess, and The Empress

Offerings: starfruit, black-eyed peas, plums, purple grapes, mine eggplants is a traditional offering (or one eggplant sliced into nine pieces), and red wine

🐐 Pan

God of: the wild, shepherds, flocks, rustic music, fertility, hunters, mountains, forests, and meadows

Culture: Greek

Symbols: panpipes

Plants: Coriscan Pine, Water-reed, Pine Trees

Animals: goat

Colours: green, brown, and purple

Tarot: The Fool, The Lovers, The Devil, King of Pentacles, and Page of Pentacles

Offerings: pine cones, pine branches, animal bones, musical instruments (especially Woodwinds), milk, honey, and lamb or goat meat

🌋 Pele

Goddess of: volcanoes, fire, Land lightening

Culture: Hawaiian 

Symbols: volcano, fire, and lava

Plants: ohi’a lehua, lehua lower, strawberry, sugar cane, tobacco, coconut, and pineapple

Animals: Hawaiian honeycreeper, sea turtle, fish, and white dogs

Colours: red, orange, yellow, green, and black

Tarot: The Tower and Suit of Wands

Offerings: fruits, flowers, forest plants, berries, vegetables, gin, and cigars

⚱️ Persephone

Goddess of: the Underworld and spring

Culture: Greek

Symbols: pomegranate, grain, torch, and flowers

Plants: asphodel wheat, willow, narcissus, lily, ivy, lily of the valley, daisy, and lavender

Animals: deer, bat, black ram, parrot, and monkey

Colours: green, black, light blue, purple, magenta, indigo, and yellow

Tarot: The Hermit, The Hanged Man, Death, Judgment, and Knight of Pentacles

Offerings: pomegranates/pomegranate juice, honey, floral tea, breads and sweets, flower crowns or arrangements, dark chocolate, flowers, crushed mint, animal bones, jewelry, and/or your artwork

🌊 Poseidon

God of: the sea, water, horses, and earthquakes

Culture: Greek

Symbols: trident

Plants: pine tree and wild celery

Animals: fish, dolphin, horse, and bull

Colours: blue, teal, green, and silver

Tarot: King of Cups and Suit of Cups

Offerings: ocean water, honey, olive oil, seaweed, white wine poured into water, wild celery, homemade seafood, seashells, sea salt, coral, mint, and sand

☀️ Ra

God of: creator god, and the sun

Culture: Egyptian

Symbols: sun disk, ankh, , and sceptre

Plants: citrus fruits, marigold, sunflower, papyrus, daisy, and lotus

Animals: falcon, lion, and eagle

Colours: yellow, gold, orange, red, and white

Tarot: The Emperor and The Sun

Offerings: fruit juice, citrus fruits, honey, water, beer, wine, bread, barley, figs, dates, chocolate, chicken or duck, beef, and frankincense.

🚢 Rán

Goddess of: the sea

Culture: Norse

Symbols: Fishing Nets, Stormy Seas

Plants: beech, buckthorn, elder, elm, ivy, juniper, willow, and yew

Animals: aquatic Animals

Colours: black an sea-green

Tarot: Queen of Cups

Offerings: clean up the ocean, seashells, fishing with a net, seafood, gold, coins, sea rocks, flowers, sand, seawater, bread? cakes, and mead

🐎 Rhiannon

Goddess of: the moon, horses, songbirds, wind, gates, and horseshoes

Culture: Welsh

Symbols: the moon, horseshoes, waning moon phases, gates, the winds, and the number 7

Plants: cedar, pine, narcissus, daffodils, pansies, rosemary, sage, bay, lavender, and all white flowers

Animals: horse, frog, dog, songbird, dragon, badger, and hummingbird

Colours: green, silver, black, white, grey, red, maroon, and brown

Tarot: The Moon

Offerings: soft-sounding music, a white candle with the number 7 carved into it, white flowers, apples, willow, ivy, evergreens, caring for horses, caring for dogs, and studying liminal spaces and astral work

💀 Santa Muerte

Goddess of: healing, protection, financial wellbeing, and the afterlife

Culture: Mexican

Symbols: scythe, globe, scales of justice, and oil lamp

Plants: fresh flowers, apples, and marigolds

Animals: owl, dogs, cats, dove, crows, and snakes

Colours: red, white, black, blue, and green

Tarot: Death

Offerings: cash, cigars, apples, tequila, cannabis, fresh water, candles, candy, fruit, roses, and bread

🌙 Selene

Goddess of: the Moon

Culture: Roman

Symbols: crescent, torch, chariot, billowing cloak, bull, stars, moon, horse, lunar cycle, torch, and bull horns

Plants: willow, moonflower, lavender, wisteria, oak, lilac, birch, rose, dandelion, and jasmine

Animals: horse, bull, mule, and ox

Incense: frankincense, rosemary, guaiac, orris root, and tonka bean

Colours: silver, blue, white, and grey

Tarot: The Moon, The Star, and Temperance

Offerings: white foods, moon water, dew, glitter/shiny objects, olive oil, flowers, fruit, moon-shaped things, water, honey, nephalia (wineless libation), milk, statues of horses, cakes, and crystals (moonstone, quartz, selenite, and pearl)

🦁 Sekhmet 

Goddess of: war, destruction, healing, divine wrath, fire, and the sun

Culture: Egyptian

Symbols: the sun, scimitar, ankh, the desert, and pomegranates

Plants: carnation, rose, cloves, cinnamon, juniper, and orange blossoms

Animals: lion and cobra

Colours: red, gold, yellow, and white

Tarot: Strength, The Tower, and The Sun

Offerings: red wine, rum, beer, meats, bones, tobacco, wild cat skulls, weapons like daggers and swords, pomegranates, spicy foods, gold Jewelry, red Flowers, milk, blackberries, raspberries, mushrooms, and bread

💣 Set

God of: the sky, storms, the desert, disorder, war, foreigners, and a trickster God

Culture: Egyptian

Symbols: was sceptre and ankh

Plants: lettuce

Animals: hippopotamus, crocodile, scorpion, snapping turtle, wild pig, and donkey

Colours: red

Tarot: The Chariot, Death, and The Devil

Offerings: beer, whiskey, red wine, spicy foods, red meats, lettuce, shellfish, maces and daggers, bird eggs, cherries, dark chocolate, and shiny things

🪞 Sif

Goddess of: grain and fertility

Culture: Norse

Symbols: golden hair, loom, and mirror

Plants: birch, chamomile, fir, hawthorn, mugwort, rose, and willow

Animals: songbirds

Colours: gold and green

Tarot: Suit of Pentacles and Queen of Pentacles

Offerings: beer, honey, mead, grain, and bread

🎿 Skaði

Goddess of: winter, wilderness, mountains, bowhunting, and skiing

Culture: Norse

Symbols: skis, bow and arrows, snow, mountains, frost, and snowshoes

Plants: beech, blackthorn, elder, elm, ivy, juniper, mullein, and willow

Animals: wolf

Colours: white and brown

Tarot: The Hermit and Temperance

Offerings: vodka, traditional Scandinavian foods, meat from hunted animals (rabbit, deer, etc.), animal pelts, animal bones, and snow Water

🌞 Sol / Sunna

Goddess of: the Sun

Culture: Norse

Symbols: the Sun and gold

Plants: chamomile, cinnamon, corn, daisy, marigold, citrus fruits, rosemary, sunflower, and wheat

Animals: horse

Colours: gold, red, yellow, orange, white, and green

Tarot: The Sun

Offerings: mead, honey, bread, cider, and fruit juice

🪦 Thanatos

God of: personification of death

Culture: Greek

Symbols: sword, inverted torch, theta, wreath, wings

Plants: poppy and cypress

Animals: butterfly

Colours: black, silver, white, and purple

Tarot: Death

Offerings: (traditional liquid offerings are poured into the ground and food is buried), red wine, olive oil, water, honey, poppy seeds, black tea, dark chocolate, feathers, animal bones, snake skin, and graveyard dirt (collected respectfully)

🍃 The Dagda

God of: fertility, agriculture, strength, magic, druidry, wisdom, father-figure, King and Druid

Culture: Celtic

Symbols: club, cauldron, and harp

Plants: grains and oats

Animals: pig and bull

Colours: black, silver, white, and purple

Tarot: Strength, Wheel of Fortune, The World, King of Pentacles, King of Wands

Offerings: Porridge, Mead, Milk, Honey, Pork, Beef, Mutton, Music, and Laughter

Offerings: honey, olive oil, sweets, flowers, herbs, plants, bread, wheat, fruit, sunflower oil, beer, mead, spring water, vegetables, grains, and baked goods

🔮 The Morrigan

Goddess of: magic, battle, life and death, sovereignty, fresh water, prophecy, and fate

Culture: Celtic

Symbols: cloak, spear, chariot, sword, and shield

Plants: willow, aspen, rowan, snapdragon, hawthorn, yew, belladonna, mugwort, and nightshade (do not consume, handle with care!)

Animals: crow, raven, horse, eel, serpent, and wolf

Colours: red, black, white, blue, and green

Tarot: Suit of Swords, Queen of Swords, Justice, and Death

Offerings: red meat, red wine poured into the ground, apples, mead, milk, whiskey, storm water, crow feathers, knives and daggers, and artwork

🌩️ Thor

God of: thunder, lightning, strength, protection, fertility, masculinity, and protector of humanity

Culture: Norse

Symbols: Mjölnir

Plants: oak, garlic, onion, gorse, thistle, hawthorn, leeks, houseleek, mountain ash, hazel, pine, acorns, and oak moss

Animals: goat and bull

Colours: red, white, gold, and blue

Tarot: Strength and The Chariot

Offerings: hearty foods with lots of meat or onions, mead, beer, flattery, oak, whiskey, coffee, and honey

✒️ Thoth

God of: knowledge, wisdom, writing, mathematics, science, magic, truth, integrity, time, and the moon

Culture: Egyptian

Symbols: scales, papyrus scroll, stylus, crescent moon, and a pen

Plants: papyrus and sweet flag

Animals: ibis and baboon

Colours: white, blue, and teal

Tarot: The Magician, The Hierophant, The Star, and The Moon

Offerings: black tea, water, honey, blackberries, apricots, salmon, tuna, oranges (and orange-flavoured things), walnuts, cashews, quills, fountain pens, leather-bound books and journals, books you think he’d enjoy, silver, poetry, dark chocolate, whiskey, gin, mead, mint tea, and moon water

🗡️ Tyr

God of: war, lawgiver, justice, oaths

Culture: Norse

Symbols: weapons like arrows and spears

Plants: flowering spurge, holly, wolfsbane, and monkshood

Animals: wolf, bear, and eagle

Colours: red, silver, grey, and gold

Tarot: King of Swords

Offerings: wine, strong beer, salt, honey, bread, grains, beef, pork, and potatoes

🐄 Veles

God of: the Underworld, Earth, water, music, magic, trickery, cattle, and wealth

Culture: Slavic

Symbols: the symbol of Veles

Plants: willow

Animals: cow, bear, snake, wolf, dragon, and owl

Colours: gold, yellow, and red

Tarot: The Magician, The Hierophant, The Star, and The Moon

Offerings: cooked corn, bread, herbs (especially basil), wooden flutes and string instruments, black wool or fur, things carved from wood, coins, chicken, mistletoe, and music, 

🌧️ Zeus

God of: King of the Gods, the sky, weather, law, order, justice, hospitality

Culture: Greek

Symbols: lightning bolt, cloud, sceptre, throne, and aegis

Plants: oak, olive, wild celery, artichoke, white poplar, and linden tree

Animals: eagle, bull, cuckoos, and swan

Colours: gold, yellow, blue, white, purple, and silver

Tarot: The Emperor, Justice, Wheel of Fortune, King of Swords, and The Fool

Offerings: wine, olive oil, water, honey, milk, red meat, bread and cakes, rainwater, golden objects, crowns, scales, eagle feathers, oak branches and leaves, beef or mutton, whiskey, and cinnamon.

[libidomechanica]

Let therefore two sides her hand show

And around the tower of use     and a curst magician’s heart I’ll tell his position: I     don’t birds may taken with this vestal vow take and loosed our     light the mind that, oft I her shame? Who kill? News but a body     and where I profane,

should die like Adam’s recollect     my heart on fire more the gallant gentle eye, and so Your     humbles away around then she sting! Now ryse vp Elisa,     decked the prove him her long since their troth, and leave, with no     more, and prosody are

in perilous bustle, but would     not speak, she was long ago; lust of all within was still     back return, return, even years? Though the core of This admires     my Lady Blanche had no summer breathless to benefit     mankind. Into Bagdad

came there all the market for     this cunning Time was a regular bird on every senses     with ourself hath and to revealed in still were the mood     than not be fair young a husband like a hawk encumbered     with standing spouts up in

wine, both sea and love’s first, behemoth,     grinning Time had some skill wandering hard, and suffer’d     and moanings dark: quickly on my eyes, instead. With thought the     time when the age here should not. So saying, soothe mystic art,     if such faltering was

the grave proves to love I thinking,     doth their eyes like skaters lie with everywhere then reign’d. Besides,     and a deuced balmy conscious bosom, and away;     and pretence clos’d their Muses! No serpent to singen soothe     a tiny earth said that

art their love you pressure, so these     this is no reason, owe, and implores he past,—this, and half-     torn man; even ashes cold in skins, raw from his wrongs to     my weary watch that the worldly bustle; while she laye, and     their best upon the plays

in such a cure, they were green, ended     knees, more dead. Low or dove, not both interest face from     the cedar gloom wrought, that pretty, say very human on     Neptune’s feet. We have drawn and then—God known the mother,     I will be like Wellesley

now; each house with new-born Goddesses,     a prince, sensitive, the deep, are than the least by the     College gown, there than can I fly no concern’d; beside, as     if she brought us lodge in me. Nuptial knot, and so stream:     to following knees most

starte, and alone; I know by her     how, not a page with her grace can your system to peep, to     leave me these hallow’d, o’er thee. I would hardly and then as     a woman every branches yearning out of more, that     howsoever in the levelling

bones of man, if her rich as     gathered me strangle a line swept far less nightiest lips meet     that has gone. On softer thee. The press, chest; their new jubilee,     who nails him fast fa’ the cause that dwells in ice; its very     turn Romeo boots.

Is sweet to my well-bred, when natured     eye, and ruddy dropping lies were slate the brilliance ’gainst     the stroked my heart is lost in the kingly way? Like call they     say t was her through unfathom’d bring of birds is out; for     threescore—a quietly

inurn’d; for its workings that dainty     of blossoms, as the strange doubt. But the strove whole life, wishing     sore him in their death? Around me, my form, look upon     my gardens green, ended late! The maid, wife, and aloes, with     sapphire in the work

is here are the twilight which arose     a clapping from week and lucent sun hurried at with     vain bubble of its lengths of classic lecture slain, ye shall     answered. Music’s gold fin in stone—when the took pity. The     one to Wámik—Oh Thou

victim, and over heaven, mankind.     Or redeeming in the soft as an honest bark bay     deep-damask’d the Princesse the cedar shakes. Or eyes. Who make     all proceed; you’d call her sae sma’! For thys, not kills me the     fast sponge of trees feel

palpitated to the Water light.     Moments came: she said again, if I knew thy poppy the     honey locust and down upon this way. To overfraughts     each humble down the comfort neer. With your mother again,     my soul invincible.

[faeryqueenwitch]

🧚🎉Fairy Festivals🎉🧚

🎉 Fairy festivals take place at crossover points in the seasons. Equinoxes and solstices are determined by the position of the Sun, but the other four festivals are celebrated when the time feels right, so the dates given below are approximate.

🎉 There are other festivals too,such as Christmas Eve,Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. Any human festival that touches on old traditions,from Ramadan to a Japanese Flower Festival, is a fairy feast. If you celebrate these festivals and make the effort to tune into what concerns the fairies, you will draw closer to their world. If you celebrate a special meal, remember to leave a little outside afterward for the fairies

1.  🌷 Imbolic - 🌷

February 2 in the Northern Hemisphere/July 31 in the Southern Hemisphere

Imbolc means “in the belly,” and this is the time when life stirs in the belly of the earth. Frost sparkles and the pale light lingers each evening,bringing the message that spring is on the horizon. Imbolc is the delicate crossover point from winter’s depths into the New Year. It is a feast of lightness and brightness,but also a time of cleansing,to make way for the new. The Hag, who is Dark Goddess or Dark Fairy, gives way now to the Maiden, who is young and radiant.

Fairies love neatness and good housekeeping,so it is a good idea to have a late-winter sort-out,in preparation for fresh activity. While the fairies are busy coaxing snowdrops and crocuses out of the winter-hard earth,do something creative of your own,such as knitting,painting,or writing poetry. Ask the fairies to lend you a little of their magic by leaving them an offering,such as a piece of wool or a verse written just for them.

This feast is also called candlemas,sacred to St.Bridget,who was the successor to the pagan goddess Bride (pronounced “Breed”). Bride was the keeper of the sacred flame,which represents eternal life. She is the patroness of poetry,smithcraft,child birth, and healing, and is a very powerful fairy indeed. Invite her into your home by lighting as many candles as you like, in your windows and around your house. Ask her to bless your projects for the coming year,and pledge a special act of caring for the natural world in return,to seal your pact as the year waxes.

2. 🌼 Spring Equinox- 🌼

March 21 in the Northern Hemisphere/September 21 in the Southern Hemisphere

The fairies are very busy at the Spring Equinox,looking after all the flowers that are newly blooming.Scandinavian fairies become active now: the Russian cellar fairy,The Domoviyr,casts off its skin and grows a lighter one for summer; and the Russian Rusalki,or river fairies are glimpsed by lakes swollen with melted snow.

A tree planting project is a very fairy-friendly activity at this time. A seasonal blitz on the garden is also called for. While you are hard at work, digging and pulling away at dead winter twigs, it is easy to go into a kind of trance. This, coupled with the spell of the natural world around you,can create the perfect state of mind to catch a glimpse of fairies.You can be sure they are near you,helping you with their energies.Plant some seeds of your choice and, as you put them in the earth, close your eyes and make a special request for fairy help. Visualize the fairies tending your seeds,giving them their love and care. Ask out loud for the fairies to help you,and sing or hum and you plant. Touch the soft soil with your bare hands and make real contact with the earth.

Place water in a pottery or glass jug (plastic or metal is best avoided) and leave it out in the noon sunshine. Ask the fairies to bless it. Imagine them dancing around it and coming up to touch it with their glimmering fingers. Use the water to give your houseplants a special spring blessing.

The Green Man is a powerful nature spirit that has been sensed by many people. He is represented in numerous churches as the Foliate Mask (a face made up of leaves),and one theory about his presence is that the masons who fabricated him had hidden sympathies with the old nature- worship. He is making his appearance now on some new park benches and monuments. However, you can make contact with the real Green Man out alone walking through the woodland. Ancient and wise,he is watching you. Catch a glimpse of him behind tree trunks or in the lacework of budding branches. Hear his footfalls behind you as you walk. He is the very breath of Nature, and his strength is bursting forth in springtime.

3. 💐 Beltane - 💐

April 30 in the Northern Hemisphere/October 31 in the Southern Hemisphere

Of all the festivals, Beltane is the most flagrantly joyful and sensuous as Nature is bursting forth with beauty and excitement. This was the Celtic beginning of summer, and also marked an important transition for the people of Fairy, for it was the time when the Milesian Celts landed on the shores of south-west Ireland. With this, the last of the magical peoples,the Tuatha de Danann, receded from the the world of humans into the Hollow Hills and became the people of the Sidhe.

However, they and the other fairy folk have not gone very far. You will find them dancing in a bluebell wood or skipping in the sunshine,sheltered by a greening hedge. Beltane is the time when good fairies reign supreme and bad fairies retreat. Fairies are very active now and may try to steal butter,or some of the ritual fire that used to be ignited on hilltops and is still lit by modern pagans.

This is the maypole season, but instead you can always dance around a friendly tree. Link hands with friends, and you may find yourselves spontaneously re-creating the kind of things people used to to do when seeing fairies was commonplace:lingering,walking,and talking, in the open air, away from television,computers,and other modern distractions.

There are many tales of beautiful fairies marrying mortals. Such tales usually end in tragedy, for fairy and human can never truly be joined. Better to borrow some of the fairy enchantment by performing a little magic of your own! Rise early on May Day and wash your face in the dew or simply walk in it. As the rhyme says: “The fairy maid who, the first of May Goes to the fields at break of day, And walk in dew from the hawthorn tree, Will ever handsome be.”

Welsh legend tells how the hero Pwll saw the Lady Rhiannon riding past him at Beltane and, after pursuing her, he eventually won her. Rhiannon is one aspect of the Fairy Queen,riding on her white horse between the worlds. As you sit quietly outside,on a bank in the late spring dusk,listen for the sounds of her horse’s hooves,and open your eyes to the shimmer of her sea-blue cloak. When Rhiannon touches your heart, she will fill it with love and inspiration.

4. 🌹 Midsummer -  🌹

June 22 in the Northern Hemisphere/December 22 in the Southern Hemisphere

This is one of the most magical times of the year, when fairies are very active and visible, playing pranks and even, it is said, stealing away the young and beautiful to join them in the Hollow Hills. The sun is now at the height of its strength and this is an important crossover point,such as the fairies love. For at the Midsummer Solstice the sun stands still, before beginning to recede as we move into the waning half of the year.

Flowers are colorful and luxuriant, and one radiant day seems to merge into another, as late dusk meets early dawn. At no time is the natural world more inviting. Take part in it by going on quests -long walks to sacred spots,evening camping out with the minimum of equipment,to draw close to the mystery that is all around, and to the Fair Folk in particular.

The rose is possibly the most sensuous bloom of all, and at midsummer it is often at its most gorgeous. Roses in the garden are especially likely to attract fairies. Distil water from rose petals and add it to your bath, asking the fairies to lend you some of their enchantment and to help you attract love. Brew tea from rosebuds and drink it,to increase your psychic powers.Plant a rose bush with a friend, to affirm the loving bound between you and invite the fairies into your life.

St.John’s wort is a herb known to break any negative fairy enchantment and drive away depression. Pluck some on Midsummer’s Day and carry it, to keep cheerful.

Look out for water nymphs by streams, or for undines for water elementals on the seashore- or for even the Lady of the Lake herself,rising from the luminous depths.In olden times, these beings were said to have no souls. It is closer to the truth to say that they do not have human morals. Conventions often conceal or feelings, but the beauty of the water fairies opens us to our unconscious tides; see them and let yourself be transformed.

5. 🌾Lammas- 🌾

July 31 in the Northern Hemisphere/February 2 in the Southern Hemisphere

Lammas is “Loaf Mass,” a christian version of a much older festival known as Lughnasadh, or the “Feast of Lugh.” Lugh was a Celtic god,lord of the Tuatha de Danann, and his name means “bright one.” Lughnasadh is a major fairy festival, and many fairies become active during this period,such as the Russian Polevik, who kicks sleepy harvesters awake. It is also a time when fairies move about in preparation for winter,and processions of them may be seen as a line of twinkling lights moving between the hills in the countryside.

At Lammas, the fields are golden with corn and splashed with red poppies. It is hazy,lazy time of holidays and abundance,but there is an underlying theme of death,for the Corn Spirit must be sacrificed in order to reap the harvest. If you walk out into a field of ripe wheat, you may sense the anger of the nature spirits as what is to be taken from the earth,even thought that is a part of the natural cycle of life.Gather up some ears of wheat and tie them into a bunch with red thread,to make a charm for the coming winter to hang over your hearth. At the same time,pledge an act of caring for the earth,such as clearing a derelict site in your neighborhood or garden, or planting and tending a herb, as payment for what you-and all of us- take from it.

At home, bake your own bread, using the rising of the dough as a spell to ensure that everything prospers in your life. While you are kneading the bread dough, say to yourself “As this dough swells, so may my fortunes increase.” Ask for your own personal Brownie, or house fairy, to come and help your bread rise- and remember to leave some breadcrumbs outside afterward,for the fairies.

Some say that Lugh is lord of the waning year, and his dance- through the waving,whispering corn- is a dance of death. If so, it is a reminder that all things come in cycles,and that everything is united in love and beauty. Stand at the edge of a sun-kissed wheat field and see the shimmer and sway that betrays the presence of Lugh. Take a few moments to feel respect for the earth in your heart, and understand the meaning of the Wheel of Life.

6. 🍁 Autumn Equinox (Mabon) - 🍁

September 21 in the Northern Hemisphere/March 21 in the Southern Hemisphere

At the Autumn Equinox, Nature stands poised between light and dark,but darkness is gaining. The veil between this world and the Otherworld is at its thinnest, and all manner of spirit visitations are more frequent now.

The hedgerows are beaded with berries,and mist lingers in the hollows. Sometimes the wind whistles in from nowhere and tosses baring branches. On other says, the mellow sun caresses the fields with slanting fingers. It is a time for reflection, but also for industry. In days gone by, preserves would be made for winter store and the help of the Good Folk would be sought by country people.

Absorb the atmosphere of the season by going blackberrying. In Celtic countries, there may be a taboo on eating blackberries, because these belong especially to fairies. However, as long as you gather them with respect and do not denude the bramble bushes, they will hardly object. Better still,leave out some of your homemade blackberry pie or wine for them,so that they will bless you. When this month ends, leave the blackberries alone and move on. Also look out for a bramble bush that forms an arch-so much the better if it faces east/west, for that mirrors the passage of the sun. Crawl through this three times on a sunny day to be healed of physical ills, especially rheumatism and skin troubles.

At this mysterious time, pay honor to Queen Mab. Her special gift is to bring dreams and visions to birth within us. She is really one of many manifestations of the Goddess, in her autumnal guise of wise-woman and Lady of Magic, and she is linked with ancient ideas of sovereignty- for the king drew his power from the land, and Mab presided.

Preferably at the Full Moon closest to the equinox,place good-quality wine in a stemmed glass or chalice,and take it into the garden or a secluded place.Raise the glass to the Moon,say, “Mab, I honor you”and pour some of the wine onto the earth. Drink a little and say, “Mab, I drink with you,” Then return home,light a bright-green candle beside your bed,gaze at the flame and say, “Mab,give me wisdom,” Place some jasmine or rose oil on your pillow,extinguish the candle-and drift into Fairyland. This is a little ritual that you can repeat during any Full Moon if you wish.

7. 🎃 Samhain - 🎃

October 31 in the Northern Hemisphere/April 30 in the Southern Hemisphere

Samhain means “summer’s end” and is pronounced “sa-wen.” This ancient Celtic festival at the official start of the winter was later Christianized as Halloween- a time when the dead were remembered. There was always a sinister aspect to Samhain,because certain sacrifices had to be made in order to survive the coming cold weather. Animals had to be slaughtered,and some say that human sacrifice took place to propitiate the spirits. Sacrifice,however, is a corruption of nature worship,for life is hard enough as it is and all we have to do is show respect.

Barrow mounds,shrouded in mist,are particularly eerie places at Samhain. Draw close,if you dare,and sit quietly.Do you hear the strange,far-off noise of fairy music,or the sound of knocking? Maybe the mound will open for you and unearthly light will stream over the barren fields.After Samhain,the earth is given over to the powers of darkness and decay.No crops or berries may be harvested after this time,because the Phooka, a malevolent Irish Fairy,blights them. The true meaning here,of course,is that death and decay have a place in the natural order,requiring due honor and respect lest they get out of hand.

Traditionally, this is the start of the story telling season. While the wind whistles around the eaves or the mist comes down outside,gather family or friends around your hearth- preferably with a real fire burning in it. If you do not have an open hearth,substitute a collection of large,burning candles. Sit round and speak of times gone by and people who have passed over to the other side.Ask the Beloved Dead to be present, if you wish(but note that this is not a seance,and the Beloved Dead are invited,not summoned). Laugh,share funny stories,feast,and drink.

Cerridwen is the Underworld Goddess and the Fairy Hag most associated with this time. In her magic cauldron,she stirs a brew that confers inspiration and transformation. Simmer up a hearty soup of root vegetables or pumpkin, to share with friends,then light a black candle and ask Cerridwen to guide you through the darkness into the light. You will  be both safe and wise.

8.  ❄️ Yule - ❄️

December 22 in the Northern Hemisphere/June 22 in the Southern Hemisphere

Yule is the Midwinter Solstice, when the sun again appears to stand still,as it did at midsummer,but the season is poised for the return of light. Celebrations of Christ’s birth were moved to coincide with the much more ancient solstice.

As you deck your Christmas tree,remember that the evergreen is a powerful symbol of the enduring life in Nature. Of course,is has a fairy on top of it,confirming that it is a festival of the Fair Folk,who also rejoice in the sun’s rebirth. Decorating your tree is an important magical act,for the decorations are fairy charms. Each member of the family should hang at least one special charm of their own,to enable a wish to come true.

Jack Frost is an active fairy in the cold weather,painting windows with intricate lacework. In Russia he is called Father Frost,the soul of winter,covering the trees in ice. Do not shrink from the frost fairy-go out and wonder at his works and he will reward you with hope and joy,just as in Russia Father Frost brings presents for the children on New Year’s Day.

By far the best-known and most powerful fairy at Yule is Father Christmas himself. Today we know him by his robes of red and white, but in the past he also wore green and other colors. As we have seen,red is the color both of life and death, and many fairies wear red caps. The hearty red of Father Christmas is a sign that he is an Otherworld being-very much alive,but not of this earth. He is recognized all over the world, as Kris Kringle in Germany and Pere Noel in France. In Brazil he is Papa Noel,and in China Dun Che Loa. He is the essence of Yuletide mystery,joy and renewal,and like many traditional fairies, he comes in and out via the hearth.

When all is quiet on Christmas Eve, get ready to welcome Father Christmas- light a candle and look at the stars. Pledge a gift for a friend and one for the world, and ask for a special gift to answer your heart’s desire. Write your wish on a piece of paper and “post” it up the chimney if you have an open fire. If not, burn it in the candle flame. Can you hear those sleigh bells?

(Art By: IrenHorrors On Deviantart -Link)

[mogai-sunflowers]

anygays here’s my updated list of upcoming royal system terms- currently not adding to it, and i did remove a few from the lists recommended to me for personal reasons, i’m really looking forward to doing these, i’ve got flags for most so far and i do have around 100 posts in my queue alr but im gonna be shuffling it up a bit so i can post royal system posts in between the ones alr in the queue

willow, lullaby, melody, harmony, love song, acoustic music, violin, cello, poetry, sunlight, moonlight, starlight, ocean sunset, waterlily, tigerlily, lupine, dragonfly, firefly, auroracore, pixiecore, clockpunk, steampunk, carnivalcore, post apocalyptic, pastel academia, musical academia, writers academia, ballet academia, romantic academia, crowcore, cyberpunk, cyberprep, cyberdelic, cybergoth, cybergrunge, coffee house, vellichor, dollcore, dark paradise/naturalism, daydream, dazecore, psychedelica, acidwave, ethereal, fairy academia, fawncore, happycore, horror academia, theater academia, jamcore, lunarpunk, solarpunk, northerness aesthetic, ocean academia, sparklecore, studyplace/studycore, vintage academia, warmcore, witchy academia, spiritcore, scenecore, marigold, daffodil, hyacinth, peony, rainy days, pastel, rococo, pixel cutie, pastel blue, pastel yellow, pastel orange, pastel pink, pastel purple, pastel green, plaguecore, plague doctor, natural philosophy, philosophy, luminism, hikecore, mountain sunrise/sunset, craftcore, vintage/vintagecore, cloud/cloudcore, violet flower, iris, lavender, jasmine, magnolia, morning glory, bluebell, poppy, orchid, lotus, forget me not, buttercup, gardenia, lilac, wildflower, dandelion, periwinkle, dahlia, zinnia, calla lily, lily of the valley, petunia, chrysanthemum, rosemary, love song, garden, fairy tale, fairy lights, flower crown, ginger, gingerbread, cotton candy, candy cane, cookie, lamb, honeybee, bumblebee, twirly skirt, ballerina, blue butterfly, phoenix, songwriting, ivy, aspen, birch, oak, evergreen, starry sky, winter forest, winter flower, polar bear, black bear, grizzly bear, leopard, meadowlark, nightingale, holly, sea glass, mistletoe, crescent moon, feather, dystopia, utopia, lollipop, popsicle, cookie, candy/candycore, harp, soulqueer, neon, arcade/arcadecore, snowman, nebula, constellation, northern lights, shooting star, summer sunset, romantic love, queerplatonic love, platonic love, friendship, kindness, falcon, hawk, poison, gold, marble, rebel, astronomy, volcano, love/lovecore, babycore, minimalism, prairiecore, candle, fairy garden, coconut, ocean cliff, flying, spiral, magical, magic trick, tiger, pegasus, griffin, satyr/faun, misty sunrise, christmas tree, legendary, bowtie, secret, ghosty story, evil fairy, guitar, singing, rainbow sprinkles, rainbow sparkles, superhero, stone, forgotten, dryad, infinity, paradise, castle, peach, elephant, luck, courage, fear, sci-fi, fantasy, siren, campfire, library, swan, envy, apple juice, antique, greenhouse, hot chocolate, celestial, brownie, imagination, truth, magic wand, illusion, prophecy, euphoria, jewelry, heartbreak, stardust, nightlight, magical flower, angel bunny, notebook, silk, memory, liberty, honeydew, honeycrisp, autumn academia, mystery, heaven, hell, wisteria, whimsical, mirror, sugarplum, ice skating, bell, tuxedo, androgynous, spy, detective, wisdom, war, branch, sword, shield, gun, yule, xenic, genderless, glass, translucent, holy, overcast, sky, wax, zodiac, knitted doll, feathered dragon, evil, tabby cat, 50s, 20s, tuxedo cat, barn owl, snowy owl, creeper, enderman, pokemon, dovakiin, khajit, redguard, argonian, bosmer, dunmer, altmer, orsimer, imperial, Breton, nord, guard, drama, gender nonconforming, god/goddess, linguistic, clay doll, cornhusk doll, occult, tarot, lava, slime, luna moth, silk moth, poodle moth, rose maple moth, poltergeist, fruit bat, sloth, cyclops, flower fairy, narwhal, salt, she/her, he/him, they/them, it/its, funky, fresh, homey, bear, time travel, vampire bat, circus, songbird, pony, virus, fever, sand castle, hologram, radioactive, alternate timeline, alternate/parallel universe, white peacock, ancient ruins, distorted reality, victorian, victorian goth, enchantress

[andthisiswitchcraft]

Hello and welcome to Folk Magic Friday! 🖤

✨ Today is Friday the 13th. A perfect date for this post as I want to write something about slavic superstitions and old wives tales. And, as we all know, there is always something true in all old wives tales. Well, there was a reason they were told. I will also tell you something about making your own lucky amulet for days like this

✨ Most popular, still believed in and practised are:

red ribbon tied on baby's crib/trolley/hand as a lucky charm and for protection from evil powers or hexes

gathering of straw or branches placed under the roof of the house under construction

swallow's nest on your roof brings luck, be good to them

welcome newlyweds with bread and salt

burning and drowning effigy of Marzanna (I wrote about this here --> https://www.facebook.com/groups/487888341893851/posts/697057317643618/ )

eating mushrooms and poppy-seeds on Christmas - poppy was a connection with Nawia, slavic Nether. All Christmas dishes were typical for funeral meal

worshiping and being respectful for storks, waiting for their come back at the beginning of spring

divination by wax, especially for singles that are looking for love, at Saint Andrew's Day

no welcome or goodbye on the treshold of the house as it brings bad energy - always do this either in or out of your house

three kisses in the cheeks as a welcome and goodbye - for health, luck and prosperity

if you're pregnant don't go under or across any strings, ropes or wires as it may make umbilical cord tangled on your baby's neck

building a wayside shrines next to crossroads for protection

✨ As a protection from evil powers and bad luck Slavs made their own amulets called nawęza. It was little pouch with things closest to the person that was wearing it. Nawęza was wore as a necklace or was tied to the belt. Old Slavs usually put in their amulets animals fangs, feathers, magickal stones (especially hag stones), shells and herbs.

✨If you want to make your own nawęza, you can make it with little pouch with little things that make you feel powerful, safe or brings you luck. There are three types of nawęza:

❤️ nawęza of love - put there the closest things that belongs to the love of your life: hair and nails. Add two tangled red ribbons, rose quartz, mugwort and lovage. Spray it with musk oil and keep close with you or sew into your partner's clothes.

💎nawęza of wealth and prosperity - put there few wheat grains, acorns, some money, wallnut, leaf of mint and sunflower petals. Keep close with you.

🌿 nawęza of cleansing - put there garlic, quartz, sand, little piece of salt (not grinded), St John's wort and marjoram. Keep close with you or put under your pillow.

✨ Good thing to put on your own nawęza is magick symbol. It may be typical slavic symbol or symbol of your beloved goddess/god/entity. Typical for slavic nawęza would be one of these symbols:

Swarga/swarożyca/swarzyca or kołowrót (turnstile) - symbol of Swarog, the divine blacksmith. This symbol is also a slavic uroboros, snake eating his own tale. Arms of swarga are going on and on in the circle like sun and moon. Eight arms are a reminder of eight holidays important for slavic witches through the year. It was common symbol found above the doors or on cribs. It protects from evil in forms of illness, demons and bad luck.

Triskelion - known for Celts but also for Slavs. It was believed triskelion is a symbol of Weles, known as Three-headed god. Weles is a god of Nawia, to which leads a spiral way which was a metaphore of life.

Six-petal rosette - most popular symbol of Perun, the god of thunder, but also warriors. It was a protection from thunders and lightnings, placed inside the house, mostly on roofs or windows. Wear this symbol when you need to feel your inner strenght (for example before important interview).

Lunula - known for ancient Romans, but also for Slavs. It's a symbol of Mokosza, Mother Earth, patron of all women. It's good for love spells and rituals, helps with beauty and protects from health issues typical for women.

Symbol of Veles - a letter V that makes a triangle with added horns. God of Nawia, patron of cattle, god of magic and divination. It was also believed that a bear is an incarnation of Weles, so you can also use a bear paw as his symbol.

Hands of God - symbol of Perun, it is believed that four arms of this symbol are four powerful hands of Perun and each is reaching for each side of the world. It's used as a symbol of protection and inner strength.

Sun Cross/Solar Cross - symbol of Świętowit, most important god in Slavic pantheon. He is a god of all creation, the world maker. Circle means Earth divided by four seasons. It means the beginning of the world. Wear it when you need calm, harmony and inner peace.

Would you like to make your own nawęza? What would you put in your magick amulet? Tell me in the comments 🖤

And have a great Friday the 13th! 🐾

Iga

[scarletarosa]

Seshat

Egyptian goddess of knowledge, wisdom, writing, languages, learning, accounting, architecture, astronomy, astrology, building, mathematics, science, and surveying

Seshat (Sesha, Shai, Sesheta, or Safekh-Aubi) was one of the most important deities of Ancient Egypt. She had no temples (or at least none that have been discovered) but instead was widely worshipped through commonplace acts and daily rituals from the Early Dynastic Period to the last dynasty to rule Egypt. Her name means “she who scrivens” (she who is the scribe), and she is credited with the invention of hieroglyphics. She is a goddess of numerous talents and is great in knowledge; expertizing in many areas such as record-keeping, writing texts, assisting in the building of temples, analyzing stars and planets, calculating, and much more. Thus, Seshat is the patron goddess of scribes, librarians, architects, artists, teachers, scientists, and all seekers of knowledge, truth, and wisdom. Seshat is the daughter of Thoth (god of knowledge and wisdom) and Ma’at (goddess of truth and justice). Some versions of myth say that Seshat was also the consort of Thoth, or that she was his feminine counterpart.

One of the greatest roles of Seshat is that she is the one who looks after the Library of the Gods, and is the loving patroness of all libraries in existence. It was believed by Egyptians that every time an author wrote a story, book, or inscription, the divine scribe Seshat would write an etheric copy of this book in order to eternalize it in the Library of the Gods. She is the very deity who is claimed to have invented the Egyptian writing system, with her father Thoth being the one to teach these hieroglyphs to the Egyptians. Additionally, Seshat held the role of being scribe of the Pharaoh, recording all of his achievements and triumphs, as well as recording both the loot and captives taken during his battles. She is also the one who records the actions of all mortals upon leaves from the sacred persea tree. As the divine measurer and scribe, Seshat was also believed to recorded, by notching her palm, the time allotted to each Pharaoh for his stay on Earth. She also was responsible for recording the speeches of the Pharaohs during their crowning ceremonies. 

Seshat is the one who opens the portal to the afterlife and teaches the parted spirits the sacred spells from The Egyptian Book of the Dead, allowing the spirit to safely traverse the dangers of the Underworld. Her other role is that she is the one who builds homes for the spirits in the afterlife. Seshat was also sometimes depicted helping the funerary goddess Nephthys revive the deceased in the afterlife in preparation for their judgment by Osiris within the Hall of Truth. Seshat was also closely associated with the House of Life, along with deities such as Isis, Nephthys, and Thoth. The House of Life was attached to temples and was a centre of learning and teaching, an archive and scriptorium. It functioned as the repository of all knowledge, both sacred and profane. 

Seshat is known to be an expert in the art of sighting the stars and planets, as well as understanding them and calculating their movements. Due to this great skill, she was the one to assist the Pharaoh in the “stretching of the cord” ritual (“pedj shes”) so that she could have the temples and pyramids built with astronomical measurements- located beneath certain sacred areas of the sky. The “cord” refers to the mason’s line which was used to measure out the dimensions of each building. Her skills were also highly needed for surveying the land in order to re-establish boundary lines after the annual floods. Seshat is thus a granter of homes, temples, libraries, and every other foundation of the world. As she is the daughter of knowledge and order, she is the bases upon which the world thrives- assisting in the eternal evolution and truth-seeking of mankind.

In the Book of Thoth, one epithet of Seshat is “Mistress of the Sustenance of the Foremost of the Chamber of Darkness” The Chamber of Darkness is often referred to and perhaps eludes to the afterlife. Darkness is necessary for the development of intuition, wisdom, and the unfolding of mysteries, as well as the ability to face certain truths that may be hard to accept. Seshat holds the titles of “she-who-is-wise", “she who first established (the) chamber”, “she being a lamp of prophecy”. Thus, Seshat brings forth the light of truth and knowledge into the darkness of ignorance. From her comes all inventions, documents, scientific discoveries, and revelations. She is the goddess who is aware of all events and possesses a vast mind full of understanding and depth. She is an illuminating teacher to humanity- a goddess who brings the light of knowledge forth so that the world can become better.  

Appearance: Sehsat was depicted as a woman wearing a leopard skin dress (as worn by shamanic priests); the pattern of this hide was thought to represent the stars, being a symbol of eternity, and to be associated with the night sky. Seshat is also shown wearing a headdress composed of either a palm-leaf stalk or a seven-pointed star on top of a pair of inverted horns (the number seven symbolizes perfection). She was occasionally called “Safekh-Aubi” (or “Safekh-Abwy” meaning “She of two horns”) because of this headdress. However, others have suggested that the horns were originally a crescent moon, representing her connection with Thoth. She is often shown offering palm branches (representing “many years”) to the Pharaoh to bless him with a long reign. She may also be shown holding a palm stem, bearing notches to denote the recording of the passage of time, especially for keeping track of the allotment of time for the life of the Pharaoh. She was also depicted holding other tools and, often, holding the knotted cords that were stretched to survey land and structures.

Personal experiences: Seshat is an extremely wise and intelligent deity who is ever-curious, always seeking out any and all information. She is an excellent mentor and bestows sage guidance upon those who are devout in seeking truth. She is an incredible healer as well, since she knows vast information on medicines and other forms of healing. She is the one who illuminates all shadows, being with us throughout life and following us into the afterlife. Seshat is in fact the daughter of Thoth and Ma’at, but she explains that she was never consort to Thoth as this was a confusion. Sometimes, deities will combine their energies together in a non-sexual way in order to create a new deity who is a combination of their unique powers. This technique was done between her and Thoth, and one of the gods created from them was Khonsu, the god of the moon and healing, as well as the representation of the Initiate on the path towards Illumination. 

Seshat’s epithets: 

Mistress of the House of Books

The Primeval One

The Divine Scribe

Keeper of the House of Life

She Who is Wise

Mistress of the House of Architects

Foremost of Builders 

Celestial Librarian

Lady of Numbers

Lady of Writing

Chief of the Library

She of Seven Points

The Lamp of Prophecy

Knower of Fates

Divine Scribe

Lady of Hieroglyphs

Mistress of the Sustenance of the Chamber of Darkness

Reckoner of All Things on Earth

Lady of Writings in the House of Life

| Offerings |

Mead, beer, roast fish, dates, figs, plums, grapefruit, strawberry-flavoured chocolate, salted popcorn, cooked lamb, icecream, telescopes, monoculars, magnifying glasses, notebooks, scrolls, papyrus, quills, fountain pens, leopard print clothing, star imagery, star maps, henna dye, non-fiction books, old maps, miniature globes, orange or turquoise beads, golden jewelry, gold armlets (especially snake ones), lilies, roses (pink or white), tulips, geraniums, spearmint, lemon blossoms, cherry blossoms, almond blossoms, moonstone, white quartz, citrine, carnelian, jade, amethyst, amber, artwork, poetry. Incenses: amber, musk, white orchid, poppy, and sandalwood + jasmine. 

[theshy1sout]

Inseparable - Chapter 20

Tags: Not rated, Broppy Fluff, Slow Burn Fluff, Trolls Mythology Au

Ao3 here

Notes:  I can't believe I've finally written the whole fanfiction, from the very beginning to the very end. I'd never finished anything in my entire life. And I also wrote it in English! You have no idea how many hard was for me to learn another language. Guh, I'm so proud of myself. I know that the end isn't very satisfying. I mean, I suppose to be a fluff, and yes it is, but the end is a bit... Ambitious? I didn't want to finish it with a kiss, I planned to explain how the strings were created from the very beginning. Tell me your impression in the comments. Thank you for being my reader :)

_____________________________________________________________

- Dad, why do we have to sleep? - A little violet kid hides his face deeper into his father's shirt. - I thought you said once that Immortals don't have to sleep. But we sleep every night! It's... - He yawns. - ...frustrating.

Branch smiles at him, stroking his hair gently.

- I don't know - The blue god admits calmly. - I've never been a child. Ask your mother. She was.

A small girl looks up at the pink goddess, showing her eyes filled with surprise.

- You were a kid and dad wasn't? - She asks aloud.

- Dad came from Chaos - Poppy explains quietly, hugging her daughter a bit tighter. - And I was born just like you. That's why you have a grandpa and others don't.

- So why do Immortal kids have to sleep?

The last question comes from the oldest child, lying a bit aside from the rest. He doesn't like hugging that much. He prefers to sleep alone.

- I don't know, Aster - Poppy turns to him with a smile. - I needed it when I was a kid, that's all I know. We don't know much about immortal kids, they are really rare.

- That's why you are so special - Branch adds, smiling at his kid. He yawns, making everyone, one by one, yawning too. - You really need to sleep now.

- Are you sleeping with us? - A little girl lifts her sparkling eyes.

- Star, do we ever leave you during sleep?

- How can we know? - Aster points out. He really likes discussions. - What if you leave us when we get asleep and come back in the morning?

Star looks worryingly at dad.

- I swear we don't do that! - The blue god declares openly.

- Look, Happy is already asleep - Poppy glances down at the kid cuddled into Branch's arms. She takes a look at her daughter, kissing her on her light pink forehead. - Just close your eyes, little Star.

The girl smiles and listens to her mum. A few minutes later the grasshoppers' concert is disturbed only by calm breaths from children's mouths.

- That was fast - Branch whispers, gazing at his daughter. - What about Aster?

Poppy turns to her left where her son is lying a step or two from them.

- I think he's sleeping too - She announces.

They both look up at the clear nightly sky. They are staring at the twinkling stars for a while, listening to the soft melody of the grasshoppers' song. The light blue moon shines above them, watching the whole Earth from the sky. Everything is pleasantly calm.

- Let's figure it out again - Poppy starts out of nowhere. She doesn't have to explain she means their work. They both think about it most of the time. - What do we know about Love?

- The last time we separated six things it needs to be full and true - Branch starts listing. - Free will, awareness, affection, honesty, attachment, and emotionality.

- Six inseparable parts of Love - The goddess looks at the god, frowning sadly. - And trolls don't have even one of them.

Branch heave a deep sigh. He carefully moves closer to her, trying to not wake up his son cuddled to his right side. He slips his free hand under her head and embraces her shoulders, touching her to him. She has no hand to hug him back, but they both get used to it. They all like a “family” sleep hug, it’s really cozy and warm. Besides Aster, he doesn’t like hugs that much.

- I don’t want to repeat myself on and on, but I’ve already told you - The god says softly, gently touching her ear with the top of his nose. - We can do anything more by ourselves. We have to ask others for help.

- But what can they do! - The goddess huffs. - They will never agree to give trolls free will. It’s too risky. My dad especially will disagree. He told me about Creek and Chaz last time…

She stops, staring helplessly at the stars. From the moment they both became the goddess and the god of Love, they are thought of as the most powerful Immortals. Even if their main mission is to bring Love to trolls and teach them everything about it, other Immortals also come to them for advice and solutions to their problems. They have everyone’s respect and trust, they are welcome with open arms anywhere they go. Their kids are well-known and loved, their names are sounded with a warm smile on face.

If they can’t do something, who else can do?

And giving trolls free will and awareness, giving them an ability to feel and think independently, letting them choose… would open the door to wars and conflicts, like when Chaz came from the Chaos. Do they really want this for trolls?

- Don’t overthink this again - Branch’s low whisper in her ear gets her back to reality. - We all know how risky it is. But tell me honestly… - She feels his hand tenderly caressing her arm. She sighs calmly. Years passed and she’s still enjoying his touch as much as for the first time. - Isn’t it worth it?

Poppy turns to him, catching his sight. He smiles affectionately at her in a way that always makes her melt and want to kiss him. She can’t resist but smiles back gently at him.

- You think it’s so easy… - She says.

- I’m not - He drops his smiles, looking at her seriously. - My first step on the Fest wasn’t easy. But I’ve never regretted it.

She gazes at his blue eyes for a while, thinking.

- And I also needed help back then - He adds, moving his head closer to her. - Your help.

The goddess is still hesitating, staring at him in silence. She touches his forehead with hers. She sighs heavily, closing her eyes. They stay for a while like that, nodding off.

- Do you need one more night to think about it? - Branch asks softly, the care is hearable in his voice.

- No - Poppy says quietly. - You’re right…

- You don’t sound convinced - He points out after a moment.

- I don’t know - She admits. - I have bad feelings about that…

- Things worth effort are always challenging. Look at me and tell me if I was easy to bear at the first meet

Poppy smiles widely.

- It was always hard to not love you - She says, chuckling quietly.

Branch giggles heartily, grinning really wide. He presses his lips against her and they share a long, slow, passionate kiss.

- You’re lucky our kids are hugging us right now - Branch smirks at her when they finally go away. - I would not stop myself in any other case.

Poppy giggles gently, nestling her face into him. She sighs calmly, smelling his warm scent.

- We’ll ask others for help - She announces, now with more confidence. - Tomorrow.

***

- ...and in those circumstances we are helpless.

King Peppy looks patiently at Branch and Poppy from his high throne. In absolute silence, the sounds of kids playing outdoors are really hearable. There are not only Branch and Poppy’s children; after they taught Immortals about Love, many of them start building similar relationships and some of them also have offspring. There are six immortal children now, not counting Poppy. The youngest of them, little Star, as a Peppy’s favorite, is sitting on his lap now, taking an afternoon nap.

- We need your help - The pink goddess looks around, trying to address it to everyone gathered. But no one says anything. Immortals glance at each other, looking for anyone who would know the possible answer. Above their heads, the single thought is floating loudly in silence: “How could anybody know more about Love than the god and the goddess of Love as large as life?”. Poppy glances at Branch helplessly, knowing what this situation means for them.

- Well, if no one has any idea - The blue god starts slowly, looking around. - There’s only one other option. We have to give trolls what they haven’t got yet.

King Peppy opens his eyes widely at him in sudden realization.

- You don’t mean…

- Giving trolls free will. Exactly - Branch nods calmly.

- Is that necessary? - Delta Dawn, the goddess of Justice, asks, crossing her arms on her chest.

- There’s no Love without the free will - The god explains.

- But the ability to feel and think independently opens trolls the door to not only fight with each other - The god of Wisdom, Stacy, points out. - But also to kick out against us.

His speech wakes up murmuring all around.

- Listen, now trolls don’t understand how much we care about them - Branch goes on. - They don’t even know we love them. They can’t love us back. They are empty souls listening to our every order. They are our slaves.

His last words make everybody freeze in silence.

- I’m also scared of what will happen if we give trolls absolute freedom - Poppy finally finds her words, joining her lover’s speech. - They will reject us, fight with us, ignore us, tell us they don’t need our love for them. They will also fight with each other because Chaz’s seeds don’t disappear from their hearts, we all know that. - She holds Branch’s hand, looking into his eyes. - But… How long can we pretend that they love us back? I’m not even sure if they have ever been happy. They’ve never known what happiness is.

Branch smiles gently at her.

- We’ve never let them be themselves - Milton whispers thoughtfully from his seat.

- It’s not that easy - Queen Barb says with a low voice. - Those are very strong powers.

- It would destroy them! - Smidge takes fright.

- Umm… Can I… - Suki lifts her hand shyly to say something. - I’ve already got an idea…

- Tell us - Peppy nods encouragingly.

- We can use music - She beams, smiling unsurely. - I noticed that the feelings I put into my song stay in their souls for so long. If… If you help me I can make music that will be giving them those things partly, stretching it in time.

- Maybe we should put it into an instrument? - Minuet, the goddess of instruments, suggests. - Poppy says there are six elements of Love. we can put them into separated strings.

- We can make a harp then - Laguna, the goddess of Analyze and Math, writes something in her notebook.

- That’s a lot of work - Gust notices. - We will need a lot of hands to help.

- I can help! - Cooper beams.

- And I!

- I’m in.

- Don’t start without me!

Poppy smiles widely, watching Immortals joining in one by one. All fears she had in her heart slowly fade away. She squeezes Branch’s hand, making him look at her.

- You were right - She admits, watching his smile grows wider. - But I’m still scared.

- Me too - He plants a loving kiss on her nose. - But we’re in this together and that’s all I need.

She giggles, adoring his sweet azure eyes. She sighs briefly and nods with a confident smile.

- We’re gonna do this.

***

They were making Strings almost for the whole year. Every single Immortal was concerned. Stacy, Essence, Coffee, Prince D, and Lownote Jones created the violet string of the Attachment. Minuet, Dante, and Trollazart worked on the yellow string of the Awareness. Trolex, Synth, and Laguna made the blue string of Emotionality. Queen Barb, Riff, Val, and Demo created the red string of Free Will. Gust, Holly, Smidge, and Delta Dawn made the orange string of Honesty. And Poppy and Branch were coordinating the work on the last, pink string. The string of Affection.

When everything is ready, Suki puts all the Strings on the beautiful gold harp created by Satin, Chenille, Guy Diamond, and Minuet. The time is ripe, they need only a delegation. Someone who will handle the Harp to troll. Most Immortals want it to be Poppy and Branch, but they reject it. In that case, everybody votes for their kids to be delegates. But the goddess and the god of Love still persist, that it would be unfair. Finally, they all decide that all six Immortal kids will handle the Strings.

The moment is huge. Everybody’s watching in tension us Peppy and Gust, the god of Order, gather all existing trolls in one place. Six kids present the Harp in front of trolls and then put it down for trolls to reach it. The creatures don’t know what to do at the first moment. They are staring at the beautiful instrument in misunderstanding amazement. The Silence passes for so long and Immortals are patiently waiting. Then, a little shy troll goes from the crowd and unsurely comes to the Harp. He reaches the first string, the yellow one, and touches it carefully.

And then he pulls it slightly and the soft sound of liberatory music peals in the world, freezing all the trolls.

___________________________________________________________

Index

[geekgirles]

Rock! Branch AU

Headcanons:

So I was personally inspired to do this after seeing @emilybandicoot1234 's fanart of it some time ago. Although, admittedly, it was just a matter of time before AUs like this starting popping up. So I enlisted my good ol friend @foxlanaeshrek , like, "Hey, Shrek! Wanna come up with headcanons for a Rock!Branch Broppy AU?! :D", and, of course, because she's an angel who puts up with me, she said yes. Thank you, darling. Love u.

And, finally today, thanks to @pinkglitterings ' latest drawing, I decided it was high time I wrote down what we came up with. Don't worry, we thought of this a long time ago, so there won't be any spoilers besides what's been featured in trailers.

So here it is:

Branch is 100% Rock Troll. He was born as a Rock Troll, in Volcano Rock City, from Rock Troll parents.

Because there's no way we'd ever let his genius go to waste, he's an important member of Barb's crew. Either the head of her Engineering Department, or her army's captain. Whatever it is, the boy is important for the plot.

And because he's one of her more trustworthy men, Barb orders him to deliver her message to the Pop Trolls.

So he's there, in the outskirts of Troll Village, waiting to seize the perfect opportunity to shoot an arrow with the message that'll, hopefully, make those rainbow nerds stop singing. If you can call that singing.

But as he waits, he spots this divine creature. Her skin the most beautiful shade of pink, resembling that of dawn. Her ridiculously perfect face covered in countless glittery freckles, shinier than the stars in the night sky. Her eyes the most inviting pool he's ever seen. And her smile... Oh, dear God, her smile... He is convinced he's never seen anything more breathtaking in his entire life.

Aaaaaand that's when he spots her crown.

Shoot!

She's the Pop Queen!

Shoot!

He still hasn't delivered the message!

Fuck!

He's been drooling over the QUEEN of the rainbow nerds!

So he shoots the arrow and makes a run for it.

Of course, after his first encounter with Poppy Branch is trying to convince himself that it was a fluke. There's absolutely no way he's caught feelings for the Queen of the Pop Trolls. No way.

Except he has.

And it certainly doesn't help that Queen Barb has ordered him to tail her and her group as they try warning the other tribes of the Rock Trolls' plans.

It also doesn't help that a) EVERYTHING Poppy does is utterly adorable, and b) (because this simply must be canon in all universes) Branch is pretty much a goner the moment she loses it and tries to strangle someone with her hair (bonus points if it's someone Branch doesn't particularly like!).

Yes, angry, homicidal Poppy is 100% Branch's kink in any known universe. Sorry, I don't make the rules!

As much as Branch's mind is telling him that his mission is to capture Poppy, his heart just can't bring himself to. So the moment Poppy is ultimately captured, his heart sort of breaks in two.

Thankfully, no one's noticed his shameful crush on the Pop Queen, so Barb still assigns him to guard over her before her plan can truly begin.

He does everything in his power to be professional for once ever since he's first met the pink goddess he's supposed to watch over, but fails miserably.

One way or another, they start talking. Then, the talking becomes shameless flirting, like their usual banter, so it doesn't really arise suspicion. Certainly not from Poppy. And because he just can't keep his goddamned mouth shut, before he can stop himself, Branch ends up reciting her poetry. Those darned verses about how perfect she is that've been playing on his mind on repeat ever since he first laid his eyes on her.

Of course, Poppy's like, "What?"

And Branch is like, "What?!"

And he panics. Not only because he finally realises he's been shamelessly flirting with the prisoner, but because he's recited POETRY to her! And Rock Trolls consider poetry to be extremely shameful. Something so corny only weaklings would do it! So Branch had been hiding his talents for years. And now he's shared them! With his enemy! Oh, she's sure gonna make a mockery of him!!

Except she doesn't.

No. Instead, she gives him the sweetest smile, her eyes shimmering more than ever, and tells him, in the most velvety voice imaginable, "Wow... That was beautiful... Thank you, Branch. Your eyes are mesmerising, too."

Oooooookay. He's officially smitten. He's besotted. The boy's 100% in love with a pop troll and 200% willing to die for her. That's it.

Dating Rock! Branch and Pop! Poppy headcanons:

After they end up together, Branch gets a tattoo of Poppy.

It could be anything!

The classic arrowed heart with her name in it.

Her smiling face.

Verses either of his poems of her, True Colours, or Perfect For Me...

And as for where he'd have it... I'm a tattooed arm kinda girl, while @foxlanaeshrek suggests he wears it on his chest. And I have also received requests that he wears it either in his ear or... his butt (and the person who came up with this knows I'm talking about them xD).

Shrek also came up with a wonderful idea: Branch tries serenading Poppy with love songs... Rock love songs... (I will never give up my headcanon that they sing I Was Made For Loving You by KISS. EVER)

Needless to say, Poppy's shocked at first, but being a certified sucker for romance, it doesn't take long for her to swoon at her boyfriend's beautiful voice 😍😍😍

After starting to date Poppy, Branch works super hard to keep his reputation as a hardcore, edgy lone wolf intact. And for the most part, it works! ...But as soon as Poppy so much as touches or kisses him (cheek, lips, temples... you name it), he immediately melts. A little bit of affection and he becomes putty in her hands.

That's all for now! Thoughts?

[memelordoftheuniverse]

Wallpapers for the Greek gods/goddesses!

Day 1: Hypnos

Hypnos is the god of sleep, and while seen as a minor god in Greek myth, he still important!

In Homer’s Illiad, Hera was plotting to trick Zeus. She made herself nearly irresistible, and even called upon Aphrodite, the goddess of love, to ensure her charm would not fail. She was almost ready, when she needed the help of Hypnos, who had tricked Zeus once before.

When called upon, Hypnos was reluctant, because last time he had put Zeus to sleep, he was raging mad when he awoke, and it was also Hera who asked him to do so. She offered him a beautiful golden seat that never fell a part, but he refused. So instead Hera got him to agree by promising him he could marry Pasithea, whom he had always wanted to marry. He made her swear by the river Styx and called upon the gods of the underworld to ensure that they would be married.

(He is severely underrated in my opinion)

Some of his symbols include: poplar branch, horn of opium, poppies, inverted torch, wings

Anyway, here’s the wallpaper!

[etoiledunord]

The Magicians S4 Thoughts

Now that everybody has moved on to Good Omens, I’ve caught up with The Magicians. Please excuse my rambling. Many spoilers below the Read More.

Let’s do this (mostly) by character, because that way I’m less likely to forget stuff.

Quentin: For most of the season, I basically didn’t think much about him other than “Oh, shit, trying to keep the monster happy is horrible.” (Seriously, though, random people dying all over the place was awful and I wish the main characters had more of a reaction to that.)

When the whole going back to the past thing happened and he got back together with Alice, I think I kind of got what they were trying to say. It seemed like it was a matter of “life is crazy and good and bad and everything, so make your own happiness.” And, like, I get that it’s supposed to be a self-actualizing thing that’s part of his character arc, but the character arc was kind of oddly placed relative to the main story of the season. Also, Quentin and Alice have so much shit between them in the show that I’m not sure I’ll ever be really convinced by them getting back together.

As for Quentin’s relationship with Eliot, I had kind of expected there to be more of it, based on what I’d seen of people’s reactions. Quentin let the monster do basically whatever he wanted without trying to monitor most of it, and we never saw Quentin appearing to actually miss Eliot. I mean, I love them together as much as the next person, but I totally get how the show producers didn’t think they were writing a story about their relationship.

Quentin’s death was slightly ridiculous. First of all, that spell didn’t have to kill him. If Penny and Alice could get out, it wouldn’t have strained credulity for Quentin to be able to get out. Secondly, I’m calling bullshit on him being permanently dead. I don’t think he’ll be in most of season 5, but the groundwork for getting him back is all there. I have half the fic planned in my head already. That said, I did cry a stupid amount because of the quasi-suicide nature of his death (no matter what Penny said), and the way that all his friends were so upset. And while I can see what the showrunners were trying to do, that doesn’t excuse what they actually wound up doing, and I think people who are pissed off about Quentin’s death are right.

Eliot/the monster: I was surprised at how little the monster was actually in the show. He was almost a subplot, which was not how I was expecting the season to go. He was also surprisingly boring. Like, assuming he wouldn’t actually kill any of the main characters made him way less threatening and more of a nuisance than anything. I did like his little bit of humanity-ish-ness that showed up near the end, though. Also, I’m confused by how the gods could make something infinitely more powerful than themselves, but that’s small potatoes compared to most questions I have about this show.

Eliot himself was also quite absent, which saddened me. I was expecting there to be more of him hanging out in the mind cottage. I missed him. His list of potentially-worst memories was hilarious, though.

Julia: I rolled my eyes last season at the fact that Penny 23 was in love with her, and I’m still rolling my eyes at it now. It’s a forced romance for a character who was on hold for most of the season. That invincibility thing was indeed handy, but I’m glad she’s human again. Her divinity in the books doesn’t translate well to an ensemble tv show, and I actually like her friendship with Quentin, so I like that she sticks around.

The Pennys (Pennies?): I am so mad about Penny 40 being replaced. If they could have Alice be a niffin for less than a season and have Julia be a goddess for barley any longer, then there’s no reason Penny 40 should have to stay in the Library. And the fact that they had to have a sit down between the two Pennys so that Penny 40 could “objectively” state that the timeline was now Penny 23′s just made it worse because it was inorganic. I’m in the corner being grumpy right along with Kady.

I don’t dislike Penny 23, though. He’s a bit more compassionate than OG Penny, but he still has the sass that I like. If he’s going to stick around, though, he needs more of a storyline than being a traveler/psychic and being in love with Julia.

Kady: I honestly thought she was in fact going to die the world’s most ironic death. Not that she would have joined the Library, but I kind of wanted her to ride off into the sunset with Penny 40. Alas. I guess she’s sticking around as the ambassador to the hedge witches, since Julia’s only kind of in that world now. Kady also needs more to do. I’m glad they gave her that bloodworm subplot, and I know it’s hard to keep a whole ensemble at the forefront, but more story for Kady is still near the top of my wishlist.

Alice: Nice to see that she’s regaining her sense of nuance after being a niffin. She was a bit annoying with the whole “Magic can be used for evil and therefore it is evil” attitude. Her attempts to atone have been only marginally less stark, but I did like that she let Sheila go work with the Library. I’m genuinely curious what Alice might agree to do with the Library. Her role in the books was so limited that expanding it to something like the Library in the show might actually work well. I will never understand how she’s persistently in love with Quentin, though.

Margo: If I’d never read the books, I would have loved Margo’s desert storyline. And I did really like it. But the difference between book Janet and show Margo makes it feel just a bit lacking. Book Janet was so concerned about keeping relationships together that she did manipulative things while being scared as hell. Her desert storyline taught her that people will still accept her if she fails, so she doesn’t need to be manipulative, and then it taught her that people who don’t respect her don’t deserve her respect, so she doesn’t need to be scared of losing them. It kind of made her into show Margo. So having show Margo just go remember to be herself was slightly underwhelming.

Overall, though, I loved Margo. She’s uncompromising and she missed Eliot and she was just badass and wounded at the same time all over the place.

Josh: I was not expecting to like Josh and Margo together, but I do. I wasn’t terribly impressed by the sexually transmitted lycanthropy in season 2, but it being an actual Thing instead of a throw-away joke is better. The Quickening was horrifying. In the books, Josh and Poppy getting a happy ending was one of my favourite things, and it’s kind of weird that I’m not so much rooting for that in the show. When I first heard that Poppy was pregnant, I just assumed that Josh was the father, but now I’m really hoping he’s not. Also, I love that Josh stress bakes. I am very upset about him being cursed and potentially dead.

Other characters: Fen being cursed and potentially dead is also horrible. I’m surprised by how much I love Fen. I’m also surprised by the fact that I don’t completely hate Zelda anymore, though I don’t like her, either. I’m kind of sad that they made Lionel and the blackbird into irrelevant bit characters, and I’m hoping they’ll be relevant at some point in the future. Also, hi, Stoppard! Now I want Plum to show up. I love Plum. Also, I am sad about the potential lack of Tick and Rafe going forward. And Abigail. 

Other random things: I really hope the whole “mixing elements from different timelines messes with horology” thing isn’t a Thing going forward. God only knows what Jane did to that branch of magic, and having it be a plot point later would be nothing but a headache. Julia as the other monster was much scarier than Eliot as the first monster. I’ve come to accept that the Library itself isn’t inherently evil, just a little corrupt and horrible about accessibility, but I still want to see it humbled.

And that’s about it for now, I guess.

[alexmorrall]

The Emerald Seer

Chapter One

 Kaelyn woke to an empty bed, cool with morning dew. She rolled over, spraying a puff of sawdust from her mattress. Water flicked off her nose and soaked her blanket. It bled through cracks in her walls from the drip of trees above. A small price to pay for each day to begin with birdsong. Amaris was nowhere to be found. She couldn’t sleep like Kaelyn could, even wet and cold. An arrow thudded into a strawman outside. She bolted up, remembering this was her first Harvest Feast since turning sixteen. It was the last day of summer, and knights would arrive soon to pass judgment.

When her feet touched the dirt floor, she shivered. Something furry passed over her ankles. Straining her eyes, she saw Whiskerwinks dart back into the pantry. This time she rode five miles to Cyan Lake with the mouse, borrowing a horse from Remy’s stable. Leaving him in the forest, she said a solemn goodbye. Yet here he was, nibbling on bread and cheese once more. Kaelyn crossed their one room house to the pantry. Giving it a good kick, she hoped he’d come out easy. When he did not, she sighed and stepped outside.

Amaris brought an arrow to her ear. Both girls had green eyes, but little more in common. Kaelyn’s hair was silver and often tangled where her sister’s locked in red braids. Ami’s never got in the way when she swung an axe or shot a bow. Kaelyn’s was often caked in mud. Releasing the string, Ami’s arrow pierced the strawman’s heart. She knocked another arrow to her longbow, the weapon as tall as she was. Taking aim, lines in her muscles showed. Kaelyn had never seen a woman so strong. Her second arrow slid into straw beside the first.

“Enjoying the show?” Amaris gave her a wry look.

“I love to watch you shoot,” Kaelyn approached her sister.

“Too close,” Amaris brushed her away and took aim again.

“Did I break your concentration? In battle you won’t be so lucky.” Then Amaris turned, aiming the bow at Kaelyn’s feet. The girl jumped away. “Ami!”

“Want to take some shots? It’s time you hit the mark. Today could be your lucky day.”

“You know I can’t even pull the string...”

“I won’t always be here, Kae. When the knights come, what will you do?”

“They’ll not take me,” Kaelyn gave Amaris a long look. “I wouldn’t last a day in the mines. But you’d make them a fortune... I can see why you practice.”

“They won’t need to take me.”

“How come?”

“They just won’t, that’s why,” Amaris snapped. “Now, your garden looks like a weed bed. At this rate you’ll be selling dandelions this season.”

“Nothing wrong with that.”

Kaelyn went about her chores. She plucked weeds from her flower and vegetable beds, removed deadheads, and checked for mold. Then she brought a bucket to the town well. Remy’s villagers came for water to wash and cook for the feast. Listening to some women, she heard Lord Ryndale hired a new knight named Godfrey. He was said to be crueler than most and drank Karnath dry in one night. Hearing this, the local tavern owner Gascoyne abruptly left line. Waddling back to the Suckling Pig, he rolled his casks safely into the cellar.

It took Kaelyn an hour to fill her bucket, then she barely got back to the house without spilling half. Amaris was still shooting strawmen.

“Do you expect an army to come up out of the hills?” Kaelyn wondered.

“No, but perhaps some knights, a few rebels or if I’m lucky… Garzians.”

“You’ll take ‘em all on yourself, eh?”

“They’re just men, and they can be killed.”

“Can’t believe you’re working today of all days. You know the knights could kill you for dodging judgement.”

“Someone’s got to.”

“Well, don’t be late for the shift that kills you,” Kaelyn sucked air between her teeth, face going scarlet. She stalked away, grabbing a copy of Wilderwood Beasts and Legends on her way out the front door.

“Mornin’, Kae,” called Luc. The old man with blue eyes and skin like worn leather, stacked wood outside her door. Her house stood in the shadow of Edgewood Lumbermill. Luc helped them build their house, with wood gathered by Amaris and the other foresters. When Amaris turned sixteen, she asked to sign up for the war. She planned on marching west to kill the Bandit King. Hearing this, Luc adopted both sisters the same day. They were only with him a year, as Amaris was desperate to live under her own roof. Kaelyn could’ve stayed longer.

“Morning, Luc,” she waved. “Wonderful day for Harvest Feast, isn’t it?”

“Oh, it’ll be a beaut’,” he nodded and grinned, going back to his stacking.

Kaelyn turned north, taking the main cart road. It wound for half a mile before leading to a meadow of bloodred poppies. As sun smiled down, she basked in Daphne’s grace. Finding her way to the river that curled around the Fairy Tree, she reclined on its bank. Warm light washed over, as fish looked up, bubbles rising to the surface. A breeze passed through the old oak, and sometimes it whispered to her. Soft, kind words eased her mind. It was a needed escape from villagers who called her “ragamuffin” and “witch” for her silver hair. It made her look old, and sometimes she felt it.

When she looked at the Fairy Tree, she thought of the Wilderwood. Its ancient groves grew tall as the sky. The Fairy Tree was much younger, but Luc told her it grew from a Wilderwood seed blown east on the wind. This made it a holy relic, and none would cut it down. Its branches spread like powerful arms to either side. Sometimes Kaelyn pressed her nose against its bark, hoping it would give her a hug. Ami had not given her one in so long. The trees, and the river, and the fish never looked at her with scorn. It was here her thoughts could wander in peace. When she cracked open her book, she found herself in the Wilderwood.

Kaelyn returned home at midday to break her fast. With a yelp, she remembered Harvest Feast was in full swing. In her excitement to leave the house, she donned a crown of daylilies but forgot to eat anything. Racing to Remy Square, a basket swung from her fingers, filled with blossoms and apples. Her pace slowed as people blocked her path. They wore their Daphne’s Day best: brightly colored tunics and dresses, hair braided or slicked with grease. Seeing Kaelyn, covered head to toe in mud, they let her pass. Slipping through, she avoided their glares, approaching the main event.

Arriving in Remy Square, Kaelyn delighted in the smells and sights of harvest’s bounty. The aroma watered her mouth and rumbled her stomach. Noise and light warmed the Suckling Pig. Gascoyne roasting a boar on the common, its flesh sizzling over hungry flames. Every man, woman, and child lined up for his famous pork, two if patience held. Children watched him cut, moving dutifully forward in line. Gascoyne handed one boy a wine-braised rib, his eyes turning big as apples. He tousled the boy’s hair, smearing it with grease, and called, “Next ‘un up!”

Nearly every villager of Remy filled the square, sauce spackling their faces. They drank ale, mulled wine, and mead, ate fresh bread with black jellies and buttery cheeses. Mashed turnips, glazed carrots, and buttered onions slipped from plates into mouths. Kaelyn offered flowers and fruit to those who had no meat and looked as poor as she. Most were too proud to accept charity, least of all from her. They slapped her offerings away. Most often her hands and hair were dirty, and today was no exception.

A mother steered her children away. “That girl’s mad,” she said, “Sleeps too much in the woods. Fairies addled her brain. Stay away now.”

Moving on, she found a hungry-looking child who might be more receptive. She offered her an apple and the girl took it, but her father’s face soured. “Oi, that’s Luc’s waif, ain’t it? Always said they live too close to th’ woods. That’s where demons’ll get ye. Drop the apple, lass. Leave it fer the worms.”

The girl dropped the apple and Kaelyn picked it back up. As they left, a dull ache throbbed in her head. It wasn’t just hunger. She wished she could tell these people they were wrong. Her brains weren’t addled, and she had no demons. Nowhere was the goddess closer than in the peaceful woods. So many forgot her way, claiming the gods turned their backs on the world. They’d never listen. None thought it wise for the sisters to live by themselves. Most were jealous they’d been taken in by Luc, the richest man in town.

Hands clapped, lutes strummed and proud songs of Larasu rose on their lips. She tapped her foot to the music and began to dance. As she moved, she caught the eyes of Laran, who also kept his distance. Wine and ale flowed like rivers, and the day passed in a haze. Villagers chose to numb their fears by singing songs of the rangers. Misha the Mouse, Sir Cadmus Featherstroke, Sheon the Silver Lady, Grian the Giantslayer, and Bloodless Barric, the Lion of Larasu. Most were still alive, yet many had begun to despise the rangers. Still, the songs were sung, and though few sought to join their ranks, many praised their deeds.

Amaris loved these songs, and never had she missed a feast day. All year the sisters looked forward to Gascoyne’s pork, Olson’s White Delcins, and the songs of Harvest Feast. More than enjoyment, Kaelyn wanted her sister here for what was to come. Soon knights would arrive for judgement. Any who failed to appear in Remy Square could be punished with death. Kaelyn would stand for judgement as she turned sixteen. It brought another jab to her belly, and she looked at the line for boar.

Last year they took children to work the Karnath Mines. Small bodies fit into tunnels and little fingers could repair tools. Few lived to twenty anyways. Their parents were paid, and the children got food and lodging for winter. Even if they came back whole, they were never the same. Their hands were claws, eyes creased, and backs bent. Light faded from eyes, and skin turned ashen gray. Just from looking, you could tell if someone had been taken, or Daphne forbid, taken more than once.

Kaelyn noticed the six robed men who inspected Remy’s three carts of grain. Stable boys hitched the collectors’ carts to horses. Each year ‘standard cartful’ seemed to grow a little larger. Going easy on them this year, the collectors climbed aboard their carts. They rolled from Remy Square, heading west back to Raven’s Hill, leaving a trail of grain. Any who went to gather the grain were bludgeoned by Remy’s bounders. Each winter a child died of hunger, and Kaelyn gave their family some flowers. These were rarely rejected.

“Line up!” bellowed Chief Olson, slamming a club on his shield. He was in a poor temper, as he usually was. Wearing leather armor, and a bronze badge of office, he and his men enforced Ryndale’s laws whenever possible. This was their proudest event of the year. With a twinkle in his blue eyes, he bellowed, “Judgement time.”

The crowd turned quiet, songs trailed off, and Gascoyne doused his cookfire. “Welp, fun’s over,” he announced. “Join me at the Pig if ye’ve seen one too many o’ these traditions.” Lumping the half-eaten boar over his shoulder, he carried it away. Most of the villagers over thirty years shuffled after him. They were exempt from being taken and refused to watch their children’s judgement.

Bounders slammed clubs on shields, barking at Remy’s younger villagers to form a line. A couple bounders were Kaelyn’s age, exempt from judgement due to their service. Under the hail of shouts, Remy’s men and women, boys and girls, age sixteen to thirty moved forward. Kaelyn joined them, pulling hair over her eyes, and smearing mud on her smock. She had no finer clothes, nor did she want to look pretty this day.

A thunder of hooves filled their ears. In years’ past, it gave Kaelyn chills. Now, it made her stomach turn in a knot. Three men in scalemail armor appeared on the cart road. A large man with a yellow mustache led the way. Dismounting before Saint Remy’s statue, a boy brought them ale. Under his helm, the mustache did little to cover pockmarks and scars that riddled his face. He gulped from a jug and dropped it to crack on the ground. The boy knelt to pick up the pieces. Heat welled in Kaelyn’s chest, despising this man already.

“I present you with Sir Godfrey,” said the bounder. “A knight from Annandale, newly entered into our lord’s service. He’s been honored with the passing of judgment this year.”

Godfrey growled, spittle flying from his cheeks as he advanced on Kaelyn and the others. Ripping off gloves, he revealed hands as rough as boulders. His mustache must have itched because it bristled as he looked them over. Kaelyn stifled a giggle, trying to ease her fear. When his roving eyes looked for her laugh, she was too short to be seen.

“First order of business: Lord Ryndale needs soldiers to keep the rebels at bay. Men, step forward,” his voice scraped like hooks on gravel. They advanced, some flexing or making fists. Godfrey walked the line, observing them in turn. “I see none. You’d not make it to sixteen in Annandale.” The men frowned, looking to each other and the ground. “You’re free to go. Blessed by your meekness. But if I see one of you at the Pig, you’d better buy me a drink.” A few men nodded and saluted. “Get out of my sight.” Most walked home or found spots to watch the finale, while a few marched to the Suckling Pig.

Godfrey paced before the women and girls now. They stood straight and tall, forgetting to breathe. Kaelyn slouched, breath catching in her throat. She was Remy’s youngest prospect, and under the dirt her face was smooth, free of blemishes. In childhood she rarely suffered flux, sweats, or pox. Most orphans were not so fortunate, and their faces bore the scars. Smearing dirt from her hair onto her face, she looked to the knight.

“Not sure how you put up with those men,” Godfrey chuckled, shaking his head. “Now ladies, I see some of you in gold or silver, trying to look your prettiest. If you’re wearing fine metals or stones leave them at the foot of Saint Remy. Then you may go.” To Kaelyn’s surprise, a handful of women came forward. She never knew such riches existed in Remy. Not that she owned any that may have helped her.

“Now,” his tone brightened. “I’ve an exciting announcement. Lord Ryndale seeks a new handmaid. All girls older than twenty may be dismissed.”

This left six girls and Kaelyn was one of them. Four of them were from good families. They trembled, tears filling their eyes. Next to her was a fellow orphan, Kendra. Raven hair fell to her shoulders and she wore a deerskin jacket and breeches. A dagger rested on each hip. Last time Kaelyn saw her, she’d been sixteen, of an age to leave the orphanage. Departing Remy, she went out into the wilderness and no one knew where she’d been the past four years. Now she returned on judgement day.

Though Kaelyn was called strange by many in town, Kendra was considered far stranger. Like Kaelyn, she suffered little in childhood. Her skin was pale as snow, from years in the orphanage library. While Kaelyn read much, she did so under the sun, listening to birds and squirrels. Kendra took to dark, cramped places, ones filled with spiders. She slept some nights in the orphanage attic, where she emerged covered in cobwebs, wasps buzzing in her hair. Not once was she caught for stealing books, though Kaelyn knew she had them. Abbot Arden deemed her the perfect disciple of Daphne and lamented her leaving town.

Godfrey marched down the row of girls. With each step, blood beat in Kaelyn’s ears. Finally, he came to stand before her and Kendra. Looking both over, he stroked his mustache.

“You,” Godfrey said, pointing at Kendra, “you’ll join me at the Pig. We’ve much to discuss.”

Kaelyn let out a breath she’d been holding for weeks. In the corner of her eye, she swore Kendra smiled. As villagers resumed festivities, she sprinted from Remy Square.

[revivalrp]

GODDESS OF THE HUNT, FORESTS AND HILLS, THE MOON, AND ARCHERY.

You’ve inherited the Olympian’s PROTECTIVENESS but also their VENGEFUL WAYS.

NAME: Alessia Nikolaidis

AGE: Thirty-five

OCCUPATION: Veterinarian 

PLACE OF BIRTH: Larissa, Greece

GENDER & PRONOUNS: Cis Female & she/her

FACECLAIM: Lyndsy Fonseca

ABILITY: ANIMAL MANIPULATION

They can control animals behavior; they can set stampedes onto attackers, get animals to fetch things, etc. They can also understand and feel animal emotions, perceive through animal senses, communicate with the animals verbally, tame them easily, heal them and, consequently, create a bond with them. May be limited to a particular number of targets at any given time and can be exacted by touch or otherwise, though i can cause backlash when the animals regain free will.

PLAYED BY JESSA.

ABOUT:

A serene minute in the passing of time may be trivial to the hands of Fate but for Alessia, it is her first memory stored with perfect clarity. The trees rustled with the aid of a gentle salty breeze; the canopy had been thick, vibrant green, and thriving with the hum of life. A small break in the branches and leaves brought down the warmth and iridescent glow of the sunshine into a clear spot on the trail with two dandelions swaying in a rhythmic ebb and flow. With little noise and a gentle approach, a hind red deer trotted into the patch of sun and lowered its head to graze from the fresh grass still damp with dew. There were traces of the winter coat still left on the deer, but soon to fly away in the breeze and welcome the coming of spring. Five years old with the light of the world in her eyes, Alessia stood a distance away from the deer with a hand outstretched. Her hand moved to trace the top of the deer’s head and up along its neck, following the curve of its back. Ever so careful to not make any noise, the deer still looked up at her to meet eyes. A moment later, her laughter broke the silence of the woods as she felt herself picked up and swung around, hiked up onto her father’s shoulders to go back to the rest of the family. Alessia had never forgotten that moment in the woods and the feeling in that instant of meeting eyes with the deer. As a child and an adult, it became a fond memory.

Alessia’s childhood is one of brightness and spirit. A whirlwind of colors and laughter. She grew up ambitious right from the start, always a surprise for teachers or adults. With a whole world out there full of knowledge and possibility she wanted nothing more than to take advantage of it. The advantage gave her the ability to place herself above others and while she never did so maliciously – Alessia learned at an early age that being two steps ahead was very important. She was also a social butterfly with those around her – easy at making friends and any person who spent five minutes alone with Alessia could see the captivation in her words, in her intelligence. Perhaps what made it so easy to move away from Larissa and settle into a new environment full of unknowns. While she may have been young when her family moved away from Greece, it would always be her home. Her parents were more than happy through the years to continue educating her about the culture, the history, the mythology behind Greece. It took root in her being, something that she would later come to learn to be far more important than anything else in her life with the exception of one – her brother.

A shock to no one – Alessia has always been fiercely loyal. Those who have found themselves in her inner circle and her family have witnessed time and time again of her undying love for them. Any person to say anything of ill-will of her parents were met with the feisty power of Alessia – intimidating and unrelenting. And if any person dared to do such to her brother? Alessia would ensure they regretted the decision to have ever even had an ill thought in his direction. Unfortunately for those who have found themselves on her bad side, they never find their way back. From a teenager to the present time as an adult, Alessia will sever ties without a second thought after retribution has been paid. A woman of gentle smiles and witty prose, that is only one fragment of herself. There will always be the part of her that is a woman of fierce attitude and vengeful tactics. She has always given her whole heart to those she loves and will give everything else of herself to protect them.

Alessia completed her exams with high marks and went on to complete her biomedical sciences undergraduate at the University of Oxford – part of St. Edmund Hall her first and last year. A surprise to none, Alessia continued her education with the University of London at the Royal Veterinary College. Since childhood she’d been drawn to animals. Her parents had been supportive in her love and she grew up surrounded by animals. Fenrir the rabbit. Poppy the border collie. Pip, Locke, and Flint the miniature goats. Those were only a few of the animals that she’d brought home and raised. It was always a natural allure to them and as a person who enjoyed taking care of others, taking care of animals was hardly different. In some ways, better. Alessia studied hard with the intent of being able to one day help animals – to educate and give love to those that had been forgotten by the world. Professors often remarked on her extreme dedication and vision for the future she had set for herself. And a vision she had for herself indeed.

After graduating, Alessia bounced around from one place to another to gain experience and see the world. She continuously kept in contact with those she loved, visiting often, but she wasn’t satisfied with learning everything she could from one sole place. There would always be more people out there with more knowledge, more experience. However, there had always been a plan in mind. Since she moved away from Larissa, Alessia had the intent of returning. As a child, she’d told her parents time and time again that she would return home. As a young adult, she continued to tell her family that one day she would find her way back. Even in the midst of a mountain of lab work, essays to write, and social events to attend, she still found time to read on old history and mythology of her homeland. She talked to her parents regularly in Greek to avoid losing the language. Studied old architecture and art of the past. Her love for Greece never faded despite the distance. However, after the loss of a parent, Alessia went into a deep depressive state. Family is everything to her and she felt the loss in every part of her heart and soul. There were too many nights of sadness and tears. Too many days of just barely getting by before crawling into bed. And yet in those dark days, she found solace in the books she had on the old gods and Greece. The history.

When Alessia reached the point where she felt as if she had learned everything that was offered to her and she’d found herself out of the darkness she’d fallen into, she announced with full confidence that she would be moving back to Larissa. A ticket already bought. A home already purchased. She arrived in Larissa with hopeful ambition and her brother alongside.

ABILITY OVERVIEW:

The abilities of Alessia extends toward animals – the first and foremost being her ability to sense an animal’s emotions and understand them. It was easy for her to assume that it was a simple touch of being tuned into the animals within her home before realizing that it was more. Especially the more animals came across her path in Larissa. Since the manifestation, her abilities have come to light one at a time. Sensing emotions turned into communicating with animals – understanding simple words for the moment but slowly progressing into more as Alessia learns and trains her abilities. She has yet to discover her ability to heal but that is soon to come light and begin as with her other abilities. For healing, it’ll start with simple scrapes and bruises that can be healed before being able to heal wounds and broken bones. She will not be able to bring any animal back from the brink of death – there’s a limit to her abilities. And in the matter of death, she would not interfere unless someone unjustly took the life of the animal or she could see a future benefit to doing so. To heal, tame, or start the process to control any animal, she will need to touch them. Communication can be done through sight alone. When more animals are involved, she can extend her abilities to multiple animals at one time but with the limit of five at most – she can try to push for more but it becomes messy and harder to control. If the animal is entirely unwilling (threatened by her, fearful of her, etc.) and she’s not able to communicate her intentions, when she releases control it will cause the animal to charge or attack her. Alessia will also have to be careful with concentration. If she is controlling any animals’ behavior, concentration breaking could also mean being attacked or causing disaster in some other form. The overall idea with Alessia’s abilities in the future would be a discovery of a new ability and then fixation on advancing and perfecting.

[perspectivepodcast]

[Transcript] Side A: Seasons

There was a tree in my backyard, a pine tree. I don’t know what it is about pine trees that attracts me so much. For me, they smell like summer; they remind me of places where the air is sweeter; perhaps I was a fox in another life and used to hide under them to protect myself from the blizzards or the heat.

There was a pine tree in my backyard once, just next to the pomegranate tree that just now is offering its fruits to the birds.

They say Persephone was picking flowers one day, on a field in the green and yellow island of Sicily, the land of the sun, of fertility. Suddenly, Hades, King of the Underworld, appeared on his chariot of death and raped and kidnapped Persephone, and took her with him to the Underworld as his bride. Her mother, Demeter, Goddess of the Harvest, unleashed her despair and fury over the world by making everything on the earth wilt and die. Fearing for the survival of the earthlings, Zeus, King of the Gods, decided to convince Hades to give Persephone back to her mother, and he forced Hades to agree on one condition: he could have Persephone for himself only as many months a year as many grains of pomegranate she would eat in the Underworld. Hades, however, did not tell Persephone about this bargain. Meanwhile, in the Underworld, the heartbroken, captive Persephone had refused to eat for many days, and began to feel starving and feeble. Hades offered her twelve grains of pomegranate; she accepted six of them. Thus framed, Persephone doomed herself to live in the Underworld as Queen for six of the twelve months of the year, and she would be free to go back to the earth, to her mother, for the remaining six months. Every year, this is why the seasons come and go: during the six months Persephone is in the Underworld, Demeter forbids everything from growing, while, as soon as Persephone is back on the earth, Demeter makes the world bloom again. They say that poppies first blossomed on the earth the first summer Persephone could see the sun again, as a passionate reminder that Hades stood forever waiting for her return in the Underworld.

If you still believe in this story, then Persephone must soon be bound to go back to the Underworld, judging from the color of the leaves. And from the pomegranates on the tree.

But perhaps, this story stays true even if you don’t believe in it.

One of my favorite poems is about this story. It was written by Louise Glück, and it is entitled ‘A Myth of Devotion’:

When Hades decided he loved this girl he built for her a duplicate of earth, everything the same, down to the meadow, but with a bed added.

Everything the same, including sunlight, because it would be hard on a young girl to go so quickly from bright light to utter darkness.

Gradually, he thought, he'd introduce the night, first as the shadows of fluttering leaves. Then moon, then stars. Then no moon, no stars. Let Persephone get used to it slowly. In the end, he thought, she'd find it comforting.

A replica of earth except there was love here. Doesn't everyone want love?

He waited many years, building a world, watching Persephone in the meadow. Persephone, a smeller, a taster. If you have one appetite, he thought, you have them all.

Doesn't everyone want to feel in the night the beloved body, compass, polestar, to hear the quiet breathing that says I am alive, that means also you are alive, because you hear me, you are here with me. And when one turns, the other turns—

That’s what he felt, the lord of darkness, looking at the world he had constructed for Persephone. It never crossed his mind that there’d be no more smelling here, certainly no more eating.

Guilt? Terror? The fear of love? These things he couldn’t imagine; no lover ever imagines them.

He dreams, he wonders what to call this place. First he thinks: The New Hell. Then: The Garden. In the end, he decides to name it Persephone’s Girlhood.

A soft light rising above the level meadow, behind the bed. He takes her in his arms. He wants to say I love you, nothing can hurt you

but he thinks this is a lie, so he says in the end you’re dead, nothing can hurt you which seems to him a more promising beginning, more true.

 Life is the combinational, delicate dancing struggle of light, earth, and water. A single green vine shoot is able to grow through cement. Some animals have evolved to hibernate; some animals have evolved to migrate. Some trees lose their leaves; some trees keep them. The seasons change, pass, follow one another, in a flow that doesn’t really take everything they find on their way with them, because everything that is in the way of the seasons also kind of is the seasons actually. Life all flows with them, inexorable. The light doesn’t just refract or diffract, it is diffused and absorbed. The land will rest in winter; the fruits will fill with sunlight in the summer; the birds will build new nests in spring; the waters will quench the thirst of forests in the fall. As we circle around the star of our devotion, the leaves will burgeon and grow and swell with chlorophyll and be burned by the blinding light and find relief in returning to the ground. Nothing remains intact. Everything remains itself. Everything is real and what is real cannot die. Everything just keeps being everything, in all its countless forms and mutations.

There is something about evergreens that fills me with wonder and admiration. Although I should specify it’s a sense of wonder and admiration I feel for plants in general, not just evergreens nor just for trees. I am in awe by and admire their ability to be, despite everything. I admire the state of biological evolution they have reached that makes them so incredibly resilient to external forces of change. I admire how intelligent they are as life forms, how wisely they have used their time on this planet to learn how to adapt to it with mutual benefits.

We animals are all built to make movement possible. We have organs that are specialized in one thing, and one thing only, because of course if the whole of our organism were responsible for the whole of our biological functions it would take us too long to process everything we need to process, or at least, too long to be able to move and go and fetch food or run away from another animal that has come to fetch us as food. Imagine if we had to wait for every cell in our body to process sugar before being able to move. We have specialized cells for that. And a brain to control it all. So that in the meantime our muscles, hopefully helped by a generous dose of endorphins and hormones triggered mostly by fear, can target us to a safer place while our stomachs can concentrate on digesting the food we just ate.

Trees don’t have this kind of hierarchy: if you cut down a branch, or a root, or if you carve the trunk, it’s not as if you made a hole in one of our lungs, or cut through our stomachs. A tree is always itself: unless you really annihilate it, and you really need to make a sadistic effort to do that, it’ll find a way to grow back no matter how much you mutilate it. In this sense it is different from animals because while animals are individuals, that is, in Latin, in-dividuus, or non-divisible, trees are very much divisible and they’ll still be what they are. But most of all, they’ll still be.

There was a pine tree in my backyard, and once I made up a story about it being actually a prince who was turned into a tree by a witch to prevent him from marrying the princess. The witch had taken the princess away with her a long time before, but the Pine Prince continued to stand watch and wait for his princess to come back. I must have written it somewhere, the story I mean. Who knows where it is now.

I met him in my backyard everyday as I walked to the garage to take my bike and go to school. The Pine Prince would endure the fog, the heat, the cold, the snow, the rain. I remember the bark was crusted, and tears of honey-colored resin lay between the cracks. He was a little threadbare, perhaps because he didn’t have much space to grow…

They cut him down on the 7th of March 2011. I wrote two poems, that day and the day after, that I’ll try to translate here:

 They had told me that everything dies (my eyes burnt for the cold dismembered dismembered in pieces before my eyes). But I didn’t think they’d dare rape the smell of the sea and of freedom ancient inside the coarse skin or the tender white secret (how many tears of resin have we wept together?). Not in spring, I didn’t think they’d dare, not in spring (one bud that closes its eyes puts a whole forest on mourning)… Something dies inside. It dies like the shadow of the sagging smoke of fireworks dies. It dies and where there used to be the mutilated shape here after my gaze, now only the sky is left only an emptiness of sky.

 *

 In memory of a dream

Any invention, even an entire world of poetry, is worth you staying here with me.

 I don’t know what it was about that tree that made me love it so much. Perhaps he was the symbol of trees for me. Perhaps he embodied something I was still unable to phrase with precision, something Rainer Maria Rilke was able to put to words in a book I still didn’t know at the time but that has been a home for me ever since I read it a couple of years later, the Letters to a Young Poet. In Stephen Mitchell’s translation, Rilke writes: ‘if it turns out that you are wrong, then the natural growth of your inner life will eventually guide you to other insights. Allow your judgments their own silent, undisturbed development, which, like all progress, must come from deep within and cannot be forced or hastened. Everything is gestation and then birthing. To let each impression and each embryo of a feeling come to completion, entirely in itself, in the dark, in the unsayable, the unconscious, beyond the reach of one’s own understanding, and with deep humility and patience to wait for the hour when a new clarity is born: this alone is what it means to live as an artist: in understanding as in creating.

In this there is no measuring with time, a year doesn’t matter, and ten years are nothing. Being an artist means: not numbering and counting, but ripening like a tree, which doesn’t force its sap, and stands confidently in the storms of spring, not afraid that afterward summer may not come. It does come. But it comes only to those who are patient, who are there as if eternity lay before them, so unconcernedly silent and vast. I learn it every day of my life, learn it with pain I am grateful for: patience is everything!’

 It is autumn now, and I wish I were as firm as a tree in my ability to be. I wish I knew how to be the way trees know. I wish I were as vertical, as resolute as them. I wish I were as horizontal, as molecular as them. I wish I knew how to be despite and through the seasons. I wish I weren’t indivisible. I wish I weren’t so brittle.

They say sorrow passes, and we remain. But I wish we didn’t always have to worry so much about our intactness, I wish I didn’t always have to be so afraid to be disintegrated.

I wish I could be more like the Pine Prince, or even better, I wish I could be a forest of Pine Princes. And seasons would be seasons again. And time would be time again. And I would be seasons too. And I would be time too.

[amieravenson]

Magickal Month- May 2019

Magickal Month- May 2019 May was named after the Roman goddess Maia, a goddess of fertility and abundance. Several cultures marked May with fertility festivals of some sort or another, and our modern Pagan festival of Beltane is no exception. It’s a celebration of fertility, sexuality, flowers, and love. Spring has sprung, and it’s time to celebrate all the good things in life! All I want to listen to in May is dub music. This warming weather needs chill music, and there’s nothing more relaxing and happy to me. Here’s the Pandora playlist I can’t seem to turn off lately. There have been so many critters around lately. We’ve seen lots of birds, known and unknown, and the squirrels are in full frolic mode. We even have a new cat in the neighborhood and I’m partially annoyed that people don’t keep their cats in and partially thrilled to try and make friends. Also, tons of frogs have been appearing for us. I’ve even been doing a little light gardening as my body allows. Lunations: May 4- New Moon in Taurus, 6:45pm EDT May 18- Full Moon in Scorpio, 5:11pm EDT Astronomy: May 6- Eta Aquariids meteor shower begins May 10- Eta Lyrids meteor shower begins Celtic Tree Month: Willow (April 15th- May 12th): Resonance and harmony, creativity, fertility, feminine rights of passage, inspiration, love, love divination, sleep with a willow wand for vivid dreams, protection for underworld journeying, found near water, spring cleaning physically/mentally/emotionally/spiritually, letting go of the past. Hawthorn (May 13th- June 9th); Matters of the heart, love, empowering relationships, fertility, union of male and female (Beltane), intimacy, passion, triple goddess, purification, cleanses the heart of negativity, under protection of faerie realm, guards wells and springs, happiness. Holidays (non-Pagan): May 1: Yom HaShoah (Jewish) May 2: National Day of Prayer May 4: Star Wars Day May 5: Cinco de Mayo May 6: Ramadan starts (Muslim) May 9: Yom Ha’atzmaut (Jewish) May 12: Mother’s Day May 18: Armed Forces Day May 23: Lag BaOmer (Jewish) May 27: Memorial Day May 30: Ascension Day (Christian) May 31: Lailat al-Qadr (Muslim) Holidays (Pagan): May 1: Beltane/May Day- a fire festival dedicated to fertility May 5: Thargelion Noumenia- Greek festival dedicated to all the deities. May 8: Greek feast of Aphrodite and Eros, honoring love and passion May 10: Thargelia- Greek festival honoring Artemis and Apollo and purification of the community. May 18: Feast of the Greek god Pan May 19: Celtic festival of wells and springs honoring Brigid Themes for the month: Celebration, flowers, joy, sexuality, growth, expansion, warmth and fun. General activities for the month: Cooking out, swimming, spending time outside, gathering flowers, love magick, beauty magick, sex magick. Herbs I’m using: Fresh dill, symbolic of Spring and love and sexuality. Parsley, it tastes so green and herbal and delicious, so I’m adding it to everything I cook. Sage and cedar, to bless and cleanse the new place so the energy is fresh and clear! Stones I’m using: Selenite, also to clear, cleanse, and refresh the energy of the new place. Chrysoprase, iridescent green that has such a natural/plant energy, it reminds me of Spring and the forest. Rutilated smoky quartz, the enormous, 10 lb chunk I have that’s being transferred from its place of honor in this house to a place of honor in the new house. Goddess of the Month: Persephone as Kore, Goddess of flowers and Spring. As a Goddess who has returned from The Underworld, her joy and innocence show us that we can come back from the darkness ourselves. Her joy has been earned, and I feel like it’s all the sweeter as a result. 3 card reading:

May 2019 3 Card Reading This month, we start with the Knight of Swords. So we’re communicating clearly and possibly even aggressively. But we aren’t accepting any bullshit, and we’re cutting through to the truth of things. We’re finding a sense of clarity and focus this month, and this may even mean cutting away things that are holding us back. Next, we see the Page of Cups. So we’re also feeling idealistic about a new start this month. This could be a new love, a new spiritual endeavor, or a new creative project. We’re feeling the beginnings of something that we really care about. Whether or not it lasts is another question alltogether. The excitement is in the beginning. And finally, we have 8 of Cups. So in order to enjoy our new beginning above, we may have to leave behind something else that we’ve built. It may be that the thing that the Knight of Swords is cutting away is what’s allowing us to have the new start of the Page of Cups. This is fine, and it’s a natural progression in life. When you see the 8 of Cups, you know that it’s time to turn from what you once thought was important and move toward a new future. Our special guidance card is Know Your Fears. So this is a call to examine what it is that you’re afraid of, especially in letting go of the old. Are you afraid that the new thing won’t measure up? Or that you’ll miss what you’re leaving behind? Spend some time really thinking about what it is that you’re afraid of, and whether your fears are justified, or whether they’re just holding you back. The Garden by Moonlight By Amy Lowell A black cat among roses, Phlox, lilac-misted under a first-quarter moon, The sweet smells of heliotrope and night-scented stock. The garden is very still, It is dazed with moonlight, Contented with perfume, Dreaming the opium dreams of its folded poppies. Firefly lights open and vanish High as the tip buds of the golden glow Low as the sweet alyssum flowers at my feet. Moon-shimmer on leaves and trellises, Moon-spikes shafting through the snow ball bush. Only the little faces of the ladies’ delight are alert and staring, Only the cat, padding between the roses, Shakes a branch and breaks the chequered pattern As water is broken by the falling of a leaf. Then you come, And you are quiet like the garden, And white like the alyssum flowers, And beautiful as the silent sparks of the fireflies. Ah, Beloved, do you see those orange lilies? They knew my mother, But who belonging to me will they know When I am gone. My personal tides: We’re finally moving to our new sacred home! There were several false starts, but it looks like we just needed the oomph of Beltane to jolt the energy into motion. When I wrote April’s post, we were supposed to have closed by the time it posted, but it didn’t happen. May is our month! So we’ve started moving and doing some renovation work, doing our final rounds of decluttering and minimizing, and getting that full-life transformation that we’ve really been needing for a long, long time. My personal goals: Husbear’s foot is still gummy, so a lot of the move is on me. Fortunately, we’re moving about 20 minutes away, so if I can take 3 car-sized loads/week, we’ll get there in time. Then one or two big loads of furniture, and BOOM! Moved. Then comes the yard sale… :0) Pretty much everything is revolving around my vision of what I want this new life to be and creating SACRED HOME for Husbear, the cats, and myself. :-) Blessed be! :-) Read the full article