#protect armenians

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

1 ԿՈՐՆԹԱՑԻՆԵՐԻՆ 10:13 Ձեզի պատահած չէ փորձութիւն մը՝ որ մարդկային չըլլայ. բայց Աստուած հաւատարիմ է, եւ պիտի չթոյլատրէ որ փորձու��ք ձեր կարողութենէն աւելի, հապա փորձութեան հետ ելք մըն ալ պիտի տայ, որպէսզի կարենաք կրել:

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it. — 1 Corinthians 10:13 |Armenian NT (ARMNT) and Berean Standard Bible (BSB) The Armenian (Western) NT Bible © Trinitarian Bible Society 2005 and The Berean Standard Bible is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God’s Word has been dedicated to the public domain. Cross References: Matthew 6:13; 1 Corinthians 1:9; Hebrews 10:23; 2 Peter 2:9

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How does God provide the way of escape from temptation?

[mariacallous]

It is over and everything is lost. This is the refrain repeated by Armenian families as they take that final step across the border out of their home of Nagorno-Karabakh.

In just a handful of days more than 100,000 people, almost the entire Armenian population of the breakaway enclave, has fled fearing ethnic persecution at the hands of Azerbaijani forces. The world barely registered it. But this astonishing exodus has vanished a self-declared state that thousands have died fighting for and ended a decades-old bloody chapter of history.

On Saturday, along that dusty mountain road to neighbouring Armenia, a few remaining people limp to safety after enduring days in transit.

Among them is the Tsovinar family who appear bundled in a hatchback littered with bullet holes, with seven relatives crushed in the back. Hasratyan, 48, the mother, crumbles into tears as she tries to make sense of her last 48 hours. The thought she cannot banish is that from this moment forward, she will never again be able to visit the grave of her brother killed in a previous bout of fighting.

“He is buried in our village which is now controlled by Azerbaijan. We can never go back,” the mother-of-three says, as her teenage girls sob quietly beside her.

“We have lost our home, and our homeland. It is an erasing of a people. The world kept silent and handed us over”.

She is interrupted by several ambulances racing in the opposite direction towards Nagorno-Karabakh’s main city of Stepanakert, or Khankendi, as it is known by the Azerbaijani forces that now control the streets. Their job is to fetch the few remaining Karabakh Armenians who want to leave and have yet to make it out.

“Those left are the poorest who have no cars, the disabled and elderly who can’t move easily,” a first responder calls at us through the window. “Then we’re told that’s it.”

As the world focused on the United Nations General Assembly, the war in Ukraine and, in the UK, the felling of an iconic Sycamore tree, a decades old war has reignited here unnoticed.

It ultimately heralded the end of Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway Armenian region, that is internationally recognised as being part of Azerbaijan but for several decades has enjoyed de facto independence. It has triggered the largest movement of people in the South Caucasus since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Azerbaijan has vehemently denied instigating ethnic cleansing and has promised to protect Armenians as it works to reintegrate the enclave.

But in the border town of Goris, surrounded by the chaotic arrival of hundreds of refugees, Armenia’s infrastructure minister says Yerevan was now struggling to work out what to do with tens of thousands of displaced and desperate people.

“Simply put this is a modern ethnic cleansing that has been permitted through the guilty silence of the world,” minister Gnel Sanosyan tells The Independent, as four new busses of fleeing families arrive behind him.

“This is a global shame, a shame for the world. We need the international community to step up and step up now.”

The divisions in this part of the world have their roots in centuries-old conflict but the latest iterations of bitter bloodshed erupted during the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Karabakh Armenians, who are in the majority in the enclave, demanded the right to autonomy over the 4,400 square kilometre rolling mountainous region that has its own history and dialect. In the early 1990s they won a bloody war that uprooted Azerbaijanis, building a de facto state that wasn’t internationally unrecognised.

That is until in 2020. Azerbaijan, backed by Turkey, launched a military offensive and took back swathes of territory in a six-week conflict that killed thousands of soldiers and civilians. Russia, which originally supported Armenia but in recent years has grown into a colder ally, brokered a fragile truce and deployed peacekeepers.

But Moscow failed to stop Baku in December, enforcing a 10-month blockade on Nagorno-Karabakh, strangling food, fuel, electricity and water supplies. Then, the international community stood by as Azerbaijan launched a 24-hour military blitz that proved too much for Armenian separatist forces. Outgunned, outnumbered and weakened by the blockade, they agreed to lay down their weapons.

For 30 years the Karabakh authorities had survived pressure from international powerhouses to give up statehood or at least downgrade their aspirations for Nagorno-Karabakh. For 30 years peace plans brokered by countries across the world were tabled and shelved.

And then in a week all hope vanished and the self-declared government agreed to dissolve.

Fearing further shelling and then violent reprisals, as news broke several Karabakh officials including former ministers and separatist commanders, had been arrested by Azerbaijani security forces, people flooded over the border.

At the political level there are discussions about “reintegration” and “peace” but with so few left in Nagorno-Karabakh any process would now be futile.

And so now, sleeping in tents on the floors of hotels, restaurants and sometimes the streets of border towns, shellshocked families, with a handful of belongings, are trying to piece their lives together.

Among them is Vardan Tadevosyan, Nagorno-Karabakh’s minister of health until the government was effectively dissolved on Thursday. He spent the night camping on the floor of a hotel, and carries only the clothes he is wearing. Exhausted he says he had “no idea what the future brings”.

“For 25 years I have built a rehabilitation centre for people with physical disabilities I had to leave it all behind. You don’t know how many people are calling me for support,” he says as his phone ringed incessantly in the background throughout the interview.

“We all left everything behind. I am very depressed,” he repeats, swallowing the sentence with a sigh.

Next to him Artemis, 58, a kindergarten coordinator who has spent 30 years in Steparankert, says the real problems were going to start in the coming weeks when the refugees outstay their temporary accommodation.

“The Azerbaijanis said they want to integrate Nagorno-Karabakh but how do you blockade a people for 10 months and then launch a military operation and then ask them to integrate?” she asks, as she prepares for a new leg of the journey to the Armenian capital where she hopes to find shelter.

“The blockade was part of the ethnic cleansing. This is the only way to get people to flee the land they love. There is no humanity left in the world.”

Back in the central square of Goris, where families pick through piles of donated clothes and blankets and aid organisations hand out food, the loudest question is: what next?

Armenian officials are busy registering families and sending them to shelters in different corners of the country. But there are unanswered queries about long-term accommodation, work and schooling.

“I can’t really think about it, it hurts too much,” says Hasratyan’s eldest daughter Lilet, 16, trembling in the sunlight as the family starts the registration process.

“All I can say to the world is please speak about this and think about us. We are humans, people made of blood, like you and we need your help.”

[magnoliamyrrh]

god help the armenians both in armenia and palestine for everything they have endured. u know how ppl say growing up muslim they always hear about the plight of palestinians? and how all us muslims know and care? growing up orthodox in romania at least personally it was the same experience with armenians. i grew up always hearing of them, seeing their churchs, hearing of their plight from everyone, knowing they came as refugees in our country, hearing of our orthodox siblings who suffered so much. god keep and protect the armenians and palestinians may they have a time of peace

[doyoulikethissong-poll]

System of a Down - B.Y.O.B. 2005

Mezmerize is the fourth studio album by the Armenian-American heavy metal band System of a Down. The album sold over 450,000 copies in its first week, and immediately topped the Billboard 200.

The band went on hiatus in 2006 and reunited in 2010. Other than two new songs in 2020 in response to the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War ("Protect the Land" and "Genocidal Humanoidz"), System of a Down has not released a full-length record since the Mezmerize and Hypnotize albums in 2005.

"B.Y.O.B." ("Bring Your Own Bombs") was released as the lead single from Mezmerize. It was written in protest against the Iraq War, and questions the integrity of military recruiting in America. The song reached number 27 on the US Billboard Hot 100, the band's highest peak to date on the chart.

"B.Y.O.B." won a Grammy Award in 2006 for Best Hard Rock Performance.

"B.Y.O.B." received a total of 66,3% yes votes!

[folklorespring]

Jesus Christ statue being taken out of Armenian Cathedral of Lviv, Ukraine, to be stored in a bunker for protection. 2022

[cursedyuri]

i’ve pushed myself to read more sapphic literature this year, so here are some of my favs:

mistakes were made by meryl wilsner - spicy! age gap! secret relationship! this was one of the best books i read this year, i devoured it in just a few days. delicious smuttiness

sorry, bro by taleen voskuni - bi girls in love <3 super fun, lighthearted read with beautiful armenian representation.

we do what we do in the dark by michelle hart - this one is a lot heavier and, ahem, darker. another age gap and some angst but there’s a happy ending!

when katie met cassidy by camille perri - this one is about first-time sapphic revelations which i loved, really easy to read too.

one last stop by casey mcquiston - if you look past the occasional cringy millennial quip, this book is so fun and heartwarming. kinda sci-fi too?

honorable mention for the priory of the orange tree by samantha shannon - not strictly dedicated to a sapphic love story (it’s a giant fantasy novel first), but so worth a read. one of the queen’s handmaidens is an undercover sorceress sent to protect her and they fall in loooove.

[serpentface]

I'm sure you've covered the bug situation at some point, but just because I'm curious and to ask more specific questions: what are the biggest insects one could ostensibly find? Are any insects kept like bees (are there just bees)? Any sort of cultural significance involved with insects?

The bug situation is pretty much earthlike, you aren't going to be able to find any insects bigger than can be found in the cenozoic.

There ARE indeed just bees, they haven't been mentioned a lot since most of my posting is based around Whitecalf's setting and beekeeping isn't heavily practiced in Imperial Wardin (the Hill Tribes are the only people in the region that beekeep as a core cultural practice, and their migrant progenitors May have brought the region's first domesticated honeybees with them) but beekeeping is very widespread. Silkworms are also canon.

The kermes insect and cochineal is canon, and species of both can be found in Imperial Wardin (the cochineal here is closest to the armenian cochineal specifically). Both produce a high quality red dye, though smaller quantities of cochineal are required to make the same amount of dye. A cochineal more akin to the Central American species (feeds on cacti) is found west and south across the seaway, (including parts of Bur), and is the most valued of all (has the highest dye output).

Some of the purely invented kept insects include:

Caviar ants, which are a type of domesticated leafcutter that has been selected for multi-queen colonies and massive egg production. Their eggs and larvae are a STAPLE food in a lot of qilik societies- qilik are primarily carnivorous (specifically insectivorous) and can digest a limited range of plant matter- this is a form of mass agriculture that most readily and cheaply feeds large populations. Caelin and delkhin societies also utilize them (though tend to depend more heavily on large animal agriculture), and some human/elowey societies have adopted them (though virtually never as a staple food).

Silk-orchard spiders, which are a species of colonial spider that can be reared for mass silk production with a stable enough food source. This silk is much costlier to produce than that of silkworms, but MUCH stronger, and is used to make ultra-lightweight armor (it's not going to stop a direct stab of a blade in of itself, but can be highly viable when padded and reinforced).

King locusts, which are domesticated grasshoppers selected to be big (about the length of a human hand), fat, slow, and flightless, and reared as tiny livestock (mostly by qilik).

Two decorative arthropods that are used in the Cynozepal/Ch'Chen regions primarily, which are brooch beetles (a mix of selectively bred and wild-caught beetles worn live as jewelry) and jewel ticks (colorful ticks that rarely transmit diseases to non-mammalian hosts, intentionally allowed to latch as temporary decoration).

(This old post goes into most of these in further detail ft actual illustrations here [x])

---

I don't have Many specific culturally significant insects established but here's what I've got so far:

-One deity in the Burri pantheon is the god of beekeeping (as well as a minor agricultural deity).

-Insects are VERY significant to the Chit-Sut-Susit qilik culture. Most in this group have converted to the Cynozepali Cosmic Dualist religion and do not worship their original gods (the chief of which was strongly associated with butterflies) but retain practices of ancestor worship. One facet of this is believing that each person has two souls, one that remains earthbound after death to guide the living, and one that moves on to the afterlife. Earthbound souls of ancestors take the forms of moths and butterflies, and these animals have a protected and sacred status. Butterflies in particular are associated with masculine beauty (which is primarily being delicate and colorful) and the garb of Chit-Sut-Susit drakes often mimics butterfly patterns.

-The periodical cicada is a symbol of esoteric knowledge and enlightenment in the (pretty major) Eterhimhamdli religion, which is the dominant religious practice east of the Blackmane mountains across many cultural groups (and is a religious minority in Imperial Wardin, mostly brought by Yuroma migrants). This religion's core doctrine recognizes no deities and no individual soul (rather believes that personal experience is a facet of a collective consciousness/oversoul) and the primary goal of its priesthood is accessing hidden knowledge obtained by freeing the mind from the body (through meditation, trance, psychoactive drugs, and trepanation) to tap into the oversoul, and achieving enlightenment through completely freeing oneself of the body's illusions and attaining full experience of the oversoul. The cicada's cycle of 'sleeping' beneath the earth for years, then emerging as one in unison is used as an analogue for enlightenment and the return to the collective. (The Scholarly Order of the Root is a sect of this religion)

-Horseflies are admired by the Tho-Tykoso people (north of the Viper seaway, adjacently north of the central Royal Dain kingdoms). They are noted for being small yet difficult to kill due to their agility, and capable of inflicting great pain and wearing down much larger beasts. Their warrior culture is based mostly around mounted archery using small, nimble khait, and they seek to emulate these qualities. Horsefly symbols are common on khait tack and the clothing of warriors.

[fairuzfan]

(This got soo much longer than I meant for it to be omg... sorry about that!!)

American Holocaust by David Stannard is a flawed book with some dated language, but of everything I've read, I think I like its explanation/argument against this weird sort of... competitive genocide stuff. I'm gonna butcher it a little by cutting out a LOT in order to not nuke your inbox with a super long ask, but:

[…] To say this is not to say that the Jewish Holocaust-the inhuman destruction of 6,000,000 people-was not an abominably unique event. It was. So, too, for reasons of its own, was the mass murder of about 1,000,000 Armenians in Turkey a few decades prior to the Holocaust. So, too, was the deliberately caused "terror-famine" in Stalin's Soviet Union in the 1930s, which killed more than 14,000,000 people. So, too, have been each of the genocidal slaughters of many millions more, decades after the Holocaust, in Burundi, Bangladesh, Kampuchea, East Timor, the Brazilian Amazon, and elsewhere. Additionally, within the framework of the Holocaust itself, there were aspects that were unique in the campaign of genocide conducted by the Nazis against Europe's Romani people, which resulted in the mass murder of perhaps 1,500,000 men, women, and children. [...]

Each of these genocides was distinct and unique, for one reason or another, as were (and are) others that go unmentioned here. In one case the sheer numbers of people killed may make it unique. In another case, the percentage of people killed may make it unique. In still a different case, the greatly compressed time period in which the genocide took place may make it unique. In a further case, the greatly extended time period in which the genocide took place may make it unique. No doubt the targeting of a specific group or groups for extermination by a particular nation's official policy may mark a given genocide as unique. So too might another group's being unofficially (but unmistakably) targeted for elimination by the actions of a multinational phalanx bent on total extirpation. Certainly the chilling utilization of technological instruments of destruction, such as gas chambers, and its assembly-line, bureaucratic, systematic methods of destruction makes the Holocaust unique. On the other hand, the savage employment of non-technological instruments of destruction, such as the unleashing of trained and hungry dogs to devour infants, and the burning and crude hacking to death of the inhabitants of entire cities, also makes the Spanish anti-Indian genocide unique.

[…]

A secondary tragedy of all these genocides, moreover, is that partisan representatives among the survivors of particular afflicted groups not uncommonly hold up their peoples' experience as so fundamentally different from the others that not only is scholarly comparison rejected out of hand, but mere cross-referencing or discussion of other genocidal events within the context of their own flatly is prohibited. It is almost as though the preemptive conclusion that one's own group has suffered more than others is something of a horrible award of distinction that will be diminished if the true extent of another group's suffering is acknowledged.

Compounding this secondary tragedy is the fact that such insistence on the incomparability of one's own historical suffering, by means of what Irving Louis Horowitz calls "moral bookkeeping," invariably pits one terribly injured group against another […]

Denial of massive death counts is common--and even readily understandable, if contemptible--among those whose forefathers were the perpetrators of the genocide. Such denials have at least two motives: first, protection of the moral reputations of those people and that country responsible for the genocidal activity (which seems the primary motive of those scholars and politicians who deny that massive genocide campaigns were carried out against American Indians); and second, on occasion, the desire to continue carrying out virulent racist assaults upon those who were the victims of the genocide in question (as seems to be the major purpose of the anti-Semitic so-called historical revisionists who claim that the Jewish Holocaust never happened or that its magnitude has been exaggerated). But for those who have themselves been victims of extermination campaigns to proclaim uniqueness for their experiences only as a way of denying recognition to others who also have suffered massive genocidal brutalities is to play into the hands of the brutalizers. Rather, as Michael Berenbaum has wisely put it, "we should let our sufferings, however incommensurate, unite us in condemnation of inhumanity rather than divide us in a calculus of calamity."

The whole thing is available to read on the Internet Archive if you're interested. (This part starts on pg 149, if you'd just like to have the full context without the parts I chopped.)

Additionally, Carrol Kakel's book The American West and the Nazi East, while imperfect, too, is also very useful in getting at the core issue with these arguments and what makes them harmful--regardless of intent. I'm gonna spare you and not quote too much from this one, but the general gist of what it's about and argues in favor of is summed up like this in its conclusion:

In the case of the Holocaust and its contexts, the new ‘optics’ helps us see that – contrary to the prevailing image of ‘industrial genocide’ – many aspects of the Holocaust are akin to earlier ‘colonial genocide’. It is worth noting (and emphasizing) that the distinction I make between ‘colonial genocide’ and ‘industrial genocide’ is not to suggest some type of crude and arbitrary ‘partitioning’ of the Nazi Holocaust; it is, rather, to suggest and reassert the (settler) colonial roots, content, and context of the Nazi project in the ‘Wild East’ – a content and context linked, in Hitler’s and Himmler’s ‘spatial’ and ‘racial’ fantasies, to the ‘North American precedent’. And finally, the new ‘optics’ also allows us to understand that the ‘genocide and colonialism’ nexus holds the key to recognizing the Holocaust’s origins, content, and context; that the Nazi Holocaust is not a copy – but an extremely radicalized variant – of earlier ‘colonial genocide’; and that ‘holocaust’ is not a separate category from, but the most extreme variant of, the blight on human history we call ‘genocide’.

One of the more infamous examples of someone trying to argue against comparison (at least in the NDN circles I run in, anyway) was Deborah Lipstadt claiming that "[What the United States did to Native Americans] was not the same as the Holocaust" because, she says, "The Native Americans were seen as "competitors" for land and resources. There was, therefore, a certain logic-horrible and immoral as it was-to the campaign against the Native Americans."

Just for context, the full paragraph from her blog post:

What the United States did to Native Americans was horrendous. I have not studied it closely and it's not my area of expertise, however, it seems clear that the treatment of the various Native American tribes was revolting. However, it was not the same as the Holocaust. The Native Americans were seen as "competitors" for land and resources. There was, therefore, a certain logic-horrible and immoral as it was-to the campaign against the Native Americans. [Please note: I am NOT justifying the attacks.] The German campaign against the Jews had no logic and was often completely illogical. People who were "useful" to the Germans were murdered or exiled, e.g. slave laborers in factories producing goods for the Wehrmacht and scientists who were producing important technological advances for the Germans. In a prime example of illogic, in June 1944 at the time of the landing at Normandy, when the Germans were truly on the defensive, they used precious ships and men to go to the Island of Corfu and deport the 1200 Jews who lived there. They ended up in Auschwitz. Approximately 100 of this old Jewish community survived.

This is obviously a repulsive take, but the bizarre rationalization of abject evil isn't what I think makes this such a good example of the big issue at the heart of the constant emphasis on "uniqueness." There are plenty of people who hold these "exceptionalist" beliefs without taking it that much further and dismissing other genocides altogether. No, the thing that makes this such a perfect encapsulation imo is the very first sentence, where this historian, this professor of "Holocaust Studies," this woman who's ostensibly spent most of her entire life studying genocide openly admits she's never really bothered to look into what, exactly, happened to all those Indians way back when.

This is ultimately what I, personally, see as the main issue with this line of thinking. The harm doesn't necessarily come from holding the Holocaust up as "worse" than any other genocidal event, though that way of thinking definitely has its own problems, but from holding it up as fundamentally different.

It's the way this view holds it up as completely separate, in its own little bubble of history where we can study it and analyze it and teach about it all we want... all without ever having to broach the subject of colonialism. You can have entire classes where you study every single minute detail of this one specific genocide without ever having to mention or--god forbid--criticize the system that's driven pretty much every other instance of it.

Deborah Lipstadt has spent the better part of a century learning everything there is to know about the Holocaust, but in all that time, she's apparently never felt the need to look into the events that its perpetrators openly and repeatedly referred to as their inspiration.

This is what makes this sort of framing so dangerous imo. You can spend your entire life educating yourself about genocide, but if it's only in the context of one genocide and the belief in the uniqueness and incomparability of that single event is core to your understanding of both it and your worldview as a whole, you will still be completely incapable of recognizing the signs when it starts to happen again.

this is a really informative ask. thank you so much for sending this in (love the citations haha) i think it adds a lot to the overall discussion.

[metamorphesque]

Բարեվ Տաթեւ. ❤️ Nice to see a fellow Armenian on Tumblr. Love your transitions and posts about Armenian history and culture. As someone who was born and raised in France, it's a wonderful way of learning about my parents' (and my) culture. As many Armenians, I also grew up in a traditional Christian household. However, past few years I can't help but think that if God is kind and full of love, why does he let innocent people suffer? Same about genocides, wars. How can he let all of it happen?

Ողջույն! Հուսով եմ` լավ եք: I appreciate your message!

I know — 'If God is omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, and good, how can He allow the innocent to suffer? What has an innocent child done to “deserve” being slain? How can a kind God witness all of this and do nothing?'

Those are thoughts I started to wrestle with in my early teens. Not finding a comforting answer, I felt anger building up inside me, and with that anger came a growing distance between me and God (though it wasn’t God who moved away). As I lived life, I came to understand that there is good and there is evil. God loved us enough to give us the ability to choose. Every day, we decide whether to do good or bad — it’s a choice we must make repeatedly. But one thing to bear in mind is that our choices affect everyone around us. We’re all in the same boat.

Imagine that a very charitable being built a beautiful house, fully furnished, with a wonderful garden and all the things one needs to live a good and dignified life. He allowed you and your family to live there rent-free, with no obligations, other than following a few rules designed to ensure everyone’s safety and well-being — like not hurting, deceiving, or killing one another, not damaging the house you all live in, etc.

At the beginning, all is well. But then your cousin starts disregarding the rules; breaking windows, wrecking furniture, damaging the AC and heating, and creating chaos throughout the house. Come winter, is he the only one who’s going to suffer from the cold? Come summer, is he the only one to suffer in the heat? Is he the only one living in a broken, filthy house? Of course not — you and the rest of your family, even the children and the pets, will suffer too.

Is the blame on God? For what? For giving you the house? For letting you live there? For making rules to protect you and trusting you enough to give you free will to follow them?

It’s been millennia; it’s time to drop the childish excuse of “if God was kind, He wouldn’t…” and start holding ourselves accountable for our actions. We have broken and are breaking the world, and then we go on blaming God because the innocent who live among us are bearing the consequences of our choices.

[incineratedtoothpickgamer]

It really is something, to watch your nation's govornment slowly collapse. Not like being in a car crash (which I have been) or watching some slow trainwreck. It's...surreal. Something between fever dream and nightmare and hallucination, but it's real and we're living it.

I put thought into it and....I don't want to leave even if I can. My ancestors are Armenian, Scottisj, and Irish. They came here, fleeing various genocides. Their own govornmental collapses. I don't want to run. This place they thought was safe. I want to help ensure it becomes safe once again. Even if that means sacrificing my dreams.

I want to be someone child me could be proud of. She was abused and bullied, and no one protected her. So I will not run, not this time. Even if it means giving up my dreams so others can live theirs.

And I don't plan to die until Trump and Elon are dead. I'm younger. The basic math alone states I can outlast them, and I am easily fuelled by spite.

And I am full of SO much spite!

[sahonithereadwolf]

You can play a winged dog from Armenian folklore that resurrects heroes to life by giving them doggie kisses in Protect The Sacred. I think that means my rpg wins?

[blackstarlineage]

The Hypocrisy of the Kanye West Controversy: A Garveyite Perspective on Selective Outrage and the Dismissal of Black Suffering

From a Garveyite perspective, the backlash against Kanye West’s comments about Jewish people versus the lack of consequences for his remarks about Black people and slavery exposes the hypocrisy of mainstream outrage, the racial hierarchy in oppression discourse, and the devaluation of Black history and suffering. The reaction to his statements reveals how power structures operate, who is protected, and who is disposable in the global economic and media landscape.

Kanye West’s “slavery was a choice” comment in 2018 sparked heated debates but resulted in zero financial losses or sponsorship cancellations. In contrast, his anti-Semitic statements in 2022 and 2025 led to immediate termination of business partnerships, removal from platforms, and industry-wide condemnation. This double standard raises critical questions:

Why was the erasure of Black suffering tolerated, but insults toward Jewish people resulted in swift punishment?

If slavery was “a choice,” does that mean all other historical oppressions, including genocide, were also choices?

Who truly holds economic and institutional power in deciding what speech is unacceptable?

What does this selective outrage teach us about the value of Black people in society?

1. Kanye West Faced No Real Consequences for His “Slavery Was a Choice” Comment

Kanye West’s dismissal of Black suffering as a choice was met with anger from many in the Black community, but it did not threaten his wealth, corporate sponsorships, or mainstream influence. In fact, after making the comment, he continued receiving:

Business collaborations with Adidas, Gap, and Balenciaga

Media coverage and access to mainstream platforms

Continued billionaire status and financial growth

Example: When Kanye insulted the millions of enslaved Africans who suffered under colonialism and European chattel slavery, corporate America remained silent. No major companies distanced themselves, and his brand partnerships remained intact.

Garveyite Takeaway: The economic and media system does not consider anti-Black statements as serious enough to warrant punishment. This reveals how Black suffering is normalized and seen as “acceptable” within the power structures that govern industry and influence.

2. The Reaction to His Jewish Comments Shows Who Holds Real Economic Power

When Kanye made anti-Semitic remarks, the response was instant and severe. Within days, he:

Lost Adidas, Gap, and Balenciaga partnerships

Was dropped by his talent agency CAA

Was blacklisted from media platforms

Lost his billionaire status as corporate deals collapsed

Example: Adidas, a brand that worked with Kanye through numerous controversies, immediately severed ties after his Jewish comments—despite tolerating his anti-Black rhetoric for years.

Garveyite Takeaway: The fact that corporations took action only when another group was affected shows where true power lies in the global economic system. Black people do not own enough infrastructure to demand the same level of accountability when their suffering is dismissed.

3. If Slavery Was a “Choice,” Then All Oppression Must Also Be a Choice

The logic of Kanye’s “slavery was a choice” statement collapses under scrutiny. If millions of enslaved Africans “chose” to be enslaved, then by the same standard:

The Holocaust was a choice

The Armenian genocide was a choice

Apartheid was a choice

Colonial rule was a choice

Example: No one would ever dare say Jewish people “chose” to be put in concentration camps under Nazi rule. Why? Because history recognizes their suffering as systematic oppression, not voluntary submission. The same recognition is often denied to Black people.

Garveyite Takeaway: Kanye’s comment reflects a deeper issue: Black suffering is not taken seriously, and narratives that blame Black people for their own oppression are allowed to spread unchecked.

4. The Racial Hierarchy in Oppression: Why Black Suffering Is Dismissed

The difference in reaction between Kanye’s statements on slavery vs. his statements about Jewish people highlights an undeniable truth:

Jewish history is globally protected and respected.

Black history is frequently distorted, dismissed, and trivialized.

Example: Holocaust denial is a crime in several European countries, and even casual anti-Semitic remarks result in immediate backlash. Meanwhile, "slavery denial", African genocide denial, and anti-Black rhetoric are allowed, tolerated, and even rewarded in many mainstream spaces.

Garveyite Takeaway: The system treats some histories as sacred while allowing Black trauma to be mocked, debated, and disrespected. This is why Black people must control their own institutions and economic power.

5. The Solution: Black People Must Own Their Own Media, Businesses, and Economic Institutions

If Black people had the same economic power and institutional control as other groups, Kanye West would have faced immediate repercussions for saying “slavery was a choice”—just as he did for his later comments.

What Needs to Happen:

Black-owned media outlets must control narratives about Black history and refuse to platform anti-Black rhetoric.

Black-owned corporations must be strong enough to cancel business with celebrities who degrade Black people.

Pan-African economic unity must be prioritized so that Black businesses can hold global power, just like other communities protect their interests.

Garveyite Takeaway: Garveyism teaches that without economic independence and institutional control, Black people will always be at the mercy of external systems that do not prioritize their well-being.

Conclusion: The Kanye Controversy Reveals the Truth About Black Power in Society

The difference in reaction to Kanye West’s comments proves that:

Anti-Black statements do not carry consequences because Black people lack the economic and institutional power to enforce accountability.

Jewish suffering is protected, while Black suffering is treated as debatable or irrelevant.

Slavery and oppression are not choices—systemic forces determine who holds power and who remains marginalized.

Until Black people control their own media, businesses, and economic resources, they will remain vulnerable to exploitation and historical distortion.

Final Thought:

Marcus Garvey warned that Black people must be the masters of their own destiny—because if another group controls your economy, media, education, and historical narratives, they control your entire existence.

The selective outrage over Kanye’s statements is not just about him—it is about who gets to dictate the limits of acceptable speech, whose history is honoured, and who remains at the bottom of the power structure. Garveyism teaches that the only solution is Black economic sovereignty and global unity.

[whencyclopedia]

Legions of Syria

The Roman legions of Syria served as a buffer, protecting the Roman Empire not only externally from such threats as Parthia and the Sasanian Empire but also internally during the Great Jewish Revolt of 66 CE and the Bar-Kochba Revolt (132-135 CE). Located south of Cappadocia and west of Mesopotamia, Syria became a Roman province in 64 BCE. For the 1st and 2nd centuries CE, it was a single province, with only one legion stationed there most of that time. However, Roman emperor Septimius Severus (r. 193-211 CE) divided it into two: Coele Syria with Legio IV Scythica and Legio XVI Flavia Firma and Syria Phoenice with Legio III Gallica.

Legio III Gallica

Legio III Gallica (emblem: three bulls; birth sign: Capricorn) was the third legion raised by Julius Caesar (100-44 BCE) around 49 BCE and served with him in Gaul. Since legions of that era were known by a number, not a name, confusion about a legion's activities exists. Aside from Caesar's Third, there was also a 3rd legion that fought for Pompey the Great (106-48 BCE) against Caesar at the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BCE. Some historians believe Caesar's legion received the name Gallica because most of its legionaries were recruited in Gaul, and to distinguish it from Pompey's legion.

After his death, Caesar's 3rd legion was reformed by Mark Antony (83-30 BCE) and was one of the 16 legions that served with him in the East. Filled with recruits from Syria, the legion participated in the commander's unsuccessful attack on the Parthian capital of Phraata in 36 BCE. Although having success initially in the campaign, the tactics of Parthian warfare were no match for Roman siege warfare, forcing an ignoble retreat. Harassed by the Parthian cavalry and infantry, the 3rd, in a counterattack under Antony's leadership, prevented the destruction of the Roman line of march. Even so, Mark Antony lost one-third of the Roman army during the retreat. Remaining with Antony, the legion may or may not have been at the Battle of Actium in 31 BCE. In 30 BCE, the legion became part of Octavian's standing army and would thereafter be stationed in Syria.

Years later, as the III Gallica faced the forces of Vitellius (r. 69 CE) prior to the Second Battle of Bedriacum, the Roman commander Marcus Primus spoke before the gathered legions and reminded the 3rd, in particular, of its time under Antony. Tacitus wrote of the commander's speech:

The third legion he addressed at greater length, reminding them of old and recent achievements, how under Marcus Antonius they had defeated the Parthians, under Corbulo the Armenians, and lately discomfited the Sarmatians. ... A shout was raised on all sides, and the soldiers of the third legion saluted, as is the custom in Syria, the rising sun. (Histories, 3.24)

In 4 BCE, the III Gallica helped suppress unrest in Judea after the death of Herod the Great (c. 75 to 4 BCE). Later, during the reign of Emperor Nero (54-68 CE), the legion assisted in the defeat of another rebellion by the Parthians. Under the leadership of its camp prefect Capito, six cohorts of the Third marched northward in 59 CE to Cappadocia and were part of Gnaeus Corbulo's army that captured Artaxata and Tigranocerta in Armenia. The legion was also with Corbulo in 62 CE when his army relieved Caesennius Paetus after his disastrous fray against the Parthians. While Paetus commanded the fourth, twelfth, and fifth, "the third, sixth and tenth legions and the old soldiery of Syria remained with Corbulo" (Tacitus, Annals, 15.6)

In the Jewish Revolt of 66 CE, the legion provided cohorts to aid in the capture of Jerusalem and suffered heavy casualties in the fight. The legion was assaulted while guarding the Antonia Fortress. 250 legionaries were overwhelmed and wiped out. Later, at a fortress at Cypros near Jericho, legionaries of the 3rd were caught off guard and killed. In the end, 1,500 men of the 3rd had died. Whether or not the legion remained in Judea and was with Vespasian (r. 69-79 CE) in Galilee is uncertain. With depleted numbers, Rome transferred the legion to Moesia.

In 68 CE, the city of Rome was in disarray. Nero had committed suicide and four Roman commanders vied for the throne. During this hectic time, the Roxolani, Sarmatian nomads, took advantage of the situation and crossed the Danube into Roman territory. After some initial success, the nomads became more concerned with plunder and less with fighting. Despite being depleted, the Legio III took advantage and went on the offensive. According to Tacitus "… they were dispersed and off their guard, when the third legion together with some auxiliaries attacked them. The Romans had everything ready for battle, the Sarmatians were scattered…" (Histories, 1.79).

Titus Flavius Vespasianus (Vespasian) was proclaimed emperor by his troops – the III Gallica was among them, helping gain support from the legions of Moesia. The 3rd legion was part of Marcus Primus' army that invaded Italy and fought against Vitellius' forces at Bedriacum and Cremona. Tacitus wrote that "the fiercest struggle was maintained by the third and seventh legions" and, while Legio VII tried to gain entry into the city of Cremona, "the third broke down the gate with axes and swords. All authors are agreed that Caius Volusius, a soldier of the third legion, entered the city first" (Histories, 3.29). Wintering at Capua, the legion returned to Syria, replacing XII Fulminata at Raphanaea on the Orontes. The years that followed brought the legion into constant war in the Jewish Revolt as well as against further incursions from the Parthians.

In 218 CE, the legion supported the claimant Elagabalus (r. 218-222 CE) for the Roman throne after the assassination of Marcus Macrinus (r. 217-218 CE). On 16 May 218 CE, the 14-year-old Elagabalus was sneaked into the camp of the legion and proclaimed emperor. However, the reign of the young emperor was one of uprisings and rebellions. The 3rd and 7th who had supported him turned against Elagabalus but failed in their attempts to overthrow him. On 13 March 222 CE, while at the Praetorian Guard camp, Elagabalus and his mother were executed, beheaded, dragged through the streets of Rome, and dumped into the Tiber. He was replaced by Severus Alexander (222-235 CE). During the period known as the Crisis of the Third Century, Legio III fought alongside Emperor Aurelian (r. 270-275 CE) against Queen Zenobia of the Palmyrene Empire. Afterwards, the activities of the 3rd are unclear. The legion remained in Syria for the remainder of its existence.

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[sheepblr]

The Armenian Gampr (Armenian: Գամփռ, romanized: Gamp’ṙ) is an Armenian breed of flock guardian dog native to the Armenian Highlands. It falls within the Ovcharka group of livestock guardian dogs, which can be found throughout the Transcaucasus area.

The Gampr is the traditional flock guardian dog of Armenia. From the 1920s, when Armenia came under the control of the Soviet Union, large numbers of the dogs were taken to Russia, where they played a crucial part in the development of the Caucasian Shepherd Dog, or Caucasian Ovcharka.

The principal traditional use of the Gampr was as a flock guardian dog, protecting flocks of sheep and goats from attack – particularly by wolves – on the upland pastures of mountainous regions of Armenia. Although sheep-herding has declined in the country since independence, wolves continue to threaten flocks; in 2006 some 2000 dogs were still in use for this purpose. They may also be used to guard people and property, another traditional use.

An Armenian Gampr among sheep at the Armash Important Bird Area

An Armenian Gampr playing with another dog of unknown breed in 2012

[yanderesimp2000]

Yan Adam x Fem reader Chap 3/5 someone else DARES TO FLIRT ON YOU !MINORS STAY AWAY

CHAP 1 https://www.tumblr.com/yanderesimp2000/745338401920860160/extreme-yandere-adam-x-fem-reader-chap-15-start?source=share

CHAP 2 https://www.tumblr.com/yanderesimp2000/745426251094818816/extreme-yandere-adam-x-fem-listener-chap-25?source=share

Tags, Cuddles, kisses,protective, 9 feet size diff , wing snuggles, daiquiri?!, RIBS?!!,horny listener

TWS, Manipulation, Violence (not on you), someone trys to SA you (NOT ADAM), Alcohol, Yanderery, Adam being a incel and misogynist, blow job, and brainwashed reader

btw this takes place in a universe where Adam won the Battle of Hazbin hotel and killed all the main hazbin hotel cast also PLEASE GIVE ME REQUESTS

my english might be bad I'm from Armenia

BTW RUSSIAN AND ARMENIAN TRANSLATIONS COMING SOON

it been about 3 days since your little "illness" stopped affecting you Adams gonna back to work making your lonely he's only here at night so he cant give you the attention you desperately crave "like a little fly to soda" Adam described your attention craving

His mansion he keeps you locked up in is cool to live in it had 5 floors and everything you could want like,pools a huge kitchen and dinner room, multiple living rooms a indoor theater but it's never engough your just counting down the days Adam dosnet have to do first man stuff for 7 whole days strait and you will get all the attention and love you want

as you sat on your bed watching Tv some reality TV show you here someone unlock the front door "what upppp Baby" It was Adam you rushed over to the door and he gave you a hug "ughhhhhhh today was soooo boring sera was being a bitch again something about You cant banish random people to hell because you dislike them like bitch? im fucking Adam I can do whatever I want I'm god first creation and his favorite so you can go eat shit" the way Adam described sera just made you hate her all you could think was is "how could she disrespect him does she know who he is you should be lucky to be in his presence" but you just said "yeah I know seras a bitch I know I know" Adam was happy to hear that at said "well atleast someone understands even lute is on Sera side"

adam groaned before Slumping down and laying down on the couch before saying " hey babe do we still have so raw ribs in the fridge" he said You then said "I'll check" before opening the fridge to see the rack of ribs he brought home one day you then said "yeah do you want me to make them" you said in your soft caring voice adam LED mask lit up and he said " YES YES YES FUCKIN MAKE THEM" Like a ecstatic puppy when you bring out his food

you then start to cook them Adam always thought that It was your job as a women to do the house work and cook and clean for him and you agreed since for some strange reason you could not remember what you life was like before he Married you so you just blindly agreed to everything he said once you were done seasoning the ribs you put them on the slow cooker for 2 hours before laying down on the couch with him like you always do

he started to snuggle you before telling you the same story's he always tell you "did I tell you about that one time this bitch girl that was Lucifer daughter came over and took me to court over the extermination it was sooooooo annoying then we killed them all and it was fuckin great" he said proud of himself "yes babe youve told me" you said Slightly annoyed

Adam then said "ugh this couch is too small were gonna go to the bed" he then picked you up with one hand like he always does and just carried you over the the bed and placed you on it before also laying down on the bed " your my little teddy bear y'know that small helpless... weak you have to rely on me for shelter safety and protection and that's Just the way I like it" he softly and gently cooed "and the world is dangerous their would be sooo many creeps that would try to take advantage of you and take you away from me so you should never try to leave its too dangerous" he said gently but very firm and something about it your mind just agreed with him " he was right you should stay with him" was all your little brain could think as you nuzzled into him

when you nuzzled into him he was surprised but loved it "ohh someones a little love bug today" he teased before starting to kiss you on your forehead his wings starting to wrap around you two creating a soft little fort as you two were snuggling you noticed some knots and dirt on Adams wings which just bothered you so much you started to clean and prune them this surprised Adam but he just giggled a little "sorry my wings are a little dirty but its always nice to know someone can take care of them for me" you walked out of the bed and grabbed the brush to brush his wings like the good little wife you were he giggled and cooed over this you just dropped everything to clean his wings as you were doing that he felt your wings " if only I could take care of myself like you do I'm a fucking mess" a complained "your wings are so sleek and soft they always look like its your first day in heaven and mine are dirty and rugged" he groaned "but hey I have you and your such a good wife you just clean them for me" he laughed

when you were done cleaning his wings he praised you like you were a toddler "wow I look so pretty, what ever would I do without you, Their so sleek and shiny just like yours,how could you do all of this so quickly" this coddling was interrupted by the buzzing of the oven that had the ribs in them " fuck yeah' he yelled before jumping out of bed and running towards the kitchen as you followed behind him to take them out when you took them out Adam just grabbed one of the burning hot ribs and shoved them in his mouth you looked at him shocked but he said " fucking delicious thanks babe" you heard the ribs FUCKING SIZZLE WHEN HE PICKED THEM UP

Besides that concerning discovery the dinner was pretty good he talked to you and seemed to enjoy the ribs a lot making your heart happy he then groaned "welp that was nice time for bed" you weren't tired and said "w-wait" but I was to late he picked you up and walked to the bed and threw you guys down on it " I said it was time for bed" Adam growled ignoring your protests as he feels asleep you were forced to sit their smushed in-between his arm and his chest For another 3 hours before you finally fell asleep against him

3 days later

it was finally the day were Adam got 7 whole days off no doing angel stuff he promised you guys would go do something and now you were he was dressing you up looking thur dresses while he was in his classic robe attire you guys were going to his favorite club for a date and you were so excited 1 because it was your first time out of his mansion in 2 months and 2 he was actually taking you on a date

adam then showed you a nice baby blue dress that fir very tightly on you he then said "yes yes that's the one so everyone will know how fucking smoking hot you are and THEY CANT HAVE YOU because your alllllllllllllllllll mine" the dress was very tight but you said it was okay because he said it looked cute on you so it had to

He then said "okay were both ready so lets go" you two walked out the door and heaven was just a pretty as it always was the huge building all the gold and marble and just everything as you two walking you heard people mumbling "how did Adam pull that girl" "must of bribed her or something" "wow shes hot shit" but you didn't humor them ignoring them and just focusing on Adam as you two walked to the club which he always talked about so you knew it was gonna be a lovely experience

as you two rounded the corner he said "prepare to be blown out of your fucking mind" then you saw it big flashy signs and a bouncer that said "come in sir" when he saw you and adam" when you two walked in you were seated in one of the best seats in the club were he ordered himself a large daiquiri and you a small red wine you guys drank and talked and listened to music as he blabbered his head off about story's that he told you a billion times but you didn't mind at all and you were with him it was all fine

Adam started to get a little drunk and started to get even more touchy and affectionate then he already was "nice t-t-tits bitch" he said words slurred "T-thank you" you said felling flattered but a little insulted at being called a bitch " can I have my rib back" Adam said before erupting in laughter "its okay even though you came from my r-rib your m-much fuckin hotter then in" he teased again before saying "when we get home I'm gonna fuck ya hard yeahhh gonna knock ya up give ya babys make ya all round gonna baby trap ya then you could Neva leave me" he said words slurred you were slightly annoyed by this and said "Adam having babys would be wonderful but I would never leave you, you know that right?" you said trying to reassure him "yeah yeah I fucking know I was just fucking around bitch" Adam said laughing a little before saying " I gotta fuckin piss I'll be right back" before standing up and leaving

you sat their fiddling with you thumbs waiting for adam to return when an angel came up to you he was unattractive in your standards so you didn't bat an eye that was until he said "hey baby you could do sooooo much better then him you know that" you tried to ignore him but he persisted "he treats you like trash right yeahhh I bet he does I would treat you like the queen you are" you get angry and said "fuck off I'm not going out with you or leaving him" the angel looks offended but then says well then I'll just give it a little sample then before punching you to the ground holding you down before trying to touch you private area he didn't even seem to notice Adam walking over to the stall

2 seconds later he was ripped of you and adam had never looked so angry before "YOU DARE TOUCH MY WIFE IN MY CLUB EVEN AFTER SHE SAID NO" he said in-between punches "Scum like you have no place in heaven" he said before snapping his fingers opening a portal to hell "wait no no no no no no please I'm sorry please nooooooooooo" he said before being sucked in before the portal closed Adam was panting looking like a rapid animal everyone in the club was looking at him " lets go babe" he said before grabbing your hand and flying out of the club back home

When you got home Adam said "fucking scum trying to hit on you I'm sorry you had to see that but he deserved it" he said still fuming "it's okay Adam" you said gently trying to calm him down but God he was so hot when he was angry it just brought out his dominate side which you found so hot he then walked over to the couch and sat down to watch his favorite show

this was your chance you thought he always was the one to ask to fornicate so it was your turn but you were to nervous to directly ask him from Adams perspective he was just sitting on the couch watching his favorite TV show when all of a sudden he felt something you... you were sitting on the floor in-between his legs rubbing your face against his soft bulge looking up at his longingly he was surprised and that well you were asking to fuck he giggled and said "that's one way to ask if you can suck my dick" before taking his underwear revealing his 35 cm dick complete erect he then teased "hope ya don't choke" before grabbed you by the hair and putting your mouth against his dick you gladly opened it and started to suck on it purring and playing with the soft tip arousing Adam even more 'good good girl" he said "I hope ya dont chock on it although that would be cute" he said in a low purr you were to preoccupied to listen and you just kept sucking him off rubbing your tongue against the veins bulging through and the gentle tip tickling him he then said "going all the way in" then shoving his whole dick down your throat you were surprised you did not gag maybe heaven does not have a gag reflex you thought while sucking it "that's it baby this is your dessert after all those drinks" he said as the bead of precum went down your throat it was so nice to have all his love and affection and to pleasure him it was just an addicting feeling Adam then blurted out " are you ready for you dessert " before pulling his dick partially out before cumming all onto your tongue letting you taste it "don't you dare spit it out" Adam said firmly as more ropes of cum went into your mouth. by the end your mouth was filled with his sticky salty cum you started to gulp it down as he cleaned himself up he laughed and said "Ya like your dessert because your gonna eat that EVERY DAY" before saying "its getting late lets go to bed

BONUS BC I LOVE YOU

as he was sleeping your played with his bulge it was soft and warm kinda like a pillow he was enjoying it as he blurted out "ugh yess" once and awhile it was just the perfect pillow you finally rested on his bulge using it like a pillow and fell asleep

[ladyiristheenchantress]

Anniversary Witchcraft

As you all may or may not know, I am a married witch! I have spoken about my husband before in our motorcycles and car magic post, however I felt now would be an amazing time to talk about some of the rituals we do on anniversaries coming up! (September 17th to be exact) First of all, Happy 7 years darling, I am so proud to be your wife every day, and I am so grateful you have been my raven, my rock, and my partner in crime. I so adore you, and I cant wait to spend the rest of our time on the Tellus Mater together. Till death do us part, but even then we will remain ghosts on our record player. With that said, lets get started!

What is magical about an anniversary?

Much like any holiday, we create personal celebrations like birthdays, celebrations of life, and anniversaries to keep track of the time that has been spend together. It should be a celebration of love and strong living together! The first instance of a wedding anniversary comes from ancient Rome, where on each year of marriage the spouses would crown each other with things (more traditionally, the husbands to their wives) and on their 25th anniversary they would be crowned with a wreath of silver.

Later on, in 18th century Germany, people started a tradition of gift giving, and eventually created a yearly symbol you gift to someone as a tradition each year to ward off spirits, people looking to harm the bond, and even in some cases death itself!

Today we celebrate anniversaries around the world, whether you are recreating Armenian balance bread, or trying out Japanese senbazuru, however you choose to celebrate may it be unique and full of love!

Magical Ideas

Now we may need some spell and divination ideas for our anniversaries so here are some of the ones my husband and I love!

Follow the yearly gift guide! - This fun tradition is actually celebrated and honors world wide cultures because a lot of them had their own yearly traditions adapted into one! The old saying goes on your first year you give paper, the 5th you give wood, 10th you give aluminum, 25th you give silver, and 50th you give gold! These guides are a fun way to get connected to your relationship but also honors tradition which can strengthen your relationship magically!

2. Create a protection ritual for the year on your anniversary - when you start thinking about how to preserve your relationship you get a lot of factors you have to plan for. Every year my husband and I put obsidian arrowheads in the corner of our bedroom as a way to protect our sacred relationship! this process can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be

3. Petition and honor deities of marriage - Each year my husband and I honor 3 gods, Hera, Aine, and Zepar! This is because we wanted to honor our pagan practices and heritage in our marriage, so we picked one hellenic for my history, one irish for both of our ancestoral line, and one infernal for my husbands history! We do also petition elemental spirits, and update them as we do our yearly river walk

4. Create a shrine to your relationship - We created an altar to dedicate all our gifts to each other, and important works of art we have created, when we put together a shrine for our love, it really helped up to feel connected, so we like to renew it every year

5. Do some divination about the year ahead - Feel free to use this custom spread I use each year! Its awesome if you can do this together! Additionally, you can use cafe astrology to create a free "birth chart" for the day and time of your anniversary

Other ideas?

For my 18+ friends, design a sensual ritual that involves all 5 senses to link yours together

Create a magical meal together to protect and honor the relationship

Create a joint journal or scrap book for memories

Exchange cards, gifts, and sweets to make the other person feel special

Enjoy a nice time out getting coffee or exploring a garden

Make the bed together, and do chores together during the day, then rest and relax at night

In general anniversaries are special! I will be making an age restricted post about sexual magic very soon so stay tuned for that! I hope all of my friends have enjoyed this post, and from our family to yours, happy anniversary!

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