Amidst All, Beauty and Calm Arrive

A Nine-Week Ritual:

Shamanism, Self-Healing,
Fascism, and Trauma—

Amidst All, Beauty and Calm Arrive

Please note, I use ceremony and ritual synonymously.

This ceremony will focus on:
* healing ourselves from the trauma that current fascism is causing
* and gaining power.

Oppressors lie when they insist that you cannot heal from trauma during it and have to wait until it ends.

Ancient Shamans knew otherwise. Experience taught them that Shamanic tools can heal trauma during a traumatic situation.

A psychologist agrees that healing trauma during crisis is possible.

Many—if not all—individuals have suffered their whole lives from fascism. So the ritual-healing will not ignore past traumas.

To expand on the above points:

Historically, Shamanic healing of trauma has been a cultural norm. Also, during trauma, Shamanism mitigates damage to one’s psyche and even heals it. These ancient ways have proved a means for my survival and wholeness during a crisis, every time. So I will lead you in similar methods, during the nine weeks.

Also, many traditional Shamans have discovered their traumas were otherworldly gates to magical and worldly power. A traumatized individual is in a specific state that Shamanic tools turn into an opportunity to become powerful. If they are powerful already, then they become more powerful than ever.

Since ancient times, Shamans have used even their worst traumas as irreplaceable opportunities to create power. They accomplished this by using Shamanic techniques.

My personal experiences showed me that Shamanic methods for using trauma as a gate to power works. So some of these methods will be included in our nine weeks.

I would never promise to “fix everything” in a nine-week ritual. Plus, too much transformational work all at once can buffet the psyche, causing more harm than good.

But this nine-week journey can cause life-changing shifts. Many individuals who went on short Shamanic journeys with me called the results miraculous. The brevity of the journey helps keep the process from being overwhelming.

To keep fighting the good fight, take care of our loved ones, and reach cherished goals, we need self-care.

Self-care is resistance.

Amidst all, beauty and calm arrive.

Every day, amidst all, beauty and calm arrive.
The potential for beauty and calm is in our atoms.

Shamanism invokes beauty and calm
so amidst all, beauty and calm arrive.

Old-Fashioned Magic
to Reach an Important Goal

Faerie Shamanism is practical. We will use some of the power we gain to help you reach an important goal of your choosing. In other words, each participant chooses a goal. For example, maintaining a good income, starting a new business, or awakening creativity. To be clear, the individual goals will be in addition to the nine-week goal of healing and empowerment. And you will gain far more power than what you apply toward your personal goal.

My De Grandis ancestors,
thank you for my Faerie Witch heritage
—a lineage of the Goddess’ love:

a down-to-earth heritage of power and joy
that free my wild, fierce heart.

More Magic

Magic In My Cauldron

In addition to our weekly ceremony, magic will simmer in my cauldron for you. It will be a spell to send you good luck, protection, and both mystical and worldly power. The spell also helps our rituals. For example, when I lead you in self-healing, it will be more powerful yet gentle.

Diana and Lucifer

Lucifer is an ancient Italian Deity. Hs is not the Christian devil.

Diana and Lucifer are the Italian Faerie Queen and King.

I will invoke Them for our rites because
* They helped ancient peasants fight oppression.
* They love rebels.
* Their power and Their love for each other are so great that the combination created all of existence.
* In Their love for us, They will lend that power to our ceremonies.
* I consider Them my loving Ancestors. Gods are our Ancestors. Diana and Lucifer are among mine.

How To Attend

Call the event phone number that you receive after enrolling. The group meets by teleconference. You do not need special technology.

Schedule

Rituals will be on Wednesdays, from 6:00 to 7:00 pm PST, starting March 25, and occur weekly for nine weeks.

Reserve the usual hour on Wednesday May 27 for a makeup session in case I’m unavailable for a planned meeting.

Enrollment

The total cost is $200 a month for two months. Your carrier might charge you for the calls.

Enroll securely through PayPal with the subscribe button below:





Phone me if you want to discuss a scholarship, semi-scholarship, trade, or payment plan other than the subscription, or if you have questions about the event. I do not give refunds.

A few days before our first meeting, you receive an email with the event phone number and other details.

Magic is transformative art. The Old Gods empower the fight for freedom. They love us. So They do everything They can to help us be happy. Faerie Shamanism is the exact opposite of colonizer culture. Joy is political. Joy is resistance.

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A Daily Pagan Reader

Sprinkling Faerie Dust on Breakfast:
A Daily Reader for Busy Parents and Their Children . . .
and for Any Way-Busy Person

This post is under construction. Please come back soon.

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Magic for Freedom

This article was first published in one of Anne Newkirk Niven’s 2014 or 2015 Pagan magazines.

Magic to Overcome Oppression
Power to the People

Magic to Overcome Oppression: Power to the People—Francesca De Grandis

I cast a circle of magic and welcome you into it.

I’m writing this while in a circle because I can discuss traditional Witchery only in a sacred space. This time-honored practice has proven its worth. Unless I experience magic while discussing it, my words are empty.

Feel my writing with your heart and intuition. Does it echo past lives?

This post is a personal, emotional, and philosophical outpouring, instead of exposition alone. Expect me to share, not attempt to prove. Even the limited aspect of traditional Witchery represented in this article is best understood through experiential lyrical mysticism. Instead of logical dissection, I prefer reveling in magic with you, weaving together all this essay’s topics, and discovering its threads woven into the web of life, glistening with star dust.

This post discusses a tenet of old-fashioned Witchcraft: One reason that the Gods endowed humans with magic is so we can free ourselves from oppression—classism, racism, or other forms. Many traditional Witches embrace this belief, such as Pagans I circled with in Europe. It was also accepted in the Shamanic family tradition in which I grew up.

High Magic VS Low Magic?

Systematic discrediting of magic has kept many people from using it to fight for their rights. This smear campaign has been so effective that many Pagans internalized the oppression by dividing magic into “High Magic” and “Low Magic.”

This is an unnecessary, untraditional, and disempowering distinction.

The following erroneous definitions from those who would keep us down are:

“High” Magic is defined as esoteric or mystical ritual.

“Low” Magic is that which fulfills one’s mundane goals—one’s needs and desires.

Low magic tends to be frowned upon as base and not spiritual. No! That is oppressive. Taking care of yourself—through mundane and magical means—is neither low nor base. Self-care is an important part of spirituality.

High and low magic are false distinctions. They are one vital whole. This idea is developed throughout this essay.

Goddess-Given Magic

My Goddess gave me magic for many reasons. One is to improve my mundane life, because I am Her beloved child. Like any good mother, She wants to see my needs met.

In that vein, magic is a Goddess-given tool to fight for my rights, as it was for ancient Witches.

I’m not suggesting greedy or cruel magic is okay. Magic is a tool. Like all tools, it should be used for good, not evil.

Let’s look at Aradia: Gospel of the Witches by Charles G. Leland to continue the discussion about magical freedom-fighting.

Aradia: Gospel of the Witches

(A wee side note: I am not bringing up Aradia to prove my opinions. Something being in a book doesn’t make it true. Some people debate whether Aradia is historically accurate, although I happen to think it is. I mention this eccentric book from the 1800s because it rings with beauty and depth that reveal the heart of Witchcraft as I know it. Mysticism takes priority over magic-suppressing false logic. The book’s passages on magic and freedom from oppression shift my cells. I want to convey a bit of that joyful empowerment.)

Part of Aradia’s immense resonance with rich Mysteries is one of its themes: The Goddess gave Witchcraft to the peasants as a tool to fight their oppressors; Witchcraft exists to set you free from both physical and spiritual tyranny.

The following quote from Aradia reveals the importance the text gives to peasants magically fighting for their rights: “Thou shalt bind the oppressor’s soul with power.” 1

As far as I know, Aradia contains the first printed version of The Charge of the Goddess. Let’s look at some of Aradia’s version. I will include preceding passages for context, to reveal that the Charge’s reference to freedom has a meaning that differs from modern Pagans’ usual interpretation:

“The true God the Father is not yours;
For I have come to sweep away the bad.
The men of evil, all will I destroy!

“Ye who are poor suffer with hunger keen,
And toil in wretchedness, and suffer too…
Ill the fate of all who do ye wrong!

“Now when Aradia had been taught…to work all Witchcraft, how to destroy the evil race of oppressors, she imparted it to her pupils and said unto them:

“…Whenever ye have need of anything…
Ye shall assemble…
She who fain would learn all sorcery…,
Then my mother will teach her…
And ye shall all be freed from slavery,
And so ye shall be free in everything;
And as the sign that ye are truly free,
Ye shall be naked in your rites.”

This passage conveys our modern understanding that the Goddess offers spiritual and sexual freedom. So it’s clear that some traditional Witches had this same wisdom. However, the passage firmly roots that esoteric and sensual freedom in the physical freedom of both personal safety and mundane self-care, which requires liberation from oppression.

Aradia recognizes no differentiation between High and Low Magic: When we take good care of ourselves on both the material and esoteric planes, we soon realize that the material is mystical.

Old-fashioned magic was always a tool to fight oppression. And it still can be.—Francesca De Grandis

What about Hexing?

Sitting in circle, freedom-fighting magic hits me so strongly that I remember it cannot be fully addressed in an essay. For one thing, it requires personal dialogue.

The power of freedom-fighting magic coils around me, making it plain that it would not be revealed through solely left-brain exposition and analysis in a theoretical overview. That approach is more suitable to academia than to an understanding of magic. So, I am touching on a few crucial aspects of magic for freedom here. This will imply layer after layer to the discerning reader.

One crucial aspect is hexes—magic intended to attack a specific target. Aradia exemplifies the old-fashioned Witchy wisdom that hexing is an honorable tool for redressing injustice. I am not a pacifist, so I am not against hexing. However, I do not seek battle; I fight only when and as needed. For example, I am often tempted to throw down a hex when I am emotionally overwrought. That would usually be a big mistake.

Hexing tends to be my last resort. Just as you can be injured easily when fighting physically, you are as likely to get badly hurt when you hex. Hexing is risky.

There are many ways to claim one’s rights. Spells for justice and protection are effective. In the mundane world, protests and lawsuits come to mind.

Throwing a proper hex is complex (as are many battle magics). A hex done improperly or when inappropriate costs the spell-caster and innocent bystanders great damage.

To show examples of hexes gone wrong, I will describe five instances in which a hex adds trouble instead of fixing a problem:

1) Often, hexes are reactions to imaginary threats. So, one might hex an innocent person, or someone who is annoying or inconvenient, but not dangerous. One of many possible damages from such a hex is that it might backfire and rebound against the spell-caster.

2) Other times, a minor menace exists but seems far greater to the threatened individual. If they think a hex is justified when it is not, good spirits might punish them.

3) Hexes made preemptively can be out of proportion. They have their place, but they are often thoughtlessly inhumane when they are unnecessary. Just as an unwarranted military drone strike outrages decent people, so an unnecessary hex should be odious to a magical practitioner and recognized as unjustified brutality.

4) Sometimes, executing a hex makes magicians subconsciously buy into the corrupt structure they hope to overcome: A system of dog-eat-dog scarcity. Subconsciously motivated, they perpetuate this societal atrocity. The culture of hate (or deadly indifference) for anyone outside one’s tribe (however tribe is defined) is fostered, which is not good for anyone.

Hexes are excellent tools, if thoughtful discretion allows alternatives.

Here is one alternative. Innate goodness and endless potential flow through all the fibers of existence and the human spirit. We can draw on those loving sources of abundance in cooperation with other people, instead of fighting with each other in a model of scarcity and hate.

5) A hex executed sloppily or in haste can rebound back to its maker.

I do not teach hexes publicly. Every situation is different and must be dealt with in great detail for a hex to be safe and effective. I mention hexes here for two reasons. The first is to help you feel empowered about fighting for your rights magically. There is too much shaming about using magic to take care of ourselves. Hexing is often portrayed as a selfish, petty, mean-spirited witch throwing a tantrum, when it is actually a powerful tool that can be used ethically.

Yes, hexing can be tantrum-driven, petty-minded, selfish, or mean-spirited, but that is an improper hexing, as opposed to your inherent right as a human to be a magical warrior!

Here’s the second reason I discuss hexes here with some detail: We humans tend to swing from one extreme to another. Going from no magical self-defense to careless or ruthless hexes is one such swing. It does not embody the magical freedom-fighting I advocate. Instead, as implied above, the swing further traps oneself and others in an oppressive system.

What if I Need Magical Help?

The Slander of Grassroots Pagan Ministers
Working on the Front Lines

The defamation and persecution of Witches has helped keep oppressed people from fighting back for millennia. This attempt to restrain us from using magic is part of a long history of class, racial, gender, and other oppression.

A notable example—even with the growth of the modern Pagan movement—is the belittlement of occult shop psychics, many of whom are legitimate grassroots ministers helping blue-collar people, people of color, and other disenfranchised individuals.

There is a long lineage of nearly invisible ministers working as occult-shop psychics, root doctors, Southern Spiritualists, and in other down-to-earth magical roles. These ministers practice within the framework of traditional Witchcraft’s fight for freedom.

Some Pagans promulgate the belief (commonplace in mainstream Paganism) that such pragmatic grassroots workers are frauds or are prostituting their psychic abilities by receiving payment for their work.

When the disrespect stems from ignorance, it is relatively easy to remedy. But the origin of the disrespect was classism and other “isms.” Oppressors concocted a lie to keep disenfranchised groups from claiming their power. This is harder to change.

Many Pagans insist they wouldn’t “dirty their hands” by doing readings (or, heavens! spell-casting) for money. Some individuals speak like this until they learn better. But the rest? The majority of people espousing this belief are building wealth in careers that foster systemic oppression. Their supposed moral high ground is disguised classism, racism, etc. (I differentiate between them and the individuals working under them—earning far less—because it’s the only way to keep food on the table.)

If magic-workers were in it for the money only, they’d choose other work. Most of them are on the front lines every day, counseling battered wives, runaways, and others in crisis. They empower their clients by doing spell work for them. Hard-working, ethical psychics are as worthy of their wage as any other specialist.

Even many Pagans do not know about the longstanding tradition of otherworldly spiritual advisors who quietly aid disenfranchised people. These ministers work to be of service, not for national praise.

Being paid allows them to serve community full-time and work for free when appropriate. And their practice seats them all day long in the company of the Gods, who provide earthy spiritual joy.

I feel blessed: I have been a part of this grassroots oral tradition for decades. Let me tell you a story, to make a point:

Many years ago, I had been guiding folks in a private practice, mostly by referral. Then I started working as a spiritual counselor in an occult shop. Suddenly I was on the front lines to a degree I had not been previously. People came for a consult because their daughter had died; or their 14-year-old son had gotten somebody pregnant; or their husband beat them.

After my first shocking day, I went home and threw out all my lofty New Age
abstractions. I threw out my Celtic cross spread, because it requires a
lengthy session. (A lot of the readings were only ten minutes long. After that my boss pressed the buzzer: Time’s up!)

I sat there, inventing very fast Tarot spreads that would tune me into the heart of a client’s issue(s) and the essence of the advice that they needed. I compiled a list of community resources, such as women’s shelters and teen crisis counselors. I honed my psychic skills so that I’d sense a client’s needs stat—remember, ten-minute sessions. (I was in the psychic’s equivalent of an intern’s training in an emergency ward.)

In other words, I had become a minister in the trenches.

I still am, decades later. That does not mean all my work was, or is, with trauma survivors. I spend a lot of time helping with more “everyday” concerns, such as creativity or marketing.

But all my work is on the frontlines because it’s down-to-earth support instead of approaches that serve an elite and suppress everyone else, which is one of the points of my story:

Who offers practical magic and approaches clients’ issues with Shamanic (aka “Witchy”) tools? Usually, it is the old-fashioned Witchy psychic, root doctor, Voodoo priestess, etc., who is often frowned upon, even in the Pagan community.

I am proud to be among these practitioners. I offer psychic readings, cast spells for whatever you want and need, and perform energy clearing of your home or other space.

“Respectable” modern Shamanic counseling and Pagan pastoral counseling tend to be based on psychological and Christian models. They are important, save lives, and counter oppression. They might also exemplify the fight for freedom. However, they are granted a legitimacy denied grassroots magical practitioners. 2

The defamation of Witches has helped keep oppressed communities from magically fighting back for millennia. A notable example is the belittlement of occult shop psychics, many of whom are legitimate grassroots ministers.—Francesca De Grandis

Here is another reason that the grassroots oral tradition of Pagan ministry remains nearly invisible. It tends to disappear as soon as anthropologists or other academics arrive. Academia is largely based in upper-class sensibilities, which create a mental and verbal framework in which oppression and remedies for it cannot be expressed.

Also, oral traditions can only be oral. They are as evanescent as the morning mist and fade as soon as you try to write down certain of their methods and underlying techniques.

For example, often its methodologies and principles (the macro) must be conveyed through the micro (the on-the-ground moment). The micro is adapted moment after moment, to each teacher and student, each practitioner and client, and each particular moment, by using intuition and common sense. Study, experience, and creativity also bring Shamanic wisdoms and rites that are necessary tools to make adaptations. This cannot be accurately represented through overviews and theories. When writing, I am not teaching my oral tradition.

The Whole World Consists of Magic

To understand the kind of magical freedom-fighting that I’m trying to convey in this article, understanding a bit more about traditional magic as a whole is important.

The following analogy provides a glimpse:

At first, a potpourri’s ingredients are distinctly separate from each other. There might be flowers, leaves, spices, essential oils, and a fixative. Once mixed, their combined scent evokes strong feelings and ideas. Just so, the rich magical world of traditional Witchcraft is a creative, lyrical potpourri–individual elements coming together into a sensory-rich blend that invokes Gods, miracles, and ecstasy. The blend is far more than the sum of its parts. Elements were blended by the art of witchcraft and the magic of the now. When you experience that, you meet the rich scope of traditional Witchery. That is why this article includes a potpourri of musings on the same topic and related ones.

The way to learn traditional craft at depth is not from written materials, but through personal study with a teacher in oral lessons. I am available for that. My newsletter will let you know about upcoming classes.

My childhood illustrates more about traditional craft as a whole. Born into an Italian Shamanic line that was previously in Celtic countries (talk about eclectic!), I learned magic con leche. So it was not magic as some people think of it: A separate, distinct part of existence or a field of study, academic or otherwise.

Instead, awareness of a magical world was ingrained into me, atom by atom, and into my everyday existence. So today, I experience all of existence as innately magical.

We needn’t choose between High or Low Magic, but can apply magic to any part of life, since magic is already a part of it.

Important aside: Saying that the entire world is magic does not mean I’m burying my head in the sand about evil. Some of the magic is good, some is bad. I choose the good magic. I fight, ignore, run past, or otherwise try to not be subjected to the bad.

In Closing: Multifaceted Magic

Witchcraft means different things to different people. It means endlessly different things to me. I experience it as a multifaceted lifestyle, one part of which is magically freeing oneself and others from oppression. There are many other parts. For example:

To me, magic is surrendering to a flow of beauty that encompasses me with its love. Magic is tuning into the season and celebrating it. Magic is feeding my Gods the power They need to turn the YearWheel. Magic is using a teaspoon as a wand, and stirring healing into a cup of tea before I drink it. Magic is the connection I feel with my students when we walk between the stars together. Magic is experiencing the joy of all these things and many more.

But unless magic is used to overcome oppression, some people will never get to have that joy.

There are many other beautiful aspects of traditional Witchery. It is not limited to the glimpses herein. But I hope this essay has loved your longing for star-drenched magic.

The circle is open. Go with freedom. Merry part and merry meet again.

Endnotes

1) I don’t agree with everything in Aradia, nor do I consider it infallible. For example, its passage “When a priest shall do you injury by his benedictions, ye shall do to him double the harm” is not necessarily good advice. I included passages with which I disagree for context.

Fighting for rights aside, I highly recommend Aradia. It cannot replace oral tradition, but it is as close as print can get to old-fashioned Witchcraft, in all its beauty, depth, mystery, ferocity, and inner strength.

2) Just as you would ask for recommendations for a plumber, electrician, or other skilled professional, it makes sense to ask around if you are looking to hire someone to do divination or a magical working for you. Avoid being credulous, gullible, or falling prey to grifters and con artists. Use your intuition and common sense. The same goes for seeking Pagan ministry that excludes magic to closely follow Christian or psychological models.

Francesca De Grandis is the bestselling author of Be a Goddess!. Now she is publishing less to focus on oral tradition: Long-distance Witchcraft classes, psychic readings, and other services. Fifty years as a full-time community Shaman inform her work. Francesca is a mystic whose Goddess spirituality combines otherworldly travel, practical magic, and down-to-earth wisdom. De Grandis developed Shamanic theories, rituals, and worldviews that have been a seminal influence on modern Paganism. Her home is ecstatic paradox.

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Enchanted Radio Flyer Wagon

A painting of a Radio Flyer wagon. It holds a hat, mandolin, cup of tea, plus apples and books. A birthday cake with one candle and a book titled “Radio Flyer” are on the ground

I am committed to life’s adventures. Everything I need for them is in the little red wagon in my above painting. And, look, the painting shows my road ahead, oh, the road ahead!

Here’s how the picture came about:

A Magical Red Wagon

A friend bought a wagon to haul books and art supplies from her car to the classroom in which she teaches.

Her wagon is very modern and grown-up. It is black canvas on a metal frame and folds up to fit in her car.

However, when she told me about it, the word wagon made me picture the wagons children had in my youth: A Radio Flyer. The image included a gleeful child pulling a red wagon.

This idea of sweet, childlike delight kept returning.

My friend’s enthusiasm about her new, very practical, grown-up tool was also childlike. Isn’t it wonderful to take delight in life’s little pleasures? They can appear wondrous. They add the magic of whimsy to my day.

I had to paint a picture.

Art helps me go on adventures. Here’s how:

Whimsy, Fun, and Magic Art

Whimsy, fun, and art are magic.

Whimsy, fun, and art are talismans:
They are lucky charms to make a good life,
amulets to overcome serious problems,
and talismans to wrap me in Divine love from Faerie Gods.
With all that, I have what I need for any adventure.

Whimsy, fun, and art help me embody my motto, Choose joy. Express yourself. Serve community. Trying to embody that motto is the best adventure I know.

The Fey Folk personify whimsy. No wonder I love Fey companionship.

Adventures can happen in the mundane or magical realm. I want to discuss otherworldly adventures. Read on.

Doors into Faerie Worlds
and an Enchanted Radio Flyer Wagon

Whimsy, fun, and art are doorways into Faerie worlds.

My magic wagon has everything I need for my next magical adventure:

* A magic hat that makes me invisible and is a talisman for good luck. I like being an invisible Faerie Witch sometimes.

* A cup of tea blessed by Fey Gods. The cup never empties. Its tea gives me spiritual and physical health.

* Magic apples from the Tree of Life. They give me power, insight, and joy.

* A book about the Radio Flyer wagon. It is an instruction manual in case the wagon breaks down in the other world. I am a practical Witch.

* A picture book of Art Deco masterpieces. Art is magic.

* My mandolin. Music is magic. When you express yourself, you choose joy and serve community. I enjoy making music for myself. And this music is magic that heals the Gods. I hope I will also get to make music for Faeries or other fellow travelers.

The cake next to the wagon has one candle to celebrate the birth of the universe, when all things were created. All things are one, so there’s one candle. I’ll eat a slice of the cake when I need to remember I’m part of the larger whole and it is part of me.

I will put a magic circle around the birthday cake before placing it in the wagon. The circle will protect the cake from getting squashed along the road. The magic circle will also keep the candle flame from being doused or setting my possessions on fire. I love believing in the impossible. And believing in the impossible is necessary for successful adventures, both worldly and otherworldly.

* Faerie Witch magic books. Those books came from my mind. Their magic spells remain in my memory, ready when needed to bless, guide, and protect me. The rituals help me to stay connected to the Gods no matter what and manifest my heart’s desires.

The magic books hold all wisdom and power. I surely cannot remember to add everything I will need in my cart. But when something is missing, it’ll be in the magic books. All wisdom and power is in each of us. Though I wrote these books, their magic is in all beings.

More Amulets and Other Tools
for Journeys in Faerie Worlds

Am I missing anything? Perhaps something else is needed to do practical spells during my magic adventure? Tell me in the comment field below. Ditto, if you want to find and share answers to my next questions.

Is something in the painting unseen, tucked behind the wagon’s other contents? If you suspect there is a hidden good luck charm, Druid’s stone, talisman to overcome awful problems, or other hidden magical tool, please tell me, so I can use it on my journey. Or is there a hidden practical tool that I might need for a mundane purpose?

If you went to a magic world, what would you need to bring that is not in my magic wagon?

I said that all knowledge and power are within, but I still ask friends what they think I might need. Here’s why: We may have everything within us, but that doesn’t mean we can access it. Power is a communal effort, instead of always a solitary quest. So I am open to suggestions.

Also, I ask you what you’d need in case it gives you an opportunity to delve inside for power you haven’t recognized in yourself, or have been forgetting to use.

I wish you could see better copies of the paintings. I reduced them so this page doesn’t take too long for you to load. But I am grateful because I get to use high-quality versions in handouts for my Witch classes. So mote it be!

A painting of a mandolin. Its turning pegs are flowers, and fanciful scrolls decorate its body

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Kitchen Magic, Faerie Witchcraft, Herbs, and Beauty

Kitchen Magic, Faerie Witchcraft,
Herbs, and Beauty

Beauty Is Practical Magic

Beauty in everyday items enchants them and blesses the home.

Art as Talismans

My goal as a painter is to create art pieces that are also talismans.

How to Make Magic Art

There are many parts to creating art pieces that are talismans. Two are especially relevant to this post:

1) The act of creating beauty invokes magic. I am not talking about beauty that is measured by sexist, classist, or other ridiculous standards. Beauty comes from the heart.

And art doesn’t have to be expensive to be beautiful. A child’s drawing can be gorgeous in its sincerity.

Art doesn’t have to be perfect. Far from it. I have a high standard for my art, but I love anyone’s work if it comes from their heart.

2) I pour magic into my art. I use different methods with every piece. Trying to go with the flow is one of those methods. When I try to go with the flow, magic envelops me and enchants whatever I am doing. Two examples of going with the flow: If painting a piece will take me years, I will do that. Or, if I come up with a simple design only, I accept that as exactly what is needed, instead of assuming an elaborate painting would be better.

Making Beautiful, Magical, Everyday Objects

My art ornaments my newsletters, blogs, and books, to bless the work.

For newsletters and blogs, I have to reduce my art to small files, which are not the best quality reproductions of the work. But I don’t let perfectionism keep me from adding what beauty I can to my interactions. Perfectionism does not encourage magic.

And I do get to share crisp, detailed reproductions of my art in my digital books, as well as in handouts for the Faerie Witch classes I teach.

Enchanted Herb Labels

Herbs for magic, herbs for physical health, herbs for culinary purposes, … I love herbs.

I love herb labels. I look for any opportunity to adorn everyday objects. Art fills my home. Beauty blesses my home, kitchen magic, and everything else that occurs where I live. Labeling jars of herbs is another chance to add beauty to my home. The magic I pour into the art for the labels adds more blessings.

How to Make Enchanted Herb Labels

1) When drawing the labels, don’t be a perfectionist. Faeries love all sincere attempts at art. Do what you can, even if you only have a few minutes, and Faeries will bless you with good luck.

For example, I’m good at painting, but I’m not good at lining up paintings in a digital file. The labels in the photo at the top of the page are all in one digital file. I eyeballed the layout. The paintings may not be exactly lined up with each other. That makes them harder to cut precisely. But they look nice even if not cut perfectly. And so I might find a Faerie tap-dancing on top of my herb jars.

2) Go with the flow by using what is on hand. For example, maybe you have cardstock that is a pretty color. No need to paint; Use it as is. Or plain white cardstock can look lovely if you have pretty stickers to put on it.

3) Part of going with the flow and using what’s on hand could be looking through your old artwork to see if any of it is useful. My art for the above labels is mostly from 2025. It comes from various projects, ranging from Witch class handouts to pieces drawn for my personal use.

If you look at the above labels, you’ll see a real variety of pictures. It’s fun for me to see different styles on my herb jars.

I digitally reduced each painting to label size. When reduced a lot, details can get lost, and lines can get fuzzy. But the labels are pretty anyway and are a happy magic for my kitchen cupboard. So don’t be a perfectionist when looking through your art for what would be suitable.

4) This is a practical tip: Do not glue herb labels to jars. Glue is hard to wash off later. Instead, I punch a hole in the corner of a tag, string a pretty cord through the hole, write the name of an herb on the back of the card, and tie the cord around the jar that has that herb.

Free Talismans and Rituals

My newsletters announce free talismans. For example, I sent a Faerie Witch newsletter offering a free, high-quality, digital file of the labels in the above photo. Then newsletter subscribers can print the labels on card stock to make their own labels.

The newsletters also announce free monthly rituals. The rituals are on teleconferences (group phone calls). Magic transcends time and space so, during phone calls, we can walk between the stars together. So much magic happens!

More magic giveaways are coming. To stay informed about free rituals, talismans, or other gifts, subscribe to my newsletter:

Click here for newsletter. Fairy freebies, upcoming events, and stardust.

Magic is transformative art and political resistance. The Old Gods empower the fight for freedom. Faerie Shamanism is the exact opposite of colonizer culture. Joy is political. Joy is resistance. Choose joy. Express yourself. Serve community. —Francesca De Grandis, bestselling author of Be a Goddess. Shamanic guide teaching effective, practical magic. Faerie bard & painter

Posted in Art, Writing, and Music, Community, Giveaways and Contests, Spirit, The Whole Thing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Magic Fun for Eight Weeks Starts Dec 2025

Weekly Magic Fun
that Transforms You and Your Life: Come to Parties in the Faerie Realm

Straight-Ahead Fun that Transforms You and Your Life

Parties in the Faerie Realm Begin December 9.

Every week will be a different enchanted gala.

How It Will Work:

From Beginning to End, a Party Can Be Faerie Magic

During our first meeting, I’ll explain how an entire party can be Faerie magic. The main thing to know is:

Each week’s party will be a guided journey in the Fey realm. For example:
* A tea party with Faerie Gods
* A feral cabaret where wild spirits entertain us
* A flight with Dragons

And when the Fey Folk put on a Renaissance Faire, you know it’s going to be a fabulous fantasy adventure. That will be one of our magic fetes.

The other thing to know now: I provide ecstatic experiences that are life-changing. Mind you, I also lead people through the hard work of transformation. But change doesn’t always have to be difficult. Revelry can be equally transformative. This event is sacred play that magically improves your life, in whatever ways you need: Expect longed-for changes, inside and out.

To keep fighting the good fight, taking care of our loved ones, and reaching cherished goals, we need fun.

We need sacred fun. The original drama was ritual, with good reason. Sacred entertainment connects us to the Divine, rearranges our psyches, and shifts our entire lives. It is our human heritage. It is our heritage as magical beings. It is like life’s blood. So I’m offering magic parties.

Decades in the entertainment business taught me skills for producing entertaining events. I will combine that expertise with Shamanic techniques to create our sacred revelry. Its light-hearted pleasure will, paradoxically, reach Shamanic depths. Empowering fun!

Old-Fashioned Wishes
for Whatever You Want

Making wishes is also our heritage. Along with the transformative nature of every party, each one will include a special portion in which I lead you in an old-fashioned wish for whatever you desire. Old-style witchery works.

My De Grandis ancestors,
thank you for my Faerie Witch heritage
—a lineage of the Goddess’ love:

a down-to-earth heritage of power and joy
that free my wild, fierce heart.

Fun Is Practical Magic

The Tlingits are an indigenous tribe of the northwest. Forgive me if I remember Malcolm Margolin’s writing about them incorrectly: In ancient times, more than half of the tribe’s winter schedule was filled with ritual and social engagements, as opposed to seasons in which the amount of work almost excluded ritual and social interactions.

I don’t know if the modern world allows the Tlingit their old winter ways. It’s near impossible for almost anyone now. That’s terrible. Our very cells need sacred fun. And all the more this time of year.

It is foreign to how most people live now. Most individuals don’t realize how much they need ongoing winter festivities until they experience the difference it makes.

Most of us can’t have the amount of winter fun some ancient peoples had. However, once a week makes a huge difference. So I’m offering sacred revelry weekly.

Though I have experienced the difference, I needed a reminder: I was exhausted after a challenging few weeks. I hadn’t socialized during them. Then a friend asked me to go out the next night. I received her email late at night and was too brain-dead to respond coherently. But I wrote back, “I’m too exhausted to write coherently but, yes, let’s go.”

As soon as I sent that email, I was filled with energy. The next evening, I was still spent yet paradoxically energized. I somehow pushed myself to the social event. It healed me from those rough couple of weeks.

We need a lot of tribal fun to avoid the winter blahs. There’s a human need for magic parties. Yay, I am saying we need parties! Fun is practical.

More Magic

In addition to our sacred revelry, magic will simmer in my cauldron for you: A spell for good luck, protection, and both mystical and worldly power.

How To Attend

Call the event phone number that you receive after enrolling. The group meets by teleconference. No special technology is needed.

Schedule

There will be eight parties, on Tuesdays from 6:00 to 7:00 pm PST, starting December 9 and going through February 10.

Reserve the usual hour on Tuesday Feb 17 for a makeup session in case I’m unavailable for a planned meeting.

Our adventures will occur on consecutive weeks except we’ll skip December 23 and 30 (Christmas and New Year’s weeks).

Enrollment

The total cost is $200 a month for two months. Your carrier might charge you for the calls.

I’m offering these rituals at my usual price despite my additional work:

I’ve developed eight rituals that are also parties. Creating Shamanic rituals or fun events takes work. Developing events that are both takes even more work. But I’m proud of my plans for light-hearted fun that is also a profound Shamanic experience.

Your cost is also lower than the price of eight tickets for gala affairs on the mundane plane. And you won’t have to leave home, drive, or do any preparation. I’ll have everything ready for you in the magical realms. Being your otherworldly hostess in Faerie will fill my heart.

Enrollment ends midnight December 3.

Enroll securely through PayPal with the subscribe button below:





Phone me if you want to discuss a scholarship, semi-scholarship, trade, or payment plan, or if you have questions about the event.

A few days before our first meeting, you receive an email with the event phone number and other details. Refunds unavailable.

Join me for a wild magic tea party and other life-changing encounters with the Fey Folk.

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A Safety Guide for Empaths

A Safety Guide for Empaths:

How to Protect Yourself from
Toxic Energy & Emotional Overload

This post is an in-depth guide for empaths. And if you’d like to contribute ideas, add them in the comments below the post. Thank you.

Table of Contents

If Table of Contents links don’t work, scroll down the page for any information.

What Is An Empath?

The Challenges of an Empath

Wearing a Fluorite Necklace as a Shield

Where I Learned
that Fluorite Necklaces Protect Empaths

Attribution Makes Magic Work

Protection for Empaths Is Important

Proof that Fluorite Necklaces Protect Empaths

Sensitivity Is a Gift from the Divine

An Affirmation for Empaths

An Abundance of Emotions

More Situations That Are Hard for Empaths

Large Gatherings

Environments that Are Stressful for Everyone

Toxic Environments

Healthy Work Environments that Can Cause Overload

Empaths Need Boundaries

Effective Boundaries

Combining Magical and Worldly Boundaries

More about the Complexity of Boundaries

Internalizing Someone Else’s Energy to Heal Them

Why I Wear a Fluorite Necklace Every Day

Fluorite’s Energy Is Sweet and Harmonious

Fluorite Does Not Shut Down All My Empathy

Why I Own Fluorite Bracelets

Holiday Stress and Empaths

Where to Buy Your Fluorite Necklace

Your Link and Coupon Code for a 20% Discount!

Otter Spirit

Unboxing My Otter Spirit Package

The Fairy Gods Adore You


What Is An Empath?

An empath is an individual who experiences within themself someone else’s emotions—sadness, anger, joy, etc.,—and other energies. Examples of other energies are physical pain, spiritual openness to life’s beauty, and the lovely physical rush that finishing an important project brings.

An empath is also called a sensitive. Sensitivity is a wonderful ability. More about the upsides of empathic power momentarily. But first:

The Challenges of an Empath

Sometimes, empaths are burdened by other people’s energy. Experiencing someone else’s pain or anger can be too much. I’ll use anger as an example:

An angry person in the presence of an unprotected empath might become inexplicably calm, while the empath finds themself suddenly furious for no apparent reason. The empath has taken on the other person’s anger.

Empaths can become overwhelmed in large crowds or near someone who’s in crisis. Even an interaction on the phone might flood an empath with emotions and other energy.

Wearing a Fluorite Necklace as a Shield

A fluorite necklace protects empaths by shutting down the empathy, to a more comfortable degree.

It can’t be a fluorite pendant. Fluorite beads must be strung close together, all around the neck. Think of a strand of pearls, with no space between them, except for a knot’s worth. Use chips, beautiful carved fluorite, or any other fluorite beads.

To cleanse the necklace’s energy, put it in the freezer for fifteen minutes.

Where I Learned
that Fluorite Necklaces Protect Empaths

Decades ago, my friend Uma channeled a lot of the above material about empaths, fluorite, and necklaces. I added my theories. For example, I contributed the idea of taking on someone else’s energy and physical experiences as opposed to only their emotions. I also changed the wording somewhat.

Uma’s material entered common lore, without being attributed to her. This is unfortunate. Uma owned a San Francisco occult shop called Tools of Magic. She channeled a great deal of remarkable magic that was passed down. Her shop was a school, haven, and launching pad for many Pagans. She cleared the path for today’s Paganism. Uma, after all you accomplished, rest in peace.

Attribution Makes Magic Work

Taking other people’s work without their permission is oppression. Power to the people means individuals have the right to decide what is done with the fruits of their labor. This includes their ideas.

Honoring sources, on the other hand, makes magic work. I honor my sources by passing on material only with permission and attributing the source. My fluorite necklace works. Yaya!

If you would like to share this post’s material, in part or in whole, I’d love you to share the link to this essay (instead of copy and pasting the material). That honors my decades of developing the article’s comprehensive theories on empaths. If you want to share this material in another way, please contact me, so we can discuss it. Thank you!

Protection for Empaths Is Important

The majority of people attracted to my work are empaths. I’ve given all the above information to my students for decades. It is even more important lately.

Luckily, I’ve had more thoughts on it. Plus, I have more resources for you. So let’s go:

Proof that Fluorite Necklaces Protect Empaths

One of the most important things I can tell you in this blog is to wear a fluorite necklace. So I will talk about it a lot.

I trust anecdotal evidence. A large number of my students and I saw significant improvements in our quality of life after we began consistently wearing fluorite necklaces.

Sensitivity Is a Gift from the Divine

Sensitivity is beautiful. But the trait is often condemned. For example, the remark You’re so sensitive is usually an insult.

The phrase has been used repeatedly to shame sensitives for a trait they deserve to take pride in.

Generally speaking, too much sensitivity does not exist. The idea of it, exceptions aside, is almost always oppressive and hurts not only empaths but also everyone else. I can’t imagine a situation in which You’re so sensitive is an accurate description or useful response. For example, let’s say someone’s reaction is disproportionate to the situation at hand. Perhaps they are subconsciously responding to a traumatic situation in their past. They are having an appropriate response to previous trauma, need healing, and You’re so sensitive will only shame them and interfere with healing. Or let’s say someone intentionally overreacts so they have a justification to lash out. (This intention might be subconscious.) You’re so sensitive won’t stop the abuse.

An Affirmation for Empaths:

I am proud of being so sensitive.
Sensitivity is a gift from the Divine.
Empathy is wise, practical, and powerful.
I am proud of being so sensitive.

Your sensitivity is a gift to you and those around you. Some empaths experience the following positive aspects of sensitivity:

Sensing what other people feel makes someone more likely to be compassionate.

Empaths are aware of what’s beneath the surface. So they can boost a person’s confidence by praising them for wonderful traits that are not obvious. Sensing more than someone’s facade also increases awareness of danger and quickens responses to people’s needs.

Unfortunately, most empaths have been penalized for sensitivity. For one thing, they are subjected to society’s opinion that sensitivity is a foolish, trifling women’s delusion. So it is easy to invalidate or repress your ability. Then, you might not have the experiences in my above examples. For help drawing on your otherworldly awareness, contact me for spiritual counseling, Pagan style. I also call this Shamanic counseling, pastoral counseling, or a psychic reading because all these terms are accurate.

Empathy is wise, practical, powerful, and not gender specific. I only gave two examples of its importance. There are many more. I won’t go into them here because this blog focuses on protecting empaths. However, when we are protected, we can use our empathy better.

An Abundance of Emotions

If you are a sensitive, experiencing someone else’s abundance of emotions can be too intense. Their ability to feel deeply is wonderful. I want to be around people like that. They’re delightful!

I’m like them. I have an abundance of my own feelings. Theirs on top of mine can be too much to feel sometimes. So I shield myself as an empath.

Someone’s abundance of feelings might be happy ones—joy, excitement, celebration, connectivity, etc. Or it might consist of disparate emotions that range from anger to joy, and from grief to celebration. In either case, being around that individual can be overwhelming and otherwise distressing for an empath. The same goes for a group’s range of emotions, even happy ones.

As a talisman, the necklace shields your empathy so you stop experiencing so much of what other people are going through. I choose to surround myself with people who feel deeply, so I wear my necklace.

More Situations That Are Hard for Empaths

Large Gatherings

A large gathering like a birthday party, business conference, or sci-fi convention can devastate an empath, leaving them befuddled and wondering why, until they learn that they are suffering from an emotional and energy overload.

Environments that Are Stressful for Everyone

Some places are particularly stressful for anyone. For example, fear, anxiety, hope, and despair fill doctors’ offices and courthouses. So much energetic uproar can be a nasty experience for a sensitive.

Times of national crises can also hit empaths hard. In the same vein, empaths might feel the ongoing turmoil of disenfranchised groups.

A situation doesn’t have to be all bad to be stressful. Doctors’ offices are places of healing. Political demonstrations can be scary, even when all goes well.

Toxic Environments

The insane holiday dinner, the badgering employer, … you get the idea.

Healthy Work Environments that Can Cause Overload

Some good, fulfilling jobs lend themselves to emotional and energy overload. Think of a counselor, psychic healer, or taxi driver. If you have this sort of a job, shield yourself at work.

Wearing your fluorite necklace in the situations listed above can make all the difference.

Empaths Need Boundaries

Boundaries can be complex and confusing for anyone. Empaths might have additional concerns.

For one, empathy helps us have compassion. There’s a prevalent misconception that boundaries cannot go hand-in-hand with compassion.

No matter how much you care about a person, you are not obliged to take responsibility for their feelings. For example, let’s say someone near you is angry but is suppressing it or otherwise not taking responsibility for it. And you suddenly feel inexplicably furious. If you suspect you have internalized this person’s rage, remind yourself it’s not your responsibility to play it out for them by feeling it, verbalizing it, or otherwise acting on it.

And wear your necklace the next time you’re around them.

Or wear it all the time if you tend to play out other people’s feelings.

Doing work that someone else should tend to is not compassionate. It devalues the person’s ability to step up to the plate and blocks an opportunity for them to do so.

Effective Boundaries

Boundaries are not always statements. For an empath, the necklace makes a boundary for you. You don’t always need to say anything.

The following is oversimplified, but bear with me. Most of the time, when someone states a boundary, they’re not making the boundary. They’re:

making demands that will probably not be met, instead of taking care of themselves

grimly committing to a course of action that they don’t follow

isolating

continuing or beginning a situation that nurtures their resentments

drawing an unnecessary line in the sand that provokes retaliation

or otherwise hurting themselves and the person with whom they are speaking.

Any of that can happen without the speaker’s awareness.

Most of the time, a boundary is an action. It is going about your life, taking care of yourself, and treating the other person(s) involved gently, kindly, courteously, supportively—and serenely, instead of grinding your teeth.

This ends the oversimplification.

If boundaries elude you, or you can’t make them kindly, book a psychic reading with me.

Boundaries and compassion go hand-in-hand. Yes, sometimes it’s the compassion of a sword. But most of the time, no.

Combining Magical and Worldly Boundaries

Responsibility for my well-being requires metaphysical means combined with actions on the worldly plane. So I combine a fluorite necklace with mundane boundaries.

More about the Complexity of Boundaries

Boundaries are complex in a world filled with people who don’t take full responsibility for their ideas, emotions, and actions, and expect others to do the intellectual, emotional, and physical work that keeps things afloat.

Their expectations might be subconscious. And no one can be perfect about taking responsibility for their wrongs. Still, do not let anyone thrust their blame, shame, or anything else they should own onto you. If you need help with this, Shamanic counseling guides you through the rocky, complex waters of boundaries.

Internalizing Someone Else’s Energy
to Heal Them

The Gods Give You a Gift and a Choice,
Not a Mandate

I imagine some empaths heal people by playing out their feelings. Doing that is a choice, not a mandate.

Providing that service without hurting oneself or the client requires more abilities than empathy. Safety also probably requires training, some of which would be quite specific.

Empathy is a valuable tool for me during a psychic reading. For one thing, it shows me something of what my client is experiencing. But I don’t cling to my client’s emotions, physical sensations, and other energies that I’m feeling from them. In other words, I don’t play it out for them; I feel it long enough for it to inform the reading and then let it pass.

Why I Wear a Fluorite Necklace Every Day

I wear a fluorite necklace all day, almost every day. Here’s one reason:

The world is filled with people. People are filled with emotions. That’s a lot of emotions I might be picking up, even when I’m alone in my apartment.

When I go out on walks, the same holds true, if not truer.

Does my empathy work when I’m asleep at night? Who knows?! I want pleasant dreams so I wear my necklace to bed.

Fluorite’s Energy Is Sweet and Harmonious

Fluorite is an easy gem to wear: Its energy is gentle and smooth, like a summer brook rippling through Christopher Robin’s woods. So you probably won’t need to make any adjustments to wearing fluorite.

Many gemstones make me feel terrible. For example, some have a harsh rapid vibration that irritates my nervous system. Finding a gemstone that I can wear every day like fluorite is remarkable. Only ten gems suit me that much. I own a lot of them, LOL.

The first year or so that I wore the necklace, I rarely took it off. The exception was when I did a psychic reading for someone other than myself, I had to remove the necklace. For one thing, part of my work involves sharing with my clients what my otherworldly senses perceive about them. Empathy is one of those senses.

Eventually, I was able to keep the necklace on during a session and still sense what I needed, to do my best for my client.

I’ve worn fluorite necklaces for decades. So I might have forgotten needing to take it off more often at first. In any case, no big adjustments were necessary.

Fluorite Does Not Shut Down All My Empathy

I still feel empathy when I wear fluorite. Speaking of memory, I wonder if I still felt empathy when I was first started wearing the fluorite. I suspect it is a permeable ward so it lets in what you need.


Why I Own Fluorite Bracelets

I suggest starting with a necklace and eventually trying a bracelet.

A fluorite bracelet became an effective shield for me, only after I’d worn a necklace for years.

Bracelets help me wear fluorite every day by giving me fashion options. Don’t let anyone tell you that fashion is shallow. Personal adornment is sacred.

Everyone’s different. Perhaps a bracelet will work for you right away. I can only tell you what worked for me. Maybe use your intuition to see what suits you.

Holiday Stress and Empaths

How to Stay Sane during the Holidays if You’re a Sensitive

Holidays can be difficult for anyone, let alone empaths. Crises increase during the holidays. Empaths can pick up that traumatic energy.

Even if there’s no trauma, energy is flying around and emotions are going every which way. Overwhelming!

Fall and winter holidays are not the only potentially stressful ones. Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, any holiday can cause a riot.

Make the holidays easier. Buy a fluorite necklace as an early holiday gift for yourself. You’ll be in better shape for your loved ones.

Where to Buy Your Fluorite Necklace

This post’s photographs show a lovely necklace and bracelet from Otter Spirit.

I view fluorite jewelry as working tools for a sensitive soul. I like Otter Spirit’s simple designs because they suit most outfits. Sacred artifacts can be simple and powerful.

I make talisman necklaces and wear one of them almost every day. They tend to be elaborate. Simple fluorite jewelry is likely to look nice with them. Ditto with an elaborate blouse.

Otter Spirit has reasonable prices. Even better, receive a discount:

Your Link and Coupon Code for a 20% Discount!

To receive a 20% discount,
click this special link,
then use this coupon code: FRANCESCA20

Otter Spirit

I’d been wanting to finally post this essay.

Then Otter Spirit asked for a collaboration. It felt so right! I don’t usually accept offers of magical tools in exchange for writing about them. For one thing, the offers tend to seem sleazy. But Otter Spirit was different.

Andrada, Otter Spirit’s PR Associate who contacted me, demonstrated sincere warmth. She was also respectful without fawning and promptly addressed my concerns without equivocation.

I went to their site and, lo, they had fluorite necklaces. Synchronicity! It was guidance to post this piece.

The easy, good energy when working with Andrada bodes well for you as a customer.

Unboxing My Otter Spirit Package

I opened the shipping box to see beautiful gift boxes. Inside each was a pouch containing a piece of jewelry. There was a lovely fluorite necklace and bracelet.

Pretty packaging makes me feel like the sender is treating me like a person instead of a sale. This is a seller who will care about you.

That personal connection is important. I want sacred artifacts from a seller who respects both mystical tools and the buyer.

The Fairy Gods Adore You

You are a child of ancient Gods. They think you are wonderful, exactly as you are. They want you to be good to yourself. Take care of you now.

Posted in Giveaways and Contests, Spirit, The Whole Thing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

New Faerie Magic Course 2025

Lessons about
the De Grandis
Faerie Shaman
Oracle Deck

Cards for Divination, Talismans, and More

This Course Is also a Shamanic Journey and Training
to Transform Your Life

This training, based on my new oracle deck, might be my most significant contribution since my book Be a Goddess!. That’s saying something because I only develop significant projects, and I always think big.

I don’t expect to give this training again.

What Is the
De Grandis Faerie Shaman
Oracle Deck?

Photos of all the cards are in this post, starting with the above picture.

The deck consists of forty-three cards to use:
* for divination
* as talismans
* sacred artifacts in rituals
* writing prompts
* and prompts for other art

Each card is my original full-color Shamanic art.

The deck is available only to course participants. You receive digital files to print and cut, to make your own De Grandis Faerie Shaman Oracle Deck.

The deck has gorgeous detail and clarity that do not show in this post. The site’s graphics are blurred.

Don’t have a color printer or card-stock? Print black-and-white on regular paper. Hearth art is heart art! I had a high standard for the cards’ art. But that’s different from perfectionism. So make your deck by printing whatever way you can, and then cut up the prints whatever way you can.

Once you are in the course, you receive instructions that make creating your deck even easier.

The Instruction Manual

To supplement the weekly class meetings, you receive an ebook of 17,000 words (at last count. I am doing the final edits now).

The text provides instructions for using the deck, gives meanings for each card, and conveys Fey Mysteries.

I enchanted the book. So it brings a reader into Fey realms, as well as helps them reach worldly goals.

The Cards’ Many Powers

Here is an overview of the cards’ many magics. You will learn to use them for:

Divination. You can receive Divine guidance about both spiritual and worldly concerns. You will learn to use the deck in ways that develop your intuition and other psychic abilities. After the course, using the deck continues to strengthen your psychic skills. The cards give practical and mystical advice. This helps you be head-in-the-clouds with feet-on-the-ground.

Amulets. Each card is a talisman that bestows specific blessings. I channeled a diverse collection of relevant amulets to help improve your whole life—I’ve worked on this project for lifetimes. My process was not only long but also multifaceted because there are more ways you can use the cards:

Sacred artifacts. The cards function as altar pieces for purposes of worship or as foci for rituals and meditations. As altar pieces—and talismans—the cards also provoke intuitive insights, psychic development, move the energy in and around you to happy results, and draw good luck.

Writing prompts or other art prompts. These oracle cards nurture creativity and otherwise help you express yourself.

We will have time to focus on all of the above powers.

Whatever way you use the cards, practical magic helps improve your life.

Powerful Lessons Can Be Manageable

The lessons won’t overwhelm you, despite the cards’ many uses.

We’ll explore the deck’s uses bit by bit. Each step of the way, you receive a powerful but manageable amount. Instead of being overwhelmed, you reap benefits from each lesson. Benefits range from serenity to increased prosperity. This easy step-by-step training lets the cards help you right from the start, and allows you to learn all their magic deep down instead of superficial knowledge.

Then the deck is in your magical toolbox to use for the rest of your life.

Learning Shamanic Tools Traditionally

I teach oracle work in a traditional manner. You will learn how to use the cards:

in oral tradition lessons. They allow worldly empowerment and mystical joy to come quickly. If you have not experienced my oral tradition, here is a bit about it.

through experiential lessons. Instead of only acquiring theory, you learn in your cells and are transformed.

in a Shamanic journey. We go to Fey realms. They increase psychic and other magical abilities, as well as spiritual and worldly strengths. This is a classical Shamanic training.

led by a master of divination, psychic development, and other magics. So the training can be both powerful and safe.

Let’s expand on all this:

You receive more than just an explanation of the cards. Working together will be a Shamanic journey together, into the world the cards represent, the world my students and I live in as Third Road travelers.

Third Road is the name of the body of Shamanic work I developed. I live in my own world. I created its cosmology, magical energy, and other aspects. All of them empower me to reach my dearest goals.

You receive experiential lessons: I invite you to travel in my world with me. We go on an enchanted adventure. This is a personal way to teach, requiring small groups.

In other words: I welcome you into my soul. That is how personal teaching is for me.

I commit to your welfare. You have an important, powerful world of your own. I help you build the most wonderful world possible. I love to visit your world.

In Third Road classes, we build and live within a shared world. You could also call it an environment or matrix.

We study embraced by a matrix of power, sanity, and fey enchantment. This environment also nurtures your magical style and strengthens worldly efforts. It improves your whole life.

One way we build the matrix is by fostering real relationships. For example, you receive personalized lessons about the cards, the Shamanic journey, and your life goals. You also receive direct spiritual transmissions in every meeting. Those transmissions come from my heart.

The deep, powerful Shamanic training is safe because I carefully hone a curriculum, lead carefully, am well-trained, and provide personalized guidance. A major problem is unlikely, but if it does occur, I am available to rectify the situation.

In-Depth Study of
Faerie Magic and Fey Cosmology:
In-Depth Power

Our Shamanic adventure will echo ancient initiations into magical and worldly power and gorgeous Mysteries. This post outlines many of those powers.

The Shamanic journey also helps you use intuition and your marvelous common sense to explore the cards. Between that and such powerful cards, there’s no end to the guidance, power, insights, and other gifts you can receive over the years by using the cards.

Oral tradition, my soulful teaching, and the matrix in which we study will enchant your deck, adding to its power. (If your deck becomes worn out, and you print a new one, it will be enchanted, too.)

The cards, their titles, and the descriptions I give of each card add up to extensive power, extensive cosmology, extensive magic. The cards, titles, and descriptions are:

* rituals
* magical techniques
* enchanted paintings
* poems
* talismans
* affirmations
* Faerie tales

All of these are based on the cosmology (world) I developed for decades. Then for a few years, I painted the cards’ art.

I could write a book about each card. This reminds me of how Be a Goddess! covered so much ground yet went deeply into it all experientially instead of giving a mere theoretical overview. I so wanted to create this deck for us.

It was hard to title. Any name was too limited because there’s so much to this deck. Here are a few of the many titles I considered. Each one accurately described some of the deck’s powers:

The Magic of Love Deck
Dark Goddess Oracle Deck
The Faerie Mysticism Deck
The Faerie Magic Deck
The Shamanic Journey Cards
Chaos Magic Divination Cards
Goddess Oracle Deck
Faerie Goddess Divination
The Loving Darkness
Faerie Oracle
Faerie Witch Divination
Dragon Magic Cards

I settled on De Grandis as part of the deck’s name to help solve the dilemma in two ways:

1) The Goddess is the source of everything. In Her are all things. Honoring Her as the deck’s source recognizes that the deck encompasses many magics. It holds Her far-reaching powers. But we do not honor Gods unless we attribute the humans the Gods use to convey Their gifts. I am the human source of this deck, so my name is on it.

2) My De Grandis ancestors connected with and maintained a Fey flow of power. It began when the first Shaman met the Goddess. It is an energy that carries all the Goddess’ powers and honors that She has all powers. This deck draws on and conveys that stream. De Grandis in the deck’s name honors Her as source by honoring my ancestors as human channels of Her powers.

Honoring a source creates effective safe magic. Safety is more important when using powerful cards in an equally powerful Shamanic training.

Extensive Power:
Reach All Your Goals

The course covers a lot of ground. You can expect:

A enormous amount of useful information. It is relevant to real life. Even the mysticism helps you reach worldly goals. Head in the clouds, feet on the ground.

Magic for every wish. Pure power. Far-reaching applications. I don’t want anyone to waste time or money. So if I’m leading a long training, its magic is going to have endless uses.

Tools for inner change that help you improve your whole life by strengthening you spiritually and empowering you to develop the worldly skills you want. Transformations begin in the first lesson and can make an important difference immediately.

Lessons to carry into the future because they will continue to build success in all areas. Their power will even shift to match your needs over time.

A History of
the De Grandis Faerie Shaman
Oracle Deck

Creating this course significantly echoes my writing the book Be a Goddess!:

Originally, Be a Goddess! was meant to be a lightweight guide to a Pagan lifestyle. After writing half of the original draft, and revising it a lot, I reviewed my progress. I was surprised and horrified. This was no lightweight text. The manuscript put its reader in a cauldron of change. Immense power flowed through the pages.

I felt I could not publish it. I believed it led a person through so much transformation that they’d need someone to personally guide them through it. I told my Gods, “I will burn this manuscript if you want.”

Be a Goddess! in total took eight years to write. So half of a draft represented a huge amount of work. But I felt I must be willing to burn it.

Another reason I was shocked is that I had taken great care to make a light guide, and I’m capable of writing what I intend. But something Divine must’ve subconsciously guided me, as well as made me overlook that I was forging a cauldron of change.

I told the story to an elder who feels very little should be published. He said, “Publish it!”

What?

I called another elder who believes nothing should be published. She said, “Publish it!” What?

I respected my elders. However, I did not want to betray my ethics or hurt readers. I meditated and brainstormed for months.

During that period, someone told me they wished they’d had a book like the one I was writing because they’d almost died trying to train themselves.

Still, I could not use her experience as a justification for irresponsibly sending this magic into the world through a book.

My ethics are not a belief system. They are not in my mind. They’re in my cells.

I had to go deep inside for months to transform myself. Plus, a friend showed me how some of my concerns about the reader were overly responsible.

Bit by bit, I figured out how to make the book safe and still as powerful.

It became one of the most powerful texts about Faerie magic and Goddess spirituality, as well as one of the safest.

Rewrites also ensured the reader a gentle experience that was nonetheless gorgeously mystical, manageable lessons instead of overwhelming ones, and incredible improvements in the reader’s life.

Note the similarities between that story and the following one. Commonalities might be in spirit instead of exact details:

I painted some art pieces as personal meditations for myself. I was exploring core aspects of my path. Then I realized the paintings, along with other art I’d created, could be a Third Road deck.

Third Road material is what I find in my soul and bones, by and large. So it makes sense that what I was creating for myself would find its way into the Third Road body of material. The deck holds many of the underlying principles of my life and teachings.

Also, I wanted people who study Third Road to have their own deck, one in keeping with the Third Road work they do and congruent with the Third Road worldview.

I love a lot of decks. But my students—and I—deserve one empowered by the understandings we have—or will have—of Third Road principles, and that expand on them.

Bit by bit, I painted all the deck’s pictures.

Originally, the deck was only for my longtime students. It is highly advanced Faerie Shamanism. But, as was the case with Be a Goddess!, friends and Gods intervened. This time it was not my elders, but two of my initiates, Jenelle Campion and Kat Crab. These friends changed my mind. So I offer the deck in this course.

Once again, I had to visit my depths for months because my ethics are cellular. I dived deep into prayer, ritual, the deck, and its instruction book. And I intuited that Jenelle and Kat were right. But logic still said that releasing the deck to people who had not worked with me long-term didn’t make sense. For one thing, I didn’t see how the deck could be both powerful and safe for them.

Over time, I was able to logically back my intuition. This was a lengthy process because I didn’t want a glib justification.

I devoted myself to many revisions of the book and curriculum. They remained as powerful but also safe for people who had not read my books or studied with me.

Developing the deck and its book took years. Then work on releasing the deck and book in this course took more years. There is still work to do, right up to the moment the course begins. It is like Be a Goddess!, an ambitious project that took years. It is worth it. Because it’s going to help participants so much.

I worked on the project off and on. It kept getting put on the back burner for various reasons. Perhaps the Gods delayed it until I could see that the deck was not just for my initiates, long-time students, and me. Sometimes I put the project aside so my subconscious could figure out how to make the project powerful and safe. Bit by bit.

Now lessons about the deck imbue them with true power that suits both beginners and long-time practitioners.

Now, the course and deck foster gentle experiences that are nonetheless mystical, gorgeous, and fulfilling. The training provides manageable lessons instead of overwhelming ones, even for beginners.

Course participants can experience incredible improvements in their lives.

Doing it right meant spending about a decade on the deck, the same way I spent eight years on Be a Goddess!.

What the Deck Offers Longtime and New Students

Whether you are new to my work or know it well, this is the course to take:

You receive experiential lessons that foster immense transformation of self and life, at a rapid pace that is possible when oral tradition is taught by a master, in a small group.

Studying in oral tradition lets your use of the cards go to the depths of Third Road magic.

The lessons help you experience the cards and lessons in your own way, because they meet you where you are now, to provide what you need right now.

The card descriptions, the Shamanic journey we take in the course, and future life journeys that the cards help you take create experiences unique to you and foster the power you need.

Third Road is not a tradition you need to leave to do your own thing. These cards and lessons help you draw on Third Road lineage to unfold your power and continue to do so no matter how long you use them.

If this is your first course with me:

You are guided by a teacher who knows how to help you go deep right away without getting in over your head.

When you use the cards for divination and talismans, you quickly make magical and spiritual connections with Third Road principles and energies that have helped experienced practitioners—and will help you—reach your worldly and otherworldly goals.

You are using cards that are enchanted and bestow good luck—without you having to think about it—by generations of De Grandis witches’ use of Fey magic.

You come to this course with your own wisdom, strengths, and life experiences. The deck makes sense to you in ways you need. The lessons foster this.

If you have studied with me:

You go deeper than ever.

When you use the cards for divination and talismans, they are magically empowered—without you having to think about it—by your previous Third Road experiences.

You have a deck congruent with that previous work, supporting it, augmenting it, celebrating it!

The cards help you maintain magical and spiritual connections with Third Road principles and energies that have helped you and will continue to help: They will keep unfolding, help your unique powers grow more, give you good luck, and empower you to achieve your current worldly and otherworldly goals.

The deck is not a repetition of my earlier work. You’ll discover new aspects of the Third Road, new facets of material previously learned, and, as always, support for your own unique perspective and powers.

The card descriptions and lessons create power and experiences unique to you. For one thing, you are unique. For another, the lessons honor and build on mastery you have developed. You have your own wisdom, strengths, and life experiences. The deck will make sense to you in ways you need. For yet another thing, you will experience the course as built on a foundation of previous Third Road studies. As always, my experiential lessons meet you where you are.

If you have studied with me longterm in oral tradition—or perhaps studied more than one of my books—you will automatically have a different sense of the cards than what someone new to my work might have. I’m not saying your perceptions are better than someone else’s. But they are different.

More about Receiving
a Humongous Amount of Material

Though the manual is book-length and has a massive amount of material, it is only a portion of the course. The course/journey/training also gives you a massive amount of information.

The text is not meant to stand on its own. The book is best understood as a humongous handout that supplements the course meetings, which are oral lessons.

In other words, the document does not comprise the whole of the lessons. It was meant to accompany oral transmissions.

The text will also be one of our jumping-off points to dive into a Shamanic journey, Fey Mysteries, and other experiential lessons.

The text provides new starlit mysticism, guidance on divination and other matters, heartfelt inspirational material, and more. I work hard as a writer. This project has perhaps taken me a decade. But the best writing cannot match oral tradition. The book lacks an essence that oral tradition will add. In addition to all the time writing the book, I was also developing oral lessons.

As an adjunct to oral tradition, instead of a substitution for it, the text doesn’t always have complete information or make sense without oral additions and experiential lessons. If the handouts were complete in themselves, they would be written tradition.

Crucial information about a topic can be left out of handouts. Oral tradition might be the only way to convey those pivotal aspects. I can’t explain why because you’d have to experience it. But here are two examples that are understandable in print: Perhaps you ask how to apply information to a personal problem of yours. Or the wind blows me the message that an individual in a class needs specific information not in the handout. Oral tradition is fluid.

A 17,000-word handout spares you from massive amounts of note-taking. So we can focus on oral tradition experiential lessons and go deep fast. And I know we’re going to be together so you get to ask all the questions you want about the text. And then you have the book and all the benefits from the oral lessons forever.

Enclosed in a form isolated from oral tradition, the book would not have anywhere near its effectiveness. Used within the context of oral tradition, the book is enchanted. You will get so much from it.

It has been quite a while since I wrote it. (I’d edited it when I had time, for years. More recent work has mostly been copyediting, not changing content.) Teaching in oral tradition, I can add wisdom that I more recently learned and theories I more recently developed. Oral tradition is fluid.

Underpinnings of the Deck

The deck’s foundation is comprised of many Mysteries. Here is one:

A Loving Darkness

We come from the Goddess’ womb—a loving darkness.

Stars are born … in the loving darkness of outer space.

The cosmos was born … from a loving darkness.

Faerie magic spins … in a loving darkness.

Dragon magic derives from a loving darkness.

All beauty, abundance, and self-love spring from a loving darkness.

Dragons draw on the magics of a loving darkness.

Dragons are the magics of a loving darkness.

All of creation is the magic of a loving darkness.

This deck draws on all the magics of a loving darkness.

This deck draws on many other hidden magics.

Hidden magics—Fey Mysteries—underlie existence,
even our most mundane activities.

Dragons—including our own dragon natures—
help us understand and draw on these magics
to create material well-being, spiritual guidance,
love of our unique selves, and more.

This deck helps dragons do all that.

All of creation can help us
understand and draw on these magics
to create material well-being, spiritual guidance,
love of our unique selves, and more.

This deck helps creation do all that.

Use this deck to understand and draw on life’s many magics, for worldly success, good luck charms for mystic and material endeavors, practical divination, spiritual guidance, trust in your unique self, and more.

One of the early lessons in this course is a deep dive into the above piece, A Loving Darkness, so you understand it well and profit from it immediately.

An Inclusive Divination System
An Inclusive Cosmology

The mythos expressed in the deck and lessons blows apart sexism and the other isms that are rampant even in discussions of magic, myth, chaos magic, and other Mysteries.

The deck portrays a worldview that lifts us all up.

Avoiding a Constant Battle for Power

Sometimes, we have to battle for power. The book/card/lessons fortify your spirit and help you strategize battle plans that are practical and down-to-earth.

Sometimes, battling oppression means offering alternative views to oppressive paradigms. So sometimes this course states an ism and offers a counter-view.

The above two approaches use isms as a focus. I do not use isms as my primary jumping-off point for the deck and course. Using isms as the main foundation would keep me building on them, instead of building a good life for myself and others.

My primary foundation for the deck, class, and book is the truths I try to live and what empowers me to live them. Sometimes, the way to eradicate isms is to stop fighting them and instead live by the truths that lift us all up and use tools that help us live those truths.

I will help you do that now instead of waiting until the fight for freedom ends. If we always wait until the fight is over, it never will be.

If you have not worked with me yet, you might be surprised at how much freedom we can find despite the world around us. I am not suggesting that oppression does not hurt or even kill. I should be dead many times over. And my life is far from perfect. I have a lot of problems. But Shamanism has saved me again and again, given me a life of joy, and helped me fulfill many of my dearest life goals.

The cards and lessons are a way to freely explore loving truths instead of having to argue for them. This way, we get to spend lots of time exploring and living in love.

When the book/cards/lessons do discuss isms, the discussion is held in a matrix of love.

Matrix * Mater * Goddess * Power

Using the cards, on your own and with me, creates a Shamanic journey into the world the cards represent. It is the world Third Road students come to know, with its cosmology, magical energies, and other aspects.

During Third Road class meetings, we are in this world—or call it a matrix. It is a matrix of love, empowerment, Fey magic, good luck, nurturance of your own magical style, and ways to make a good life for yourself.

Matrix. Mater. The Third Road is within the matrix that is the Great Mother Goddess. She created all and has all power. She surrounds us with all power, love, sanity, luck, and Fey magic. She gives all these to us, nurtures your magical style, and shows you how to make a good life for yourself.

I love the wonderful individuals who study with me. I am so into these cards and what they represent. I really want to take this journey with you.

Dragons abound! … though often hidden. … The Mother Goddess was the first dragon.

Attend Classes by Phone. It’s Easy!

We meet in group phone calls. No app needed.
Simply call the event phone number to attend.

Schedule

You have two schedules to choose from:

Enroll in the class that meets Sundays
from noon to 1:00 PST, starting October 12, 2025.

Or in the class that meets Mondays
from 6:00 to 7:00 pm PST, starting October 13, 2025.

We meet weekly for nine months, except for five weeks.
There will be no classes on:
* November 30 and December 1
* December 28 and 29
* January 4 and 5
* March 8 and 9
* April 5 and 6

In case I’m unavailable for any planned meetings, reserve the usual hour on the following dates, for makeup sessions:
* Sunday July 12 or Monday July 13, depending on which class you are in
* July 19 or 20, ditto.

Enrollment

Enrollment ends Midnight on Wednesday, October 1.

Cost is $200 a month for nine months. Your carrier might charge you for the calls. No refunds.

Don’t know if you will be able to attend the whole nine months? To drop out, for any reason, simply cancel your subscription.

Won’t be able to attend every meeting? No problem. A long course means you’ll likely miss some classes. And if you wait to participate perfectly, you may never participate. That’s true not only of my classes, but of anything you might do to make a good life for yourself.

Click the Subscribe button below to enroll securely through PayPal.





After receiving your enrollment, I will email you to ask which of the two class schedules you choose. If you don’t receive that email within a few days, check your spam. If the email isn’t there, or you want to discuss a scholarship, semi-scholarship, trade, or payment plan other than the subscription, or you need additional information about the classes, please call me at the phone number below. A few days before our first meeting, you receive an email with the event phone number and other details.

Francesca De Grandis 1997 photo by Susanne Kaspar

Click the Subscribe button below to enroll.





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Practical Magic and Being Fey

Productive Communication,
Effective Magic,
Worldly Efficiency, and Being Fey

A Surprisingly Fundamental Weave

Do you perceive supposedly disconnected things as woven together, connected in fundamental ways? This blog is about one of those weavings.

Magic is practical.
Taking time often
saves time.
Quick and brief is not always effective communication.

Everything is magic.
I am Fey.
So I am Fey in anything I do.
Being Fey contributes to worldly power and productivity.

Not every magic is healthy.
Some magic does not
help me stay in touch with my Fey sensibilities
or otherwise be efficient in worldly activities.

I am more effective when I take time to:
* Explore my Fey cells—instead of numbing out
* Read a long blog—instead of doom scrolling.

Often, listening to a friend for 10 minutes
—instead of texting them—
is more productive and saves time in the long run.

Productive Is Not a Bad Word but It Is Used Badly

The word productive is often in sentences that shame people and help keep them from leisure time, self-care, or self-fulfillment. “You need to be productive. Stop horsing around with your art and get a real job.”

The Goddess is productive. She created a beautiful universe for us to live in. Every day, She is productive by blessing me with magic and power. I want to be productive like Her by doing my part in creating a life of freedom, magic, and beauty for everyone who wants it, including me.

I love being productive!

I love helping the Goddess be productive.

Non-Productive Magic
Drains My Time, Efficacy, and Spirit

Being happy is productive. Making someone laugh is productive. Productive doesn’t only mean hitting manufacturing quotas.

I fall prey to constantly scrolling. Everything is magic. Constantly scrolling is not healthy magic for me:
* It counters my innate fabulous magic.
* It is non-productive magic because it doesn’t produce happiness or otherwise better my life. It does the exact opposite.
* It robs me of time I need to be efficient both magically and mundanely.
* It dulls my senses. So I lose touch with my Fey nature.
* It distracts me so I am not in touch with my vital life force. When I am aware of this essential force, it propels me to stand up for my rights and yours.

A Solution

It’s impossible to break a habit unless I replace it with something else. Here is one of my solutions to constantly scrolling. When drawn toward scrolling, I try to develop important Shamanic material instead.

Some of that material is going into blogs. The depth of the material might make a blog a lot longer than I sometimes publish. If you’re like me, trying to write from my heart and intellect, instead of using AI to produce tripe or co-opt material, writing long blogs take even more time. So I can’t publish as many. But that’s okay when I want to address some topics in greater depth than I can in a brief blog.

What is a habit that makes you less effective and productive? What can you replace it with? Everything is magic. What is a magical replacement that supports your happiness, efficiency, and productivity? Perhaps allow yourself the time to answer these questions before you read the next paragraph. Self-care often means slowing down.

Loss of Focus

Studies prove that social media interferes with most people’s attention span and ability to focus. I know my focus is diminished. I go to social media to see something specific and a half hour later have not checked it. I got distracted, and might even momentarily forget why I went to social media.

Focus Is Important in Almost Everything

Focus makes all the difference in enchantments, efficiency, conversations, sex, and almost everything else.

Focus allows us to dive deep emotionally, intellectually, spiritually, magically, and sexually. Focus allows us to follow through on hopes and ideas, see the connection between events so we understand the big picture, and remember our inner and outer resources when we need them—such as one’s innate magic, common sense, support from family, or art supplies.

The Beauty of Brevity
The Blight of Brevity

I adore the pared-down line of poetry that expresses the entire world. That line is deep communication.

I love succinct remarks. They contribute to empowering, calm, collaborative communication. Not all memes are glib. Not all texts lack substance. Memes and texts are often brilliant, useful, and important.

But you can only say so much in a little frame.

I cannot convey every enchantment, feeling, or other truth in a text or meme.

Stripped-bare interactions like texting are rightly lauded as efficient. But there needs to be more recognition of how they are terribly inefficient and even destructive.

A journalist told me that journalism school’s emphasis on sparse language trained her too thoroughly. It drummed out her ability to say anything complex and meaningful. I’m sure that wasn’t 100% true, but she makes a good point.

Today’s lack of deep communication hurts me, you, society, and Gaia. Even if you don’t personally need rich conversations or in-depth books, rich communication or the lack of it shapes the world around you in ways that are pivotal to everyone. For example, societal groups are pitted against each other in ways that social media conversational brevity has increased. A great deal of this conflict has been willfully manufactured by powerful oppressors who portray oversimplified, brief messages as inescapable truths. In-depth, lengthy conversations can provide caring and personal interactions that could heal some of this conflict.

The Power of Deep Communication

Effective communication is so much more than giving facts that I can read online.

Deep communication, such as a long conversation, careful listening, and reading a complex piece nurture and inform me in irreplaceable ways.

I need conversations in which I can take a breath, drink in what’s said, and let its humanness fulfill me.

We need to read pieces that go all the way to the earth’s center, grounding us in its heart, and only then introducing a topic. Or pieces that share the author’s personal life, or otherwise make a heart-to-heart connection, before introducing a topic. Or that establish context and personal connection in another way. Context. Connection. Heart.

Why? Some ideas only make sense after a living context for them is established. Some brilliant ideas might reveal their usefulness only in context or when shared compassionately. Some nuances are too triggering if they lack context or are not delivered compassionately.

One last reason: Life is ultimately about loving connection. Too many exchanges are disjointed, destroying connections. One reason for this is that our our current culture often demands we be brief.

Everything in the above three paragraphs about written pieces might apply to what you need from people with whom you speak.

Deep Conversations and Efficiency Take Time

Taking shortcuts in the name of efficiency can be biting off your nose to spite your face.

“Move fast and break things” is a creed for not caring whether the results of your work hurt people.

Individuals who slow down to create thoughtfully and well are the true innovators, true geniuses, true revolutionaries.

How To Deep Dive into Richly Rewarding Communication, including Long Blogs

The Challenges of Effective, Empowering Conversations

It can be hard to start talking about a complex or deeply personal topic, especially if you might not have time to finish it right then.

A Solution

Tell the person or people involved that you want an in-depth conversation. Add that you don’t know if it will take more time than you or they might have right then. Finally, ask if they are willing to start the conversation if some of it will happen later.

The downside is not getting the immediate result you might’ve wanted from a discussion.

But that can also be the upside. Social media has demonstrated that trying to resolve a conversation quickly, by immediately responding to a comment, often increases problems instead of creating resolutions or other happy results.

Intentional pauses in conversations, whether they last for seconds or days, provide benefits that can’t always come from an exchange that lasts the length of a phone screen. A pause gives you a chance to:

* Reevaluate your needs. Then you can change them, remember why they’re important, or examine them in light of the larger picture.

* Get in touch with your emotions so that they can help guide your decisions and inform your responses.

* Sort through your emotions to find balance, instead of blurting out a knee-jerk reaction to someone.

* Take a few deep breaths to calm yourself. Then your words will be more effective and productive.

* Contemplate the other person’s (people’s) views and feelings so that you respond respectfully and kindly.

Pauses also give us a chance to decide whether a discussion is a waste of time. How often have you ended up arguing with a troll or bot, instead of taking a moment to think about it first?

I want to have
* rich interactions
* compassionate understanding of someone with whom I am speaking
* an intelligent analysis of their ideas
* and a natural, nurturing pace.

A pause is productive.
A pause is magic.
Listening is magic.
A pause is effective.
A pause feeds effectiveness.
A pause helps me get in touch with my Fey self.

A pause is a magical spell.
Listening is a magical spell.
Everything is a magical spell.

The Challenges of Reading Long Blogs and Other Lengthy Material

It can be hard to even start reading a long piece, especially if it is packed with invigorating ideas or rich with emotions. Starting can be even harder if you don’t have time to read it all right then.

How to Read Long Pieces when You Don’t Have Much Time

Waiting until you have enough time, energy, or focus to read a long blog or other lengthy piece can = it never happens.

Solutions:

1) Don’t hesitate to start reading the piece, but stop whenever you want. Better something than nothing.

Reading a single paragraph that is thoughtfully, carefully written over a long period of time provides benefits that one is less likely to receive from texts and online comments.

2) Or read a paragraph every morning. Okay, this is embarrassing, but: When I wake up, I stumble toward the bathroom while saying my prayers. Then, on the toilet, I do a bit of spiritual reading.

3) Or I might read during breakfast instead.

Just a little spiritual reading first thing in the morning can change my whole day. Try it with one of my blogs or something else empowering. Read a bit every morning or as many mornings as you can. Try it for a week. It can be an experiment to see how it affects you.

A Fundamental Weave

Rich communication, effective enchantments, worldly efficiency, and being Fey are an inextricable and fundamental weave. This weave must include brevity, when appropriate. In fact, a weave of rich communication, effective enchantments, worldly efficiency, and being Fey teaches us how to use brevity better, maximizing its benefits.

When a method—in this case brevity—becomes dominant, so the cultural norms surrounding it constantly invalidate and stomp out other approaches, it also becomes its worst self. When we venture into deep conversations, brevity can become its best self. Brevity can stop limiting us. It can stop being mechanistic, reactive, and dry. A brief communication can instead be a joyful outburst, a childlike wish, a haiku that rends the heart, a mystic blessing, an unmistakable utterance of love, or another honest self-expression. So mote it be!

This is not a super long blog. It didn’t need to be. Everything is magic. Everything is a magical spell. Choosing the magic that is most suited to a situation is effective. Hence, I did not write more. For one thing, going into the post’s topics more extensively is something that I can convey best by teaching experientially in oral tradition. Then my students experience the breath and heartbeat of the topic, which helps them apply it to real life. If the last two sentences didn’t make sense, don’t worry. You probably got the gist. There’s no way to describe oral tradition on the page (or in an audio). Oral tradition can only be explained in oral tradition aka orally, in person. In-person can be on the phone or Zoom, instead of participants having to be physically in the same space.

Addendum: However, I do have to make the post a little longer. I thought I had finished it but then found Charlie Chaplin’s comments from a 1940s film. His immediate context was Nazi Germany. But his words are relevant to this essay. When writing it, I was aware of its relevance to the current fascist rise. I chose not to point that out until I discovered Chaplin’s remarks. I took their appearance in my life as magic: Guidance from the Goddess that I should mention that relevance. So I’m adding Chaplin’s vital words:

“We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in. … We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery we need humanity. More than cleverness we need kindness and gentleness. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost.”

We can do better.
And we will.
We can communicate at loving depths
and practice awareness of our bodies’ Fey atoms.
We can try to draw on the enchantments
in every object and action.
We can be efficient.
We can be productive.
So mote it be!

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Posted in Art, Writing, and Music, Community, Spirit, The Whole Thing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Survival, Art, and Magic

Survival, Art, Magic,
Isolation, and Community

These Aren’t Luxuries:
Art, Beauty, Spirituality, Ritual, and Wholeness

During the worst times, I find art, beauty, spirituality, and rituals more important than ever. They strengthen the spirit, help us connect with each other, help us embody alternatives to oppressive culture, and far more. This essay explores the inextricable and fundamental weaving of survival, isolation, community, art, beauty, and Faerie Shamanism’s magic and spirituality.

Art, Beauty, Spirituality, and Ritual
Help Me Survive Crisis

Some people believe we need only necessities like food and shelter to survive. I need more. I need art, beauty, spirituality, and magic. They are among life’s basic requirements.

When someone lacks food or other essentials, oppressors often wax eloquent about things that are supposedly nobler than having enough to eat and a roof over your head. They do this to shame a person for caring about the necessities they need for survival. That’s not where I’m coming from.

Some artists are born into groups that suffer from systemic oppression and lack food and other necessities. Yet they continue to make art. So the idea that art can be essential to life is not inherently insensitive or elitist.

I’ve overcome death several times. Art gave me the strength to do that.

I might’ve died if a guitar hadn’t, by sheer chance, come to me when I was 14.

Making music didn’t make me happy, not yet. But it boosted me enough that I was able to get out of the neighborhood I was raised in and explore a better life. I stopped feeling so lonely and isolated because I found people like myself who were also breaking free from childhood bonds.

Later, there was a period when I was so sick that I had trouble even speaking. I composed poetry in my head since I was physically unable to write anything down. I’d lie in bed, silently reciting my compositions to myself, over and over. The words wrapped around me like a blanket wraps the ill. It was comfort and medicine.

The recitation often caused me to memorize the poem.

If so, when a friend showed up at my place, I’d recite the poem to them if I had the strength, and they’d write it down.

But it was fine if we didn’t get to dictation. Composing and silently reciting the poem helped heal my body and spirit.

More about Art and Survival

When creating art or enjoying someone else’s, I might center into traits that help me survive: hope, clarity of purpose, spiritual vigor, and insights on how to solve even major problems. These characteristics are survival basics.

Here’s another reason art helps me survive:

Art Is Magic

Art makes life magical. Enjoying someone’s art or creating mine brings me into the otherworld where I walk with Gods. Their companionship is bliss that heals me physically and spiritually. As we visit, I also receive Their blessings, power, and guidance. They give me serenity with which to face problems and practical ideas for overcoming even the worst crises.

When I am between the worlds, I find my God-self; I have the huge proportions of an archetype with all powers and wisdom.

This is not to say that everything goes my way, or that I am all-powerful and all-wise. But I am a million times better off than I would be without magic. Anyone with so-called practicality who looked at my background would insist that I should’ve been dead by now or, at best, miserable. Instead, I have a good life.

Punished and Rejected for Making Art

I said art helped me survive as a child. I paid the price for survival: Exile.

My lust for art and beauty has cost me the respect of others throughout my life. As a child, I was mocked and otherwise punished. I was told I was ridiculous for seeking a better existence. The neighborhood culture in which I grew up drummed into me, time and again, when I turned to my art for survival, that I was pie in the sky and too fancy. The neighborhood, including most of my family, would’ve had me dead.

Almost everyone tried to convince me, “Just focus on surviving. Keep your head down and survive. Keep your head down and focus on what needs to be done in your daily life. Focus on necessities. Just keep your head down.”

It’s good to focus solely on survival if that is all one can manage. But to insist that someone do that can also be a way to stop their strivings and suppress their vitality. The modern world does this over and over. “Just keep your head down.”

Further on, this essay addresses managing self-care during crisis.

I might've died if a guitar hadn't fallen into my lap when I was 14. The price for survival was being ousted from tribe.

Society invalidates and ridicules art lovers of any age, causing alienation that stalks art lovers like Peter Pan’s shadow mocking him.

Spiritual Wholeness Helps Me Survive

Death of the spirit can lead to death of the body. For example, when one’s spirit is crushed, one might allow oneself to be burdened to a lethal degree. Or otherwise abused.

Or one might not take the simple measures needed to live long.

It can go further. Destruction of the spirit can corrode the body.

I can’t be spiritually hale and whole unless I am part of the greater whole. Connectivity is not a luxury. Art and beauty connect me to community and cosmos.

Punished for Believing in Magic

When I believe in magic, oppressors feel threatened. Why? Because magic helps a person find wholeness. Then they are less likely to be a docile follower and more likely to stand up for their rights.

I have been mocked, rejected, and otherwise punished since childhood for my belief in an enchanted reality. But I cling to my trust.

Using magic, for whatever purpose, is self-care because performing magic aligns a person internally and with the cosmos. That alignment in self and with cosmos makes me whole.

We are born magical. It is part of our makeup as humans. So we need to do magic. Often I do rituals just for the pleasure of them.

Exiled for Pursuing Wholeness

Exile from a community can be a death sentence.

I survived exile. I found a new community. I am not bragging. I am saying it is possible to survive banishment from a prejudiced group and then find a new, supportive tribe.

Finding Community after Exile

My tribe consists of people who strive to keep their spirit intact and happy, or who want to learn to do so. These people also strive to serve others. My tribe is all over the world. I haven’t even heard of all its members. But these strangers are kin, and their efforts sustain mine.

How did I find my tribe? I kept being of service and doing what I needed to survive and be happy, including enjoying myself. Community grew up around me during all these activities.

Find Ways to Strengthen
your Spirit and Wild Pagan Heart

Everyone needs their own ways to keep their spirit whole. For example, someone’s might include making art, viewing art, walking in the woods, performing ritual, listening to music, or hanging out with grandchildren.

Don’t keep yourself from spiritual care because some fool said your ways of doing it are lame.

Whatever your ways, do whatever it takes to foster spiritual wholeness. … You’ll also hold the sky up.

Some of my methods: I paint, sit on my lawn eating dandelion blossoms, dance in the woods, counsel my clients, hold my cat, channel Shamanic curriculums, sing, laugh at my friends’ jokes, and wear jewelry. When dandelion flowers turn into balls of white fluff, I blow on them to make wishes.

Being of service keeps me whole. So does brainstorming and praying about how to best serve. When brainstorms and prayers occupy my thoughts, worry cannot enter my brain and fill it to exclude everything else.

You Are the Whole Universe,
and the Universe Is Magic

No one method could nurture my spirit and wild Pagan heart. I need a multitude of activities. Why? I’m made up of all the threads in the fabric of the universe. All the filaments of existence are part of me. I try to draw on the power of as many threads as I can, both their lengths outside me and the lengths that run through me. The more I draw on the strands in the weave of life, the more they weave healthily together in me, making me a whole and hale weave.

The Weave of Life and Art

The weave of life and art often surprises me.

I don’t think I always know the use of my art until I pursue it. But when I create art, I see its relevance.

For example, I used to feel torn between creating art and being a Shamanic guide. I kept pursuing both. That helped me realize that, for me, my work as a Shamanic teacher and healer is an art. It is my main art form. I also saw how my other arts—e.g., painting and music—support my primary art. After these realizations, I could weave my arts together more than ever, which improved my classes and healings.

More weaves of art and life:

Being a Shamanic guide, even more than all my other forms of self-expression, helps me survive. Blessings flow into me when I use Shamanism to serve others.

When I am acting as a Shamanic guide, my life is joyful and worth living.

I paint enchanted borders for Book of Shadows pages that are class handouts. I also paint decorative elements for my blogs and online announcements of my Shamanic events. I love that an artist might find how their art can inform and integrate with their life.

Don’t Worry about Creating Perfect Art.
Just Make Art

If I’ve learned anything about the creative process, it is that you have to be willing to fail a lot of times and keep on going afterwards. Do that. You’re enormously creative whether you know it or not. Don’t let failures make you think otherwise. Just keep creating.

If you get stuck on one project, don’t give up. Move on to another project. Don’t throw the original project out. Leaving it for a while might give you what you need to finish it, whether what you need is inspiration, energy, time, research, relevant life lessons, whatever.

For example, I wrote a lot of this essay around 2020. Probably did most of the art for this post back then, too. Occasionally, I would add to the essay but never had a chance to finish it until recently.

For one thing, it’s long. When I write a long essay, wrapping my mind around the whole of it to revise a portion is mentally challenging. It’s a lot to sustain or even start. I couldn’t manage it often because that type of mental gymnastics was needed for other projects that were time-sensitive. Every time I finished one of those projects, the wherewithal for the same type of editing agility wasn’t there.

The right times came in snippets. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t still hard work.

Often, I could only do a little work and then “failed” because I couldn’t go further. I didn’t have it in me.

Toward the end, finishing the piece was going to require a lot of time within a short period so that I didn’t lose the piece’s threads. Finally, I made the time to finish the essay, mostly by working on my days off.

(Usually, it is unhealthy for me to work on my days off. But sometimes, it is necessary. More about unhealthy behavior being necessary sometimes is below.)

Back when I started the essay, I’d been painting and writing like crazy for a few months. Wasn’t sure what I was going to do with half of all this new art and writing. But creating it helped keep me sane and in touch with my wisdom and strength during challenges.

As often happens, all the parts of my life wove together in ways that surprised me. Students had asked to see more of my art. I realized a lot of the painting and writing would make perfect handouts for a class I was developing.

Perfectionism and striving toward a high ideal are not the same. Perfectionism can keep you from doing good work.

And I’m not suggesting that you put something in the world that is so flawed that it could seriously harm someone. For example, I will polish a magic course curriculum until its magic is safe. But I can’t keep polishing unless I accept my failed attempts to polish and keep going so I can rectify them.

Accept “failure,” keep creating, realize creating art helps you even if you don’t see how yet, and don’t worry if you see no use for your art. If you keep creating, you might be surprised at your art’s many uses.

Taking Care of Yourself
Can Feel Impossible During a Crisis

I used to think there wasn’t time to take care of myself during crises. I changed my mind. I stopped being in constant crisis. Every bit of self-care saves me time because I become calmer and have greater emotional and mental clarity. So I am more effective and faster when facing dilemmas. I weather them better and am more likely to overcome them.

Some crises are so big that there is no chance to make art, perform ritual, or do any other activity that keeps us whole. Heck, it might be hard to find time to eat.

However, once things let up, the feeling of no time might remain.

Or, if a wee bit of time clears itself, it’s easy to think there’s no point in doing the little you can in the limited window. But the smallest act can give you the energy and spiritual boost to do a bit more later. And so on until the bits add up to make a big difference.

If you don’t have enough energy to walk in the woods, get up from your chair and walk around the room for 60 seconds. If you can’t get up, sit and make the affirmation My spirit is getting stronger whether I feel it yet or not. If you can’t cook nourishing foods, grab an apple and organic almonds. Do what you can. My talk is not cheap. I’ve had to start with the smallest acts many times. It worked every time, even in life-threatening situations. Do the tiny thing you can do.

During Crisis, It Can Be Hard if Not Impossible
to Make Art

So here are suggestions:

Keep art simple and let it be brief.

Try not to chastise yourself if your mind wanders from it.

Try not to worry about whether you’ll ever be able to do more than a little bit of art. That little bit is likely to turn into more if you don’t pressure yourself with worry about whether you’ll do more or shame about doing only a little.

A Personal Story about Art as Self-Care in a Crisis

Years ago, I was so sick that I couldn’t sit up for a year and a half. A cruel family member wanted me dead so she tried to traumatize me into even worse illness. She would phone, saying terrible things.

I was too injured to sit up. It was painful to try. But I pumped up adrenaline until I could sit up and make art. At the time, I didn’t realize how often those painful deleterious art sessions happened right after a phone call from the terrible relative.

She had started subtly gaslighting me when I was a child. Most of the rest of the family gaslighted me, too. I grew up used to gaslighting, so I didn’t recognize it. It took a long time to see the brutality. And even longer to recognize every incident. Sometimes, I didn’t even know why I was upset after her phone calls.

In the early years of this illness that kept me from sitting up, I did not understand why I would make art when it caused me physical pain and exhaustion. It made my condition worse. Then one day I realized that, as I was creating art, I was subconsciously chanting, “I will not live in your ugly world.” I was chanting it to that terrible relative.

It took more years to realize that, were I not making that art, I would lie in bed, plagued by the nightmare of her demonism, without even being able to name the nightmare as her. Then I would become even sicker and more exhausted, drained by my subconscious preoccupation with her.

In those early years of sickness, I came to fully see her abuse. Every phone call was marked with sly malice, disguised by her ever-present pleasant veneer.

When I was a child, she would scold me for making art. She said that I needed to stop my art, dancing, and writing, and instead think about God and helping other people.

Art is a way I connect with God and help other people.

Once conscious of why I pushed myself so hard for art whenever she contacted me, I took necessary measures, bit by bit over the years. Examples: I banished her from my life. I used Shamanic tools to further heal from lifelong gaslighting, so that I was no longer as easily triggered by her.

Bit by bit, I learned how to deal with her. Now, when someone as cruel and demonic as she attacks, I am not as susceptible. Therefore, I am not as driven to extraordinary measures like pushing so hard to make art. When I do still push myself, it is usually not anywhere near as much.

Recently, she sent a digital greeting card. It was a happy cartoon. In context, it was emotional violence. She added a note that was “happy,” cute, and cruel as possible.

I took the necessary measures. Including art. Sometimes, making art is the only way I can exorcise the horror of this person’s cruelty.

That day, I was so tired that sitting up was hard. A nap would revive me. But I knew I’d have no peace and she would haunt me, draining me as I tried to rest. So I pumped up adrenaline to stay awake and upright, and start painting. Not ideal, but survival can demand extraordinary measures.

Sometimes we do things that hurt us but that help us even more. I will not live in her ugly world. I choose beauty.

Sweet Gods, if I am ready, show me a way to fend off cruelty without internalizing it by pushing myself so hard for art that I hurt myself.

Here is the piece I made to exorcise her after she sent the digital card. I painted on cloth, then added beads.

Then I sewed the painting along the neckline of a T-shirt.

Disclaimer: It is a gorgeous piece but I am not a photographer. For example, I could not capture the paint’s shimmers and the color variances they caused in each paint. Plus, reducing the photos so that this page wouldn’t take forever for you to load blurred them. Finally, I need to wash the shirt. Then the paint will relax and look better, and the shirt will not be wrinkled. And, back to the point I want to make:

I made art from pain.

Then I went to the app that this relative uses to send me greeting cards and blocked her there.

Art is extraordinary.

(Later: I think I found a healthy substitute for pushing myself too hard to make art. The old Gods answer prayers.)

Internalized Oppression
about Art, Beauty, Magic, Crisis, and Survival

Lack of time and energy is not the only block keeping someone from taking care of themselves. Society gives us negative messages about self-care. Once we internalize those messages, we tell them to ourselves. Like the message from my childhood, “Just keep your head down.”

We can do something about internalized oppression. Here are two things:

Method 1) A Ritual to Heal Internalized Oppression

Are there messages still in your cells that make you forget self-care or invalidate your need for it?

Try to find one of those messages. It doesn’t have to be the one that hurts you the most. You can find more messages later. Find one for now.

Once you recognize it, do the following to help heal yourself. If you don’t find any negative messages in you, you can use this ritual to heal from them anyway:

Step 1) Put your arms out in front of you, palms up, to symbolize offering your internalized oppression to the Fey Gods.

Step 2) Drop your arms.

Step 3) Say silently or aloud,
“I am worthy of all good things.
My Gods adore me.
They fill me with Their power to create a good life now. So be it!”

You might feel a change right away or experience improvement within weeks if not minutes.

Method 2) Shamanic Counseling

Book a Shamanic counseling session with me. This can be in addition to, or instead of, Method 1. For example, Shamanic counseling can help you uncover more internal messages that keep you from taking care of yourself, and more tools to free yourself from them.

Types of internalized oppression and how to overcome them are beyond the scope of this essay. It’s beyond the scope of any essay. And different people need different help. During Shamanic counseling, I can address your needs and channel tools suited to you.

Click here for more information.

The Weave of Survival with
Art, Beauty, Spirituality, and Ritual Is Fundamental

This essay has discussed fundamental ways that art, beauty, spirituality, ritual, and survival weave together. There are more ways than I can describe here. But I must add more.

Throughout my long life, an oppressive culture has drummed into me that my sole value is my care of other people. So it is easy to forget that I am worth self-care. During a ritual, I know my inner beauty, which reflects that I am worthy of all good things.

Fighting for survival can be disheartening, making me forget I have power. But then a ritual affirms my valuable, spiritual and worldly strengths.

Rituals connect me to life’s beauty. It uplifts my spirit so that I keep going, keep believing there’s a reason to fight through danger to get to the other side.

Rituals connect me to my community, helping us unite in our efforts for tribe survival.

Rituals with my students and other community members nourish us all spiritually.

Ritual Is Part of Life

Sometimes, when performing a ritual to send a spiritual transmissions, I might engage in another activity at the same time. The activity could be anything from painting art to washing the dishes to going for a walk. I might cook dinner, grieve the loss of a deceased loved one, or move through rage over a political situation. Just as ritual is part of life, life is part of ritual. Life is ritual. Ritual is life.

It might seem that participating in another activity during a ritual would distract me from the ritual. The exact opposite is true. Weaving a transmission ceremony into my other activities makes it more powerful. Ritual and the rest of life go together.

Painting, as an example, helps me center into and focus on the transmission. It might not even matter whether I see the painting as relevant to the transmission.

Mind you, I am careful when combining magical and physical activities. For one thing, I have to remain grounded so that I don’t have a physical accident because I’m sweeping the floor and not paying attention to the physical realm. There are a lot of other cautions I take to keep everything effective and safe both physically and magically. I went through a lot of lessons to learn those cautions and to train how to maintain them during rituals.

If the additional activity does distract me from the ritual, I notice quickly and put the activity aside to focus on magic.

A Sunlit Moment in a Ceremony

Recently, I was sending a direct spiritual transmission while I was also making art. The art piece was a magical beaded necklace.

Weaving an amulet necklace and sending a transmission at the same time made both more powerful.

So I’m working away, and, suddenly, light flooded in the window, pouring over my jewelry work tray and saturating the ritual.

The snapshot below does not do the moment justice. You see more of the shadows that were cast than the light that came in the window.

But the photo hints at the Old Gods blessing the Shamanic journey that I was on with the individuals for whom I was doing the transmissions.

The photo hints at the transmission’s recipients as my fellow seekers, whose spirits weave with mine in a web of love.

There are hints of a global tribe of seekers whom I’ve never met or even heard of—another weave sustaining me.

There are hints of the weaving of art, beauty, magic, and life allowing all blessings.

And in the photo’s shadows are gold. Shadows of Gods.

So mote it be!

Keep painting, singing, or doing whatever else keeps your spirit whole. … You’ll also hold the sky up.

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Posted in Art, Writing, and Music, Spirit, The Whole Thing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments