Monday, May 31, 2010

Seven Basic Techniques For Practicing Asatru Magic

Seven Basic Techniques For Practicing Asatru Magic Cover Runecraft – working with Runes. Studying the Runes through their meanings, Mythology &c. Meditations about their shapes, names &c.

Galdr – singing or reciting of magical chants. This practice is based on the Knowledge of the Runes, which explains the division of the Nordic magic into seidr and galdr. Today, that would signify ritual music through specific laws of rhythm and harmony. Using poluphony was always a trait of magical music (let us not forget Christan chorals). It can also be achieved by saying the names of the Runes in a particular way – by vibrating.

Hamfarir – connected to traveling outside the body in the form of an animal. Odin often used this kind of magic when he had to do a job that demanded a long journey. This way he would do the job more quickly, by simply lying in his bed, sending his spirit into a certain animal.

Nidhstang – making of the ‘Cursing Pole’. The pole would be made from a piece of wood with a horse’s head attached at the top, and the pole would be directed to whoever was going to be cursed.

Seidr – connected to sexual magic, spells &c.

Spa – prohesying.

Utiseta – a practice during which a vitkar (or volva) sits alone outside, in the dark, with no fire, and Contacting the dead or some other entities.

Free eBooks (Can Be Downloaded):

Michael Night Sky - Raven Grimassi Interview Exploring The Magic Of The Ancients
Anonymous - Basic Technologies Of Witchcraft
Scott Cunningham - Earth Air Fire And Water More Techniques Of Natural Magic
Greg Wotton - Basic Theories On Sex Magic
Aleister Crowley - Basic Techniques Of Sex Magick

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Spirituality

Spirituality Image
while being at Global Oneness Project's event on Consciousness ">how to effectively carry or transmit consciousness was coming to me which i will share here in 2 part posts.

the methods of teachings of great world teachers is something really fascinating to look at in that regard. each world teachers such as Moses, Buddha or Muhammad - it's a source of great teaching and inspiration to see how they not only had very personal inner awakening of consciousness but they also went to the market place, to laymen, to the society deeply busy in mundane business to share that great awakening and consciousness. the methods might be different, but that great sincerity of each of such world teachers who single handedly inspired and changed lives of nations, ages after ages - are mind boggling. for the enlightened beings such process was a journey from inner plane to outer.

first each had a profound deeper experience which was totally inner. examples can be drawn from Moses' mystical conversation with burning bush, Buddha's experience of Enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, Muhammad's Enlightenment in the cave on the Mountain of Light. now all of these experiences had a very personal nature which was coming from deep within. surrounding those special moments, prior and after those experiences each of such world teachers had long contemplative time about how to liberate humanity, the people of the society from suffering, injustice, all the bondages etc. what is fascinating is how they translated their inner experience to tangible outer practices for the lay persons which would help them journey from outer to the inner, ultimately in the close proximity of what the teacher experienced and to live that consciousness.

sufi master Bawa used to say, 'only one in million goes back to God'. so the one in million who goes back to God (who happen to be given the direct and royal Divine Experience) once having the experience of Divine, bring that inner to outer and gives to the world the experience and consciousness in a manner which helps the ordinary to have a journey from outer to inner. for the rest one million minus one ordinary and lay people its a reverse process. and thats how it has always been. thus for the ordinary people its really important to start from outer because they don't hold that higher consciousness or don't necessarily have that space to do that.

human nature is forgetful. thus if the teaching of consciousness is given only as a theory, in majority of the cases are forgotten as soon as such laymen step out again in the world, in the market place. also the inner experience can be very abstract for those who live in the ordinary conditioning and thus may not be able to successfully be connected.

in that regard i personally feel a particular teaching or consciousness in order for it to be transmitted, a successful transmission always has to come with a process that will help the ordinary to journey from outer to inner. from tangible work, practices to higher consciousness which may look abstract in the beginning (when i was listening to question from many, such point was being affirmed more and more). the way the higher consciousness comes to a teacher is not necessarily applicable for the ordinary. if we look at the world teachers we find practices given, which are nothing but tools for the ordinary to work their way from outer to the inner, the very inner from where the consciousness and teaching ordinate from.

such practices, tools, real direction which will translate to a practice as simple as praying on a regular basis or giving away certain amount of personal wealth or engaging a certain portion of time every year for self-less work - needs to be there for the ordinary. only training, physical engagement, work on ground is what works affectively for the one million minus one population.

for a teacher the journey of realization and process of transmission is inner to outer. for the ordinary and those who wish to be recipient of the transmission it works from outer to inner. things are changing on a very rapid speed, but this spiritual law still exists. if we look at the level of mental evolution of the lay people or ordinary people around it will affirm that as well. (except for highly adept souls / disciples who become the successor of the teacher eventually, can share and take-in the inner experiences directly because they already have the affinity and readiness).

. in the next post, i would like to share same stream of thought which has to do, transmission to whom - laymen or kings?

[+] Please visit MysticSaint.Info For full multimedia experience and enjoy special music.

Blessings,
Sadiq



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The Gods Spirits

The Gods Spirits Image
The topic of the 'Third Kindred' has been a lurking elephant in our big room since we took up the conventional 'Three Kindreds'. I think it is an unsolved problem of lore and even worship in our mix, and I am interested in how it goes when members take up actual efforts to include the Others in the work.

I think we come to our ideas of the Third Kin with a couple of half-formed notions from modern times that may hinder us from understanding what the ancients meant.

o The post-Theosphical idea of 'devas' as the spirits of plants, stones, etc is at least a step toward animism, and so perhaps in the right direction. The use of the term 'fairy' for the twee artistic constructions connected with such things has muddied the water badly, in my opinion. Even using 'deva' to mean small spirit instead of 'a god' has created confusion.

I couldn't prove that the ancients held this level of animism, viewing every individual plant and animal as a spirit. Though, customs such as leaving a coin in the hole or 'hunting' the plant do suggest concern about an individual spirit. I think it's safe to suggest that some degree of ground-level animism was part of the IE worldview.

But when we talk about the 'Nature Spirits' or 'Landwights' I think we may be limiting the category too strictly by focusing on this model. Let's look at the second problem notion:

o Popular ideas of 'Power Animals' and 'Totems' based in American and central Asian shamanic cultures have also been a gateway into animism for some folks. However some of the ideas that have built up around 'core shamanism' and its even-newer-age successors, as well as the fictions of Castaneda serve to limit our understanding of the Third Kin.

In IE tales we don't very often see beasts speaking for themselves. We fairly often see various gods, heroes and other spirits choosing to assume animal forms (or having them imposed upon them). There is some notion of 'clan animals' in some Gaelic clans. Both Bear Warriors and Wolf Warriors may have existed in Celtic or Germanic societies, but we should be careful not to lump these into some vague idea of 'totems'. It seems to me that in the tales the appearance of animals is more often a guise of some other sort of spirit than a visit from a 'spirit animal'.

On the other hand, I think we can discern several things from ancient tales and lore that are important to an ancient understanding.

o First, there are whole categories, or races, or species of beings that are not the spirits 'of' material things, not are they Deities, in the sense of the Eldest and Mightiest, though the greatest of them may be 'shining ones' in fact. We hear of centaurs, and satyrs, of tree-nymphs and pool-nymphs, but also of Ghandarvas and the Dancer Women, and the Night-Hags. We have medieval legends of the Court Under the Hill, trooping and processing hosts, etc.

o Second, a great deal of medieval and even Pagan description of the 'wights' mixes the Dead with non-human kindreds freely, as if the Dead join the category. The Alfar of the Norse are often understood as Ancestors, but the Liosalfar (light-elves) are one of the 'races' of otherworld beings.

My continuing-to-evolve understanding of the Hellenic idea of daimones suggests that the category included both a variety of non-deific, non-human spiritual powers, and at least those we might call the Mighty Dead. We see a very simple, non-triple division of the Powers in Irish lore, when they refer to "De agus ande" - the Gods and the not-Gods.

So when we talk about mobile or immobile wights, we certainly have a wide variety of possible behaviors of the spirits. Some will have been stationary. Some will have been, or become, family allies and have come with the family to a new land. Who even knows what beings involve themselves in mercantile trade. Dreams alone would be enough to transfer a spirit from one land to another, in my opinion - they're tricky that way.

Our practice, then, can include efforts to approach any or all of these categories. I think lore makes it clear that to keep one's luck and weal one should be at peace with the spirits of the soil and green and local spirits. I think our offerings as we do them now are pretty well focused on that sort of work. In traditional lore there are also local cults of greater spirits - various local 'gods' of the forest or shrines to a specific non-deific, human-animal hybrid or spirit-tree beings. Many times these special shrines and rites are focused on magical goals - healing, fertility or wisdom. We've been nowhere near dealing with this sort of being yet, and I think there's a lot to be gotten from the effort.

Well, this has been a ramble, but it's a complex topic...



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Monday, May 24, 2010

Religion Inspirations From Sri Ramakrishnand Secret Of Male And Female

Religion Inspirations From Sri Ramakrishnand Secret Of Male And Female Image
This post is a continuation of previous study on the Secret of Male and Female from the Gnostic Gospel's recorded secret saying of Prophet Jesus Christ, blessed be his soul. The main post is here: Metamorphosis : Secret of Male and Female.

Reading the book titled, My Master by Swami Vivekananda where he was talking about his Master Sri Ramakrishna, a blissful soul and one of the most enlightened mystic of modern time (February 18, 1836 - August 16, 1886). In the book what caught my attention was some profound realization of Ramakrishna, may God bless his soul, about this exact secret of male and female. The reason its profound is because this great mystic not only says it from "bookish knowledge" but from his own realization and from the experiences that he experienced in his own lifetime.

I quote from the book, "One of the Sadhanas (the divine practices and struggle) was to root out the sex idea. Soul has no sex, it is neither male nor female. It is only in the body that sex exists, and man who desires to reach the spirit can not at the same time hold to sex distinctions.

... this man wanted to to bring the feminine idea into everything... until, after years of this discipline, his mind became changed, and he entirely forgot the idea of sex, thus the whole view of life became changed to him.

... to him every women's face was that of the Blissful Mother, and nothing but that.

... Think of the blessedness of that life from which all carnality has vanished, which can look upon every woman with that love and reverence when every woman's face becomes transfigured, and only the face of the Divine Mother, the Blissful One, the Protectress of the human races shines upon it!

... Such purity is absolutely necessary if real spirituality is to be attained."

Perhaps this reverence is what Jesus Christ also spoke about when he said,

"Reverence Woman, mother of the universe,' in her lies the truth of creation. She is the foundation of all that is good and beautiful. She is the source of life and death. Upon her depends the existence of man, because she is the sustenance of his labors. She gives birth to you in travail, she watches over your growth. Bless her. Honor her. Defend her.

Love your wives and honor them, because tomorrow they shall be mothers, and later-progenitors of a whole race. Their love ennobles man, soothes the embittered heart and tames the beast. Wife and mother-they are the adornments of the universe." - details here.

Next: In the next post God willing, i would like to focus on the verses of The Final Testament, The Quran that hints another mystery of male and female; the verses that dismiss the idea that Eve (representation of female) is created from a rib of Adam (representation of male) as suggested in Bible (Genesis 2:21, 22). [+] Please visit MysticSaint.Info For full multimedia experience and enjoy special music.

Blessings,
Sadiq



Labels: gods and goddesses of wicca  hinduism gods and goddesses  anglo saxon  all the greek gods and goddesses names  myth gods and goddesses  native religion  books of magic spells  seidr magic  magic spells charms  

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Asatru Poem Footsteps North

Asatru Poem Footsteps North Cover Uller's son, I am called,
By the shave pates, Steven,
Overlong they held me,
They hold my Blood kin still.

One of their scholar-priests
Taught more than Church would want,
Of Life beyond this Life,
From Past, to Now, and On.

He spoke of Heart and Mind,
Of Honor, Word and Deed,
He set my Thoughts awing,
To find what Church had hid.

I stayed inside the fold,
A dog becoming Wolf,
There came the day I left,
Alone and without Troth.

My steps ranged far and wide,
Through Dark and Light I trod,
Crossing In and Uten Gards,
I sought for Faith and Truth.

A wizard, then a witch,
Magician and adept,
Agnostic, deist, Zen,
Pantheist, then, myself.

To hills and woods I came,
A bluff above a lea,
A little hut was raised,
By six in friendship built.

With purpose clearly set,
An inner vision shared,
A time of cleansing thought,
In sweat lodge hot and dim.

I closed my eyes and strode
Beyond Midgard that night,
To skin clad hunting lodge,
A guest by fireside.

A huntsman studied me,
I returned gaze for gaze,
His eyes sought mine and held,
He nodded, smile gave.

Again I sat with friends,
In hut now cold and dark,
We went out under sky,
For torch lit blessing rite.

Those friends have gone their way,
As I have traveled mine,
To find the hunter's name,
And earn the smile's Worth.

My footsteps headed North,
My Kinlore to explore,
To follow bowman's path,
To find from whence he came.

My grasp of Kinlore grew,
I came to know Bow God,
His Holy Kin and Kith,
And words of Wisdom fair.

The Yew Lord spoke no words,
I heard Him anyway,
A Worthy Life to Live,
Upon the Middle Earth.

By Honor, Word and Deed,
By Host Frith and by Strength,
By Holy Uller's Ring,
A Man of Troth at last.

Recommended reading (pdf e-books):

James Allen Chisholm - The Eddas The Keys To The Mysteries Of The North
Emilie Kip Baker - Stories From Northern Myths
Anthony Arndt - Asatru The Northern Way

Thursday, May 20, 2010

What Religion Or Beliefs Did The Vikings Have

What Religion Or Beliefs Did The Vikings Have Cover The Vikings lived during the ending days of paganism and had multiple gods to worship. The term "evil" gods is always relative to the time they lived in, as a warrior's best death would be in battle with a sword in his hand! Many of their gods suited their way of life, looking over abundant crops, health, family and other things besides war, but, of course you only hear of the "active ones" Odin, Thor and others. Several of our weekdays are named after Viking gods. Wednesday was named after Wodin (Odin), Thursday: Thor; Friday: Freya (god of fertility).

Recommended reading (pdf e-books):

William Alexander Craigie - Religion Of Ancient Scandinavia
John Arnott Macculloch - The Religion Of The Ancient Celts
Chantepie De La Saussaye - The Religion Of The Teutons

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Yule Calebrations In Germanic Neopagan Sects

Yule Calebrations In Germanic Neopagan Sects Cover In Germanic Neopagan sects, Yule is celebrated with gatherings that often involve a meal and gift giving. Further attempts at reconstruction of surviving accounts of historical celebrations are often made, a hallmark being variations of the traditional. Groups such as the Asatru Folk Assembly in the US recognize the celebration as lasting 12 days, beginning on the date of the winter solstice.

Recommended reading (pdf e-books):

Robert Leo Odom - Sunday Sacredness In Roman Paganism
Al Selden Leif - 6 Questions On Wicca And Paganism
William Mansfield Groton - The Christian Eucharist And The Pagan Cults

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Groa Top Nine Heathen Books

Groa Top Nine Heathen Books Cover

Book: Groa Top Nine Heathen Books by Ann Groa Sheffield

Because my “List of Recommended Heathen Reading” keeps getting longer, I’ve put together a shorter list to in an effort to help someone who is brand-new to all of this and doesn’t know where to start. Let’s begin with the Top Three Books for the Neophyte Heathen (Ann Groa Sheffield)

Download Ann Groa Sheffield's eBook: Groa Top Nine Heathen Books

Books in PDF format to read:

Ann Groa Sheffield - Groa List Of Recommended Heathen Reading
Ann Groa Sheffield - Groa Top Nine Heathen Books

Seeds Of The World Tree A Primer On The Basics Of Esoteric Runelore

Seeds Of The World Tree A Primer On The Basics Of Esoteric Runelore Cover

Book: Seeds Of The World Tree A Primer On The Basics Of Esoteric Runelore by Anonymous

The Runes are not merely alphabetical symbols, used in ancient Germanic alphabets. The history of the Runes stretches back quite a distance and while it is true that the symbols themselves likely find their origin in many cultural sources, the inner essence of the Runes is something truly arcane and Otherworldly.

The first hint to the true nature of the Runes is in the name itself- "Rune". It comes from the word "Runa", which means "Mystery". Most people are not aware of even this basic fact. The Runes are not merely letters, but manifestations of Mysteries - mysteries that deal with the foundation of the cosmos, and every force or event that occurs in or around you.

One cannot consider the inner meaning of the Runes without understanding their relationship to the great Allfather Woden, who was the Master of the Runes or Mysteries- and the teacher of their recondite wisdom to mankind.

Download Anonymous's eBook: Seeds Of The World Tree A Primer On The Basics Of Esoteric Runelore

Books in PDF format to read:

Edred Thorsson - Runelore A Handbook Of Esoteric Runology
Anonymous - 50 Of The Most Powerful Spells On The Face Of Earth
Anonymous - Seeds Of The World Tree A Primer On The Basics Of Esoteric Runelore

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Armanen Runes

Armanen Runes Cover

Book: Armanen Runes by Karl Hans Welz

Rune Magic is extra power for you! It is ancient technology. You can use this extraordinary method now by harnessing the Ur-energies (original energies) of the universe. These energies provide you with your personal gate to the powers of creation !!!

Using the creative powers of the Runes for your psychic development and spiritual advancement, you can naturally gain control of love, money, business, sports, status, and life itself.

- You can harness the powers of Runeyoga to control the flow of life force for stamina, endurance, and an abundance of creative mental and physical energy.
- The Basic Rune Course leads you on your path to become a Rune Master.
- The Rune Reading Course is an introduction to the art of reading the Runes!
- Become a member of the Knights of Runes!
- The Rune Magic Book - basic information about the Armanen Runes .
- The Rune Ceremonial Book - an introduction.

Because of their power, Runes or Rune-like symbols, have been part of religious systems in the past as well as they are in present times. Therefore Runes cannot be considered to be the "proprietary system" of any specific religious creed, even if they were or are an important part of such a creed. Keep in mind that THE BASIC TECHNOLOGIES OF RUNE MAGIC ARE INDEPENDENT FROM ANY RELIGIOUS BELIEF STRUCTURE. TRUE RUNE MASTERS encourage incorporation of Runic practice in any religious system, provided that its teachings and actions encompass tolerance and love. We know that RUNES ARE FOR EVERY INTELLIGENT BEING IN THE UNIVERSE! The Eighteen Sacred Futhork Runes are a symbolism that represents universal cosmic structures.

Download Karl Hans Welz's eBook: Armanen Runes

Free eBooks (Can Be Downloaded):

Mark Mirabello - A Irmandade De Odin In Portuguese
Charles Baize - Pagan Scriptures
Bernard King - Meanings Of The Runes
Samael Aun Weor - Magic Runes
Karl Hans Welz - Armanen Runes

Saturday, May 8, 2010

The Mead Of Inspiration

The Mead Of Inspiration Cover Mead is mentioned frequently in Odinic myths and other bodies of writing related to Odinism, and as we know (and sometimes enjoy), it is also in evidence at Odinist gatherings etc. Many Odinists brew their own mead and in many ways it would be a fair observation to say that mead drinking has become a part of Odinist practice in some instances.

I am not here referring by the way to the ritual libation which though we nearly always refer to as mead, does not actually have to be mead. In that context it is more symbolic than literal so juice, water etc. can be used as it is the symbolism which is important and the liquid, be it mead , water, beer etc. is charged regardless of what ``beverage`` it actually is.

Now we could also fairly observe that the drinking of alcohol is part of our wider cultural inheritance and certainly not the exclusive preserve of Odinists, but it cannot be denied that both symbolically and literally, drinking alcohol is a feature of our religious community. It has been the subject of many jokes and light hearted comments and I certainly admit to having made such remarks myself and partaking of the practice. However, I think with the advance of our holy movement and its very definite deepening, we do need to take a `sober` look at this aspect.

As has been reported alcoholism within our community is a problem which cannot be ignored or laughed off. The fact that it is now at least being acknowledged and ways to address it being looked at, is a very positive step and though no one is suggesting we adopt a puritanical or kill joy approach at all, we should realise it is not a matter for humour. It is not in reality funny to refer to particular brands of mead as ``viking crack`` as has been done . Crack cocaine is not in any way a laughing matter but a vicious and horrendously destructive social menace, addiction is not funny but corrosive . Addiction to viking crack or any alcohol is not really a matter to laugh about. So to minimise the problem by such joking, though well intended and not willfully malicious, is not essentially positive.

In the myths, we also see that various other beings, giants and dwarves, desire this mead. This illustrates the desires we have to fulfill various physical and cravings and how we can therefore drain this life energy by pursuing illusions or using it chaotically or ignorantly. Another allegorical reference to this energy is contained in the myth of Idun as keeper of the Golden Apples of youthfulness. These apples (life energy) sustain the dwellers of the God realms and are coveted by a giant (as seen the desire for selfish negative gratification). Again Loki plays a role by helping the giant to steal the apples which symbolises it is ignorance (or illusion) which gives rise to these cravings. By giving way to such cravings we deplete our life force and in the myth the Gods are shown as aging . However when Loki (illusion) is overcome, the giant (selfish craving) is defeated also and the flow of life energy restored. Both the apples and the mead are symbolic of this life energy.

This is, as said, a brief explanation, but it will make it clear, that to be an Odinist does not require literal drinking of alcoholic beverage. And again, most definitely I am not suggesting we become a teetotal movement. But neither should we justify or encourage irresponsible drinking by seeing the reference to mead in our myths as being literal.

It should also remove the pressure or expectancy sometimes leveled that those attending an Odinist celebration to have to drink alcohol. In fact while ALL should strive to drink deeply of the mythic mead some should refrain entirely from the literal alcoholic variety and should not be cajoled into doing so.

Recommended reading (pdf e-books):

Aleister Crowley - The Litany Of Satan
Hermes Trismegistus - The Emerald Tablet Of Hermes Interpretation
Howard Phillips Lovecraft - The Quest Of Iranon

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Dagaz Rune

Dagaz Rune Cover Dagaz signifies the security provided by daylight and day in general. Day is the time when we can see normally and face an enemy, when we can normally do our business. There are no more obstacles in front of us. Dagaz is the end of the Futhark cycle seeing that by the old calculations, day began when people came home to dinner after work. Othala is also the completion of the whole journey, but it contains within itself the seed of a new beginning; it's actually a gate a person goes through to achieve a higher level of existence. As such, it is in no way the end of a journey, but it gives a certain stability and fortifies positions we've reached through the Futhark. Dagaz is a very positive Rune, a Rune which promises a new beginning and gives us hope for a better future (“dawning of a new day”). Dagaz is the level in which the conscious finally awakens and comes to self-realization. The Rune is used to achieve positive results and to help in difficult times.

Divination:

Positive meaning: awakening, security, hope, optimism, achieving one's goals.

Negative meaning: hopelessness, loss of ideals, loss of satisfaction.

Recommended reading (pdf e-books):

Karl Hans Welz - Armanen Runes
Samael Aun Weor - Magic Runes