6 Degrees of Invocation

     At its core magic is about sympathetic resonance harmony. It might sound like a mouth full of nonsense to some of you, but its pretty simple, like attracts like. Just as people form the same background and social circle tend to be comfortable around other people that come from the same side of the tracks.                               

   The more magically linked things used, the more they build off one another, compounding the energy build up, feeding off itself and if properly utilized can increase a spells power and precision. Its like themeing a meditation room. You use calming colors the right aromatic candles, oils and music all in the hope that when you enter the space you will be effected by the environment you created. The same principals can be used for spell casting.

     My teacher call this jokingly 6 degrees of invocation and it really stuck, helping me to remember it. So the following is those degrees or aspects of crafting your own spell that a person should consider and implement to safe guard their intent and insure they are protected for wayward thoughts and energies not to mention they are all really great spell booster when used together. 

1:Mineral, find a stone, gem, or crystal that is associated with you casting. The manner in which they form can be helpful in this. For instance diamonds are associated with fire because of how they form earth because of what they are and marriage because of what the represent.

2:Plant this can be tree bark, roots, flowers and herbs. White oak is good for fertility, Dragons blood for power, honeysuckle for love and luck and nightshade for beauty.

3: Chant obviously your words need to reflect your intent and goal. But when creating your own spell it is important to craft your words around the other steps. For instance if you are using a diamond for a spell related to weddings you should mention it in your rhyme at the point in the spell you are using it. The more sympathetic resonance created the better the effect 

4: Color matching this to your work can be a bit of a pain as the properties of color association very depending on the source of the information. I find it best just to spend a little time labeling them out for yourself. For example red candles for me are more of a power boost then anything else.

5:Time there are magical associations for the time of day and day of the week and the moth of the year. Rule over by certain planets gods and aspects of life. Timing can be a pain but the benefits are worth this extra step.

6: Energy when charging yourself up for your magical endeavor you can pay special attention to the type of energy you will be using in the spell. By watching the association with a particular element or weather it fall in to a masculine of famine domain you can charge yourself and your ritual objects to be in harmony with your intent. This is also the step in which you want to pick out the god goddess or spirits you will be using as they are an energy influence. 

Desperately Seeking Deity

   Have you ever had a friend that was a wonderful person but maybe the felt a little fat? A little nerdy or to boring? And then they fall in love with this great person and go on a crash diet, or get a tattoo, all in the hope they can  live up to what they have. Honor the great gift that they don’t feel worthy of. With a little ego boost from you or possible a counselor they finally come around to realizing they were good enough all along and what they were doing to themselves was unhealthy and unnecessary.

I think almost everyone can relate as either the friend or the self-esteem victim. And in the end we feel silly for doubting ourselves needlessly all that pressure can make you crazy.

When trying to live up to these fictionalized requirements we starve ourselves, we go without sleep, exorcise study act out of character, we are completely irrational and desperate. That evasive approval is like the next hit of ambrosia and we stop at nothing to try and get it.

Now picture for a moment that we can’t get that feed back from the one we love maybe they are mute or far away or passed on to the next life and can’t give us what we need, that simple validation or reassurance that will help us make it through to the next bout of insecurities.

A common theme in becoming a more faithful person is acts of devotion. Fasting, repenting, sweat lodges, vision quests vows of silence, obedience and chastity…that’s right people can be in a unhealthy one sided relationship with their god, or gods.

After all how do you live up to the perfection of the divine? What would you give up to please them? What mountains would you cross or dragons would you slay to please that which you turn to in your darkest hour?  

More importantly does it even matter?

If you look back over religious figures those that seem truly in touch or set apart for a divine quest are normally regular faithful people plucked from obscurity and thrust in to the role of saint.

But does that mean you have to be a saint to be good enough?

For me the answer like a lot of divine answers is not in a book or meditation technique. I prefer more hard facts. That might seem counter point to the concept of faith but I don’t really think so. 

The gods don’t speak often directly to man the few times that they have are legends and complete denominations of faith spring up around the experience. So to most people they look around and see silent gods they must try harder to bend the ear of. As if a divine being would have so simplistic a means of communication as so appear before bob and tall him I want you to have children with this woman. 

So not getting a phone call bob prays and fasts and sweat lodges in the hopes that Buda will send him a txt message  telling him to go for it. 

The funny part is that bob is getting messages and he doesn’t even realize it. When he looks at sally his pupils dilate his heart races his body releases hormones and endorphins. When bob holds his baby with sally for the first time his body massively produces estrogen gentling his personality some times to five times the average estrogen level of a woman. In stilling in him a gentleness so profound that he would die or kill for the little miracle he and sally made by listening to their body’s. 

These chemical responses (like the knowledge of how to latch on to a nipple for a baby) are called biological imperatives. The guide us to things that will make us live and a lot of times to things that will make us happy. Its not a vision or a scroll but is no less profound when you stop to think that something made us like that. Crafted are individual biochemistry to like blondes to be aggressive or timid so that we appeal to are friends and lovers. The key to good relationships is communication. Some can’t speak guy some can’t speak girl why does every one think they can speak god? 
You are how you were made you were made how you should be and you are perfect in that creation because every breath you take is a act of divinity a sacred purposeful moment that the creators wanted to happen. Take the pressure off your self and relies you were good enough from the beginning and you have just been being silly. 

Killing In The Name of.

  Imagine a world were innocent children are beaten to death as a crowd looks on condemning them as evil. Or a world were women have their genitalia sheared off to keep them faithful. A world were saying you think different is punishable by death. Were children are tossed out to fend for themselves so they can’t be sexual compotation for the older men that rule.

  You don’t have to imagine this is the world you live in. Not some distant echo of the past. Not some historical barbarism that disappeared in the dark ages. Its happening now all around the world. The horror of it all is that these heinous evils are all in the name of god.

  There is a thin line between faith and fanaticism. At some point in their spiritual journey people reach a plateau of faith. Where they feel they know enough to be comfortable in their beliefs defend them as there own to others and gain satisfaction in them. We call these people enlightened, you can normally spot these people by the clam and serene aura they seem to give off they are relaxing to be around and seem wise beyond there years.

  Fanaticism happens when a person seeking outside of themselves for something that is missing; clinging desperately to the promise of a giving purpose, the certainty of knowing their place in the world and so they try to prove there faith by a grand display. O they can be so full or moral superiority that they feel the need to cure the world of its misconceptions by radical measures. They can also simply be a product of their environment in a strict society such as the Amish which is considered extreme to most anyway what is the next step?
 Well in Ohio the extreme of Amish seems to be breaking in to their own peoples homes, beating them, and shearing off there facial hair violently to shame them for not being what the others believe they should be.

Just as some of the things I have written about before speak of evolutions in religion. This to is an evolution and sometimes devolution of them. Generally there are two paths to this. Going old school in your beliefs to attempt to get back to purity or going left of center so that you can accomplish something you feel has to happen.

Don’t fool your self every religion has blood on its hands with denominations of Christianity  holding the highest body count simply because of the proliferation of the faith. 9 million woman in the inquisition. The crusades as both side were a denomination of Christ worship. And yes 911 all in the name of god weather you call him Allah or not.

And before the rise of Christ they people of that time did it in the name of their gods in  Egypt of old it was to permote the pharaoh patron above all others.

Tolerance is such a simple gift when I comes to religion all it requires is a little selfish thought. Tell yourself I know I am on the right path and let the others fend for themselves. If you believe your god hates a type of people they surly don’t need your help to do anything about it after all they are the most powerful and only true one out their right capable of wiping life from the planet? They don’t need your feeble butt kissing to make them happy. And if I were them I would be really,  tired of people name dropping me on every half baked brain fart idea they think would make me happier with them.

So the next time you feel the need to boost your faith or further its cause try thinking that maybe the best thing you can do is be somebody other people would like to be like instead of jamming your books down their throat. After all once you take that step what can your children do to go one step further when its their time to push their religious limits?
     

Spell casting 101

    A lot of times in online Wiccan groups I see people asking how do you cast a spell and looking over a lot of the material out their I see a lot for spells made for this or that effect but nothing about the bare bones of a standard spell form.
   Now for the most part I try on this blog to keep it to a bit of philosophy and musings about various religious subject and avoid actual instruction, but as it seems to be a recurring thing I will label it out as it was taught to me.

 Step one: cleanse self ground center and focus before you start anything so you don’t bring any negativity with you in to the casting.

Step two: cleanse object you will be using if they have been used in previous spell work. 

Step three: charge object with magical energy that is focus toward your intentions for the spell.

Step four: Create your sacred space for the spell by casting your circle making sure you have everything you need with in reach and enough room to move about as needed. 

Step five: charge your self for the spell by channeling universal energy 

Step six: cast spell (whatever it my be) 

Step seven: put out candles and clean up anything not supposed to be left out such as bits of ribbon and so on.

Step eight: cleanse self again ground and center releasing excess energy to the universe. 
Step nine: thank the god or goddess you used 

Step ten: cleanse objects that are not still in use.

Step eleven: cleanse sacred space and open the circle.

This is the simple skeleton of casting any spell or performing a ritual. The seemingly constant cleansing is to prevent unintended thoughts emotion and all that from attaching its self to you or your spell and to keep them from lingering after  you are done.   

WishCraft

   One of the hardest things to except when you beginning to practice the craft is to face your limitation. Even with magic and prays to powerful deities something’s are simply out of our hands.
   Many of times a sweet face sister of mine will ask. well can’t you just (insert impossible request here)? To which I have developed the habit of saying “I am a witch not a genie.”
  This however got me to thinking about one of my early lessons in the craft. Once a craft user begins to learn how to focus and move their own energy around and send it out to perform a task, a strange phenomenon some times occurs. Once this magic is set free it can become like a reflex. Energy can build up and on simple whim seek to do your will weather your perform a ritual or simply subconsciously desire it.
  When a passive ability becomes a reflex impulse issue it is no longer a spell. Instead my mother coin this Wishcraft. (she may have gotten the title else where and I simply haven’t come across it)

Now to many this seems like such a blessing no practicing, no difficult chanting, you want it and it happens. The problem is first human impulses are not subject to morality, so when a spell is born out of pure desire there is no filter to do no harm. It simply gets the job done as quickly as possible and damn the consequences. That is a fast track to massive karmic debt.

It can also leave you depleted of energy, its messy and unfocused energy that is unleashed contain good and selfish intentions that can poison a sacred space or other areas of your home. And to bring something you desire closer to you it wont hesitate to step on people you love to bring it in to your life. And the gods help any poor soul you get angry with.

Identifying it as going on is the hardest step, but fortunately its easy to mange once you do. Daily energy balancing and a few focus ritual and your wayward magic can be reined in before you set fires that require years for careful work to fix. And don’t fool your self weather intentional or not the effect are your responsibility to fix. But it might require you being advanced enough to know your own magical self to the point were you can identify your own magical handy work. So take a look around and see how much in your life is luck and how much is wishful thinking

Jehovah Witness Protection

I think almost every American has at least one time in their lives opened their door and been greeted by two moderately dressed people asking have you meet Jesus of do you know god? Most people feel the same reaction to Jehovah’s witnesses at the door  as they do to vacuum cleaner sales men. Feeling the sudden desire for the sprinklers to come on.

But a question remains in my mind when I think of this.

  You see here they are asking you a question, like they are with saint peters office up in heaven and their trying to fit you in at four thirty with the big man.
  Most people realizes that they are not in direct contact with the creator but here people are that say they can teach you who he is, what he wants from you and why you should care. So the question this raises for me is not do you know god, but can you know god?

   There are many factors in this. How much of a divine being can you truly know with the limits of one genetically watered down fruit of knowledge? And which interpretation of the creator are you trying to know?

   Since the beginning of time people have attempted to put a face on their gods assign them personalities, likes and dislikes, hair and eye color, romantic relationships great miracles and even terrible wrath.

  The interesting bit is the from a public relations aspect the god of the Israelites is the least understood when compared to his less camera shy peers.
You see before Christianity the pagan view developed their images of gods and goddesses in a kind of evolving process. An aspect of life would inspire the idea of a divine overseer. The rain wouldn’t come and man sought a deity to ask that it be changed.  They would attempt different things to please them and basis their opinion of them and their personality from what they could infer from the results. So and so is found of goat sacrifices so they must love or hate goats.
Here’s the clever bite on the part of the people that decided to market Jehovah, he is undefined, unknown many modern believe will debate this of course but if you look back on it you will see that it is the truth and quite on purpose.

You see in the beginning (of religion not the world) man held the common belief in the power of names.
  To name something was to know it, to define and limit it by title and definition. Many cultures believe that if you possessed the true name of something you held power over the object or entity that you had the name of.      

   You can even see this in evidence in the exorcism rituals used by the catholic church. In which they attempt to learn the name of the demon in order to gain power over it and cast it out. This like many of their practices is a hold over from pagan lore.
So lets examine the beginning of Jehovah worship.

Historically speaking it started with a small band of Jewish people that were conquered by Rome and brought to the city in various capacities but mostly as slaves and servants.
   The Judaic beliefs in those times held a very strong view on the power of true names (look up there golem story for more context on this). So this slave religion surrounded by the Roman gods was looked down on by the wealthy and popular people, and was constantly subjected to scrutiny.

   Its my belief that before the evolution from slave religion to the Christianity of the poor and common man and then to the catholic faith that even a emperor believed in, that the people of the ancient proto religion decide to hide the name of their god so that the oppressor religions could not have power over him or define him …or her like everyone else did with their gods.

In fact the name Jehovah simply means god and is a title not a name. Other attempts to obfuscate the Christ god can be seen if you look closely enough.

Making it sinful to have images and likenesses, Like in the ten commandments. The muslin concept that images of the prophet are blasphemy. The Amish belief that photo steal your soul, are all evolutions of this concept that to protect their god they must hide away his name and face.
And evidence in a culture of secrecy.
When it started this was a safety measure and a way to keep it personal and free of judgment and comparison, but in modern days this strange evolution has made it stand apart how can you judge what you can not know? You can’t but from protection measure it grew in to its own phenomenon to become the most common religion in the world.

After all once you know that Zeus was a womanizing man with a white bearded that had a soft spot for worthy mortal Heroes what else is there to know? How can that compete with the unknown? The mystery and allure of the hidden face of god.

So what can be drawn from this? Well to me Its just another thing that makes dogma and ritual less appealing. Something sparked the first Israelite to look up and pray something lifted his heart and gave him enough joy and peace. To the point that he felt the need to share it with others and to me that’s all the more P.R a god needs.

When anything is watered down from its source it is subject to context when that happens people define it judged it and misunderstand it. But we can not go back in rime and as the first follower or a god what they felt and be satisfied. Nor could they ever fully explain a first hand experience in a way that you would know it as if it happened to you. The only way to know is to feel it for your self. Luckily for man there are man endless reasons to turn your face to the sky and open your self to connect to something loving and compassionate in the universe.

So I encourage you to experience not interpret. The wind rain mountains and snow hold the beauty of heaven and the nature of the gods far better then anything crafted and packaged by the hand of man book or other wise.

Alpha wolf ????

A little while ago I did talked a bit about how there are so many Cleopatra reincarnates, and just they other day I was talking with someone else about animal totems. It got me to thinking woman and past lives are not the only ego tripping people I have run in to when it comes to the craft.

Depending on the lore there is a host of animal spirits that a person can have this is most prevalent in Native American cultures, but is not exclusive to them. They can be guides, tricksters, or down right demonic depending on the mythology associated, and the view point of the person having the interaction with them.  

The phenomenon that I have ran in to is the amount of male wolf and lion spirits that are supposedly someone’s totem. You see a personal spirit totem is supposed to be a guide animal that represents personality traits that the human possesses.

However not only is there an epidemic of self ego inflating, but the tends to be a general misunderstanding of the spirits nature and traits by these people.

The picture so horror story incarnation of the lone predator wandering the night and untouchable by all he sees. I call this habit Apex envy.

Apex predators are animals that are at the top of their particular food chain in a given ecosystem. These are the targets of much admiration so it naturally follows that being associated with one comes of like a complement. But if you four hundred pounds of couch potato that is afraid of conflict Please for the love of the goddess quit telling people you’re a tiger.

See the harm in this behavior is the reaction I just showed. As Wicca is by and large a self governing religion were we check ourselves we gain the responsibility to set an example to others seeking guidance. When you participate in this pointless self deluding you are cheapening the experience for other people that might be looking up to you or trying to gain insight by relating to your experience.

Part of growing your own spirit is being honest with yourself, and getting to really know yourself and your own nature. Also to degrade the other animal spirits as unworthy because they are not powerful in the physical world is a great disservice to them.
Learning the good points of the animal kingdom might require a little excursion into animal behavior and psychology but if you are serious about wanting to befriend and be worthy of an animal totem then it is well worth it.

Find the value in rabbit and stag fox and crow and find it in yourself. there is nothing wrong or second class about any of the spirits. Or with who you are and your personality traits for that matter only with what you think they say about you.          

Hey Baby whats your Element?

Here are the signs divided by element:

Fire.....Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius

Earth.....Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn

Air.....Gemini, Libra, Aquarius

Water....Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces

  

Lately I have noticed when trying to help people understand things I have been finding myself asking what element they are when trying to offer insight. So I thought I would take the time to label some things out for people. As it is not as commonly know what your element is and what they mean in relation to your personality and ability’s.

Now I want to preface this by saying this is a frame work for peoples personality’s, the direction they are naturally and most easily apt to follow. It is however not set in stone that you must be what you are inclined to be.  Just because a child grows up in an impoverished inner city does not mean the will join a gang; it is however very likely it is the same with signs and elements. Weather you break the mold is entirely up to you.

Another point that needs made, is while you are only one dominate Zodiac sign, all elements exists in all people. The only factor is that one tends to be dominate based in tandem with your zodiac.

I want to mention these are my personal experiences with elemental personalities. I tend not to write about things I don’t have firsthand knowledge of, but it is important to note that some people have different experiences, and can be very defensive of the way they see things. So if in reading this you feel these things don’t hold true for the way you see things …. Then shut up this is my blog lol.

There are also different stages of elemental personalities. Like different levels of fuel in a gas tank.

Balanced: in which the best attributes are displayed

Excess imbalanced: The traits are exaggerated because of an excess of this element.

Deficient Imbalanced: traits are practically non existent  

Earth:  Earth signs tend to be slow to react to new stimuli, unless they have a precedent for what they are encountering. They can be quiet, very heartfelt, the strong silent type. Once their mind is made up on the subject that’s the end of the story for them unless something earth shattering occurs. On the positive side if you leave a good impression with an earth sign it stays even if you go out of contact with them for a long time.

They are stable or at least likely to be, so they have a good head for monetary security. When it comes to money they are the slow steady build kind and the least likely element to take chances or risks.

Then tend to base their opinions off their upbringing more than other elements, which might use their eyes or their heart. Instead the earth people will ask you about your life to make up their minds.

When an earth sign is happy and positive fertility flows off then like waves enriching people’s lives around them. Their homes almost always have a test of time feeling to them and a lot of semimetal trappings.

Nothing seems to hurt worse than when you have a close relationship and you hurt a earth signs feelings. When the earth turns barren to you the silence is deafening and seems permanent. However they tend to set conditions in their mind of what it will take to be on good terms with them and if you pester them enough they just might tell you.   

Magically they tend to be naturally skilled in protection magic and material gain spells, their psychic gifts lean towards gut intuition. And a lot of it is reflexive and sometimes they won’t even know where it’s coming from. Naturally plant herb and stone magic comes easier to them.

Air: Air children are fun they show up unannounced sweep you off to do something random and unplanned and take off again. They tend to exist in their own heads most of the time. They have a vision of what their life and friendships are and these can sometimes be different than reality. Of the signs they can be the least in touch with their emotions. They are more likely than any other sign to live by a code and don’t work well with concepts that don’t match their vision. They can sometimes be hard to relate to because it’s hard to decipher their motivations even for themselves.

They tend to be the first element to try new things often just for the experience. They like to travel and can have a been there done that attitude.  The fastest way to lose an Air friend is to be boring. If nothing is new with you and they can’t pull you off to do something with them they will drop you to move on to something else this isn’t lack of love but a thirst for stimulation. They will be back as soon as they think up something new that includes you.

Magically they are adapting at travel and thought related magic’s. The psychic intuitions tend to come in the form of dreams and visions. Freedom spells creativity and truth casting is all the preview of a song Air sign. Astral travel is also easy for them to pick up on. Spells using smoke feathers, fans and breath tend to be their most powerful.

Fire: The fire people are wild and you either love or hate them. They tend to have lots of physical energy and an inability to set still when agitated. They don’t mind taking chances like an air sign but they require a motivation. They are passionate and fall in and out of love quickly. They tend to react badly to confrontation and when angry with someone the bad emotions can escalate and escalate until its all-out war. It’s best to approach them calmly when possible. When they fix their romantic eye on another the same is true the passion grows and grows and either their partner matches their intensity or they get burned. In contrast the slow burning Fire child is wonderful to be around they create an atmosphere of possibilities and can have a muse like effect on those around them.

Magically they are influenced by the sun Healing magic can be very powerful from a Fire, their physical related magic is a talent second to none, as is causing passion. When confronted magically they can burn through more spells through at them faster than any other sign and bring something to ruin Is easy for a properly motivate Fire child. Candles volcanic stones bon fires and sun are the best power boosts for a fire.

Water: Moon children are emotional this can be either deep or surface but they always have a feeling one way or the other. These emotions can be mixed but they are ever constant. They make choices from their hearts more than any other element. They are reflective at times mirroring what is around them making them the most adaptive. To spite this they do not react well to change. The river most flow to the sea if its path is diverted it causes a massive effect on all the things around it. Water signs are compassionate and will fight for their loved ones even when asked not to. If you have a mother that constantly says “but I only did it for you” she is likely water imbalanced. Losing relationships is harder to move on from for water because they will continue to feel long after it is healthy to do so. The phases of the moon can sometimes effect a waters emotions and if left by themselves with nothing to adapt to they can do some outlandish and out of character things.

To repair a friendship with a water sign try a heart to heart but you had best be genuine they can smell fake faster than the other elements. When a Water is angry at you they will not attack your money, your property, or your health like the others they go right for the heart. They will ruin your self-esteem your image and your closest relationships. And gods help you if you told them something embarrassing because everyone will find out about your underwear fetish. They are also the most likely to hit blow the belt when upset going for your weak spots like dead relatives and your battle with weight.

On the positive side no one nurtures better than a water sign, It is the element which brings life and their love can transform you in to a better you.

Magically illusion magic, scrying emotional healing and transformation are the skills of a strong water. Psychic’s among them tend to be empathic either pick up on or projecting emotions. Weather spells and love spells are easily in their wheel house. Water, oils, potions, and brews are the best spell boosters as is free running water and mirrors        

         

What did you just call me, Hag?

    Witch, Wizard, Warlock, Druid, Hagan, Benandanti, Mage, Wiccan, Pagan, Shaman, these are all names for people associated with the use of magic, some times in a religious context sometimes not. Yet you would be surprised how important these can be to the people that hold them. How fiercely they will argue over the definition.

A popular favorite is the title of Warlock, commonly used today to refer to male witches in an effort to separate them from the feminized title of Witch. The word definition is a bit different. Where some hope to redefine it as male witch historically it is used to refer to a person that broke an oath literally meaning Oath breaker. In the magical world this occurs when someone inducted into a coven turns on his or her fellow witches and commits an act of betrayal.

They are then ritually divorced from the coven the nature of how this is done changes from group to group but generally taking the form of any letting go of negativity or banishment spell.

So it is understandable that some people chafe at hearing someone introduce themselves as a betrayer.

Benandanti is modernly known as a Italian Wiccan path and is less popular then the more common Striga or Stregheria is a system of Witchcraft with Italian roots, and the term itself is of archaic Italian origin. It’s most frequent contemporary usage indicates a form of ethnic Italian Italian Witchcraft originating in the United States, popularized by Raven Grimassi since the 1980s. Stregheria is sometimes referred to as La Vecchia Religione ("the Old Religion")The word stregheria is an obsolete Italian word for "witchcraft", the ordinary Italian word being stregoneria. 

While Benandanti is not so much a path as a birth right In Italy when a man or woman was born with a birth veil or cowl, then were assumed to be dream walkers that could never drown and when fostered out to be taught magic by other Benandanti. The cowl its self was often sold as a protection amulet to sailors. Now as this birth phenomenon only occurs in one out of every hundred thousand births it is a bit understandable why this branch of the craft died out. Fresh recruits were hard to come by in a localized area and with the proliferation of the church you could no longer proudly proclaim the difference of your child’s birth. Instead having to hide it, or in the case of some Christian converts kill the devil child.

Now modern witches are a self-educated lot   as there are very few Wiccan Temples to go to for guidance. By and large they find books that speak to them normally through referral by others sometimes through the hard won effort of finding it themselves. So we do tend to not consider the fact that someone could be educated differently then others have their own definition of a title, or simple have inherited a family definition if they were taught by an elders verbal instruction.

So it is important to remember we are all one. The spark of magic unites us across the Babble line, and it doesn’t matter what it’s called.    

Would the real Cleopatra please stand up!

     Picture it Egypt 44B.C you are a young and beautiful queen named Cleopatra you’re your poised to rule the world and will be the last pharaoh in all of history.

Ah the good old day’s back when Anthony loved me and all was right in the world…Wait you mean you don’t believe that I could have been her in my past life?...oh damn you must have a brain.

      Now I will likely get some angry feedback for this, but I can take the heat.

Reincarnation is a popular after life view in the Wiccan world. Basically a person’s soul leaves there body upon death, passing in to the Summer Lands for a short while and when the time is right you are born again in to a different life and a different form. This new life and new form is thought to be a reflection of the lives you lived before. The better a person you were the better the life you are born into respectively.

Remembering these former selves is called having a past life experience. These are said to happen when a lesson from your past life is being repeated in your current one. When this happens your soul reminds you with a flash back to you form self.

Some meditations, normally guided are said to be able to invoke visions of your former self and many people make a nice living specializing in just that.

Here is the little fly in the ointment. I have met no less than 13 Cleopatra’s personally. Now you have to ask yourself after Cleo number three is this possible in short no its not.  

     Here are some reasons why. First there is only one soul to go around she can’t exists in the likely thousands of people that claim her worldwide simultaneously. Secondly if you believe in reincarnation then you are likely a believer in magic if you believe in magic then it follows you believe in the abilities of the Egyptian priests that preformed the funeral rites on Cleopatra at the time of her death preserving her body so that she could be reincarnated back in to her own mortal coil at a later point.

Thirdly Cleopatra herself claimed to be an incarnation of Isis.

So please lady’s …and some gentlemen stop saying you’re her, it’s nonsense and it damages people’s views on the whole reincarnation concept. While it would be cool to be a historical figure in a past life set your ego to the side and validate a genuine experience over something flashy, and claiming to be her doesn't so much impress people as it makes them realize what low self-esteem you have
 

Your witch foo stands no chance against my witch foo

In the Wiccan faith pride is not a sin, and in point of fact to spite the Reeds warning of harm none there is no retribution (Out side of Karma) when this tenet is violated.

It even seems to be a common phenomenon in beginning casters to come to an elder and say “I keep cursing people by reflex, I just get so mad that they energy is sent before I can even think about it.”

No tribunals are called no prison sentences issued. In most cases the curse flinger is simply told they lack energy control and must work to master them selves, and learn control.

In Judaic religions they practice a act called a Mitzvah. Doing a kindness and taking no credit. This made me wonder about the balance between pride and humility.

Have you ever meet as a Wiccan that just goes on and on about the powerful spells they cast. Bragging endlessly about how they are so skilled? Blah, blah, blah. In a religion with very few rules and regulations it think this is an outlet for the people that don’t have any support in their faith. Afraid to admit that they could use some help they overcompensate by bragging.

Do we need outside validation to feel good about our craft?

To me while praise is all ways nice, Its not necessary as wicca focuses a lot on learning your self and facing your self I think that this phase of learning is the threshold of a rookie and an adept. Faith in any form should always be practiced for your self. This gets a bit more complicated when the gifts of Wicca encourage you to act on behalf of others as well.

It can be difficult to balance between over compensating rookie and a fairy god mother complex. So it is important to regulate your self. Even in a coven paths are separate and personal and what might be right for you could be wrong for everyone else. If you seek validation try finding a teacher with a similar mind set and save the show and tell for when someone asks.