Celebrating Pagan Pride

Charge of the Goddess Traditional by Doreen Valiente, as adapted by Starhawk: Listen to the words of the Great Mother, Who of old was called Artemis, Astarte, Dione, Melusine, Aphrodite, Cerridwen, Diana, Arionrhod, Brigid, and by many other names: Whenever you have need of anything, once a month, and better it be when the moon … Read more

Gold and Gods

Money is the blood of the planet. Heal the money and we can heal the world. — Barbara Wilder, Money is Love Money exerts a deep emotional influence on who we are and what we believe we can or cannot have, including our social and geopolitical structures. According to some thoughtful observers, our long unwillingness … Read more

Venus Retrograde and a brief departure

And now ‘tis dark, and going I shall fall.’‘In night,’ quoth she, ‘desire sees best of all.’— from Venus and Adonis by William Shakespeare On July 27, we entered a phase in which the planet Venus went retrograde, an event that occurs only once every eighteen months, and this year in conjunction with stern Saturn’s … Read more

And now we have Fired the Grid

In honor of Firing the Grid… May this prayer spell pulse through us all, from this day forward: The Goddess is our sanctuary;Her embrace holds us night and day.We can be unafraid in the earthquake andComforted in the hurricane knowing we are not alone. She is the river of joy, gladness is her voice.She streams … Read more

July Magic

The linden, in the fervors of July,Hums with a louder concert. When the windSweeps the broad forest in its summer prime,As when some master-hand exulting sweepsThe keys of some great organ, ye give forthThe music of the woodland depths, a hymnOf gladness and of thanks.— William Cullen Bryant, Among the Trees The first day of … Read more

E-I-E-I-O

We are the power in everyoneWe are the dance of the moon and sunWe are the hope that will not hideWe are the turning of the tide. — Starhawk As we explore the meaning of magic, it seems impossible to discuss it without also talking about ritual. In the rituals and magic that are woven … Read more

What is magic?

I will keep the magic-The magic that hidesIn the greens of leaves,In the flight of birds,In the smell of fertile earth. I will keep the magic- The magic thatGlows in fire,Falls in rain,Blows in wind,Rests in stone. I will remember who I am and what I keep holy,And that all else will pass like frost … Read more

Midsummer Day

Today is Midsummer Day in many of the Scandinavian and eastern European countries. In Finland, Latvia, and Estonia, for example, Midsummer Day is second only to Christmas as the biggest holiday of the year. Bonfires, feasting, parades, dancing and carousing fill the countryside. All sorts of divination and spells are common practice, and reveling outdoors … Read more