New Year’s Eve divination from my ancestors

1332288 05.01.2013 Участница фольклорного коллектива в селе Хомутинино Челябинской области во время рождественских гаданий. Александр Кондратюк/РИА Новости

My divination techniques and tools are different and new these days in accordance with my nature based spiritual path, however, there is always certain energy present for me around New Year’s Eve and always will be. It is, one might say, in my blood and memories. Happy memories.

New Year’s Eve for Russians is probably the biggest and the most important celebration of the whole year. I certainly remember waiting for it to come as a child and a young adult, as there was magic, festive spirit of new beginnings and just that turning of the clock event, it all enchanted me. Wonderful times with lots of crunchy sparkling snow and bright frosty days. 

I was born in Siberia. I will never forget winters there. When I was born it was – 40C, the coldest I ever experienced since. I do miss snow and cold very much around winter time here and memories come back alive of our New Year’s eves. One, in particular, when we got snowed under in our country house and in the morning put our skis on to go to the woods, the only way we could get out. I never in my life experienced such a dark night with such glorious moon and countless stars in thick clusters and of huge size. Pure magic. I will always remember that night sky and us sitting by the fire place inside our small wooden house/cabin. Nothing else existed in the world in that moment.

There are many traditions and customs that go with the New Year’s Eve celebrations in Russia like drinking champagne, certain dishes eaten during the festive meal (a LOT of food) and, of course, fortune telling. In ancient times in Orthodox tradition in villages young and old alike men and women would gather around to perform what I would now call ‘magic’, however, the aim would always be directed towards the future and finding out things about your future husband, future success and happiness and how to get rid of unwanted people, energies, etc. Relationships seemed to be at the centre of questioning at that time and still are, I would say.

This New Year’s Eve I did my own magic with a releasing SPELL and at midnight I might take out my grandmother’s old deck of playing cards, which she used for divination, and do some fortune telling myself. It is called Cartomancy when a deck of playing cards used for fortune telling. You can find meanings of the cards by clicking on the link above, should you wish to know more, although, I would suspect and my grandmother and I did create some of our own meanings and interpretations with years of practice, as any Tarot card reader would do these days. Intuition is at the heart of magic and psychic workings, therefore can go outside prescribed parameters and certain order, should you wish to practice intuitively.

Happy New Year, my wonderful readers!

Let the Goddess bless you with her gifts and protection for 2016

Advertisement

Creative imagination technique in magic and healing

Here I would like to share some examples of spontaneous drawings with you to access unconscious and release whatever needs to be seen. No interpretation is often needed, just drawing something out literally can help with feeling lighter, happier, emotional, but releasing. If in personal therapy you can ask your client to interpret through asking questions about each colour, image, shape and size, anything that stands out and how they feel when engaging with their drawing. Non-interpretive and interpretive technique is used in Art therapy with mental health patients, with children in psychotherapy, within transpersonal psychotherapy practice. I use this technique in my practice. It is one of my favourite ways to work and it is always wonderful to see shifts happening and insights coming out of clients’ drawings. I, myself, in my own therapy, experienced huge shifts and transformations through using creative imagination technique and drawings.

It is also used in magic very often, as it is very powerful in ways of accessing material otherwise unseen and unknown/unconscious. It can reveal so much about you and the way you see things, your desires and needs, obstacles and dislikes.

Call it magic, call it therapy or healing whatever it is used for it works wonders for the psyche. I wrote a post earlier on the Fire spell HERE where you can use this technique to release what is no longer wanted. I did the spell myself using a list where I put on paper in words what I wanted to be released and I also did a drawing in a spontaneous way, not a pre-determined way (you can do it that way too), i.e. drawing what you wrote. I just went with the flow without engaging thinking and letting my hand express on paper what is within me having set an intention to release all that needs to go.

Interesting observation was that when I did as list I was surprised that there didn’t seem to be that many things that I needed to release. Words didn’t appear easily, I had to think about what to put. Here is the difference with the drawing, which was so rich in colours and imagery it filled the whole space. You see when your thinking is engaged it blocks the emotional flow of the body, it blocks all the important energetic stuff connected to feelings and memories stored in the body. When drawing spontaneously all that material that needs to come out does flow very freely and in contrast to writing a list one can see just how much is inside and just how much needed to be released. If one stopped at just a list, the job would only be half-done. I hope this explains the power and value of incorporating this technique in your magical workings, personal healing and work with clients.

Here are some of my examples:

Here are some of my favourite drawings from C. Jung’s Red Book when he took a journey through his inner world:

Releasing Fire spell with a drawing, New Year’s Eve ritual/spell

Fire magic. New Year’s Eve releasing spell

I have been attracted to doing some drawing in the last few weeks and I have decided to incorporate that inner pull into my magical workings. Using creativity and intuition are very important to me, as I often find it is the best way to express whatever needs to be expressed in the moment and what can be better than tuning into your inner voice and following your inner guidance to create whatever is calling to be released, expressed or manifested.

Find a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed and what I suggest is just go for it. Some people find that they prefer preparing themselves for a drawing through visualization first. I go with ‘unconscious’ creating, i.e. putting pencil to paper without preparation or engaging with any thinking process. It is a process, which draws unconscious material out of darkness and into the light. It allows you to see what needs seeing in that moment. More on Creative/Active imagination HERE.

I continue to feel as I go along, I listen to where and what is appearing in my body, but mostly I let it flow and whatever is meant to come up will come up. The only thing I say to myself before I start is – Release what no longer serves me. It lets the Universe know what your intention is and energy will align with what your need is, you just have to go with its flow and create.

You can also produce a list, i.e. words on a piece of paper of what you wish to be released with a drawing, which symbolically represents each of those things on your list.

The Moon is currently Waning and it is New Year’s Eve. It is the perfect time for releasing, letting go, cleansing and ridding yourself of anything or anyone that no longer serves you or wishes to walk alongside you with peace and love. This ritual is very simple, yet very powerful and all you will need for this is:

• Drawing/list or both you prepared
• Cauldron to light the fire in
• White, black or violet candle
• Lavender oil burning (optional)
• Can be done outside or inside

Prepare yourself with a visualization of your goals, needs and desires and set your intention holding your drawing/list in your hand.  Light a candle and place it in your cauldron. Roll up your drawing/list and light it slowly. Let it burn chanting

Let what no longer serves me

Fly away Fly away

Release me, Heal me, Cleanse me

Happy New Year everyone! Let the Goddess bless you and your families with joy, love, pleasures and delights, good health and success, peace and kindness in the heart.

Much love

Raw Nature Spirit

Image source: http://www.rootsofritual.net/

Sacred space/altar – nature spirituality and ritual

Nemetona, the Celtic Goddess of the Sacred Grove

Looking back at the year I would like to share images of my altar arrangements through the seasons, as I grow and celebrate each pagan holiday and Sabbat.

My sacred place is normally in my bedroom, but some of them are outside, as you will see. You can intuitively pick a place, which suits you.

Nemetona is the Celtic Goddess associated with the sacred grove, so if you feel so inclined you can have a conversation with her to ask for help and guidance with finding and creating your sacred space. I find it very holding, super creative, joyous and wonderful experience.

Here is an extract from my e-guide INTUITIVE SPELL WORKING on creating your sacred space

FINDING YOUR SACRED SPACE:

Explore your house energetically looking for places you feel most relaxed, comfortable and joyous in. It might be the whole room or a particular corner in a room or a house/flat. Explore the energy of the space when you come across it, raise that vibration within yourself and attune to it. Sit still in the space absorbing vibrations. Once you find that special place you might then want to create an altar or simply visualise a circle where you see yourself working your magic. You can do as much or as little as you like, entirely up to you and what your vibration is tuning into in the space that you choose. You will have an answer about what you need to do once you find that space – trust me. If you receive a message to create an altar, you will also have a feeling for what sort of items you might want to display on it, e.g. candles, flowers, crystals, tree bark or leaves, jewellery, Tarot cards, anything you like.

Imbolc Altar 2015

Imbolc altar 2014

Ostara altar 2015

Beltane altar 2015

For Litha/Summer Solstice I often do a ritual outside as everything is so abundant and I find all of my surroundings are my Altar

Lammas altar 2015

Mabon altar 2015

Samhain altar 2014

Yule altar 2015

Yule Logs through the years

Yule log 2013

Yule log burning

I hope you enjoyed looking through these images of my altars and feel inspired to begin creating your own beautiful sacred spaces

Much love & many Blessings!

 

Reading while going through grief

Glencoe Lost Valley, Scotland

While going through a grieving process last month I found myself overtaken by a stampede of endless chattering of thoughts with an additional overwhelm of feelings. I felt I could not breathe, could not be, relax, feel one thing at a time or focus on one thing at a time. I was in a spinning wheel and it was terribly unpleasant. I knew the process of bereavement was takin place and the aim is always to let yourself feel everything. Often, as I also found with my clients, it is not the feelings that are the problem it is the constant chattering of the mind that is difficult to endure. It is frequent my client would say – I wish I could stop thinking, more so than I wish I could stop feeling. Interesting. What was happening to me was both processes at the same time – thinking and feeling and it was manifesting within my body in a way of physical symptoms and ailments. What I wanted to do was to escape, relax and be still.

What came to my awareness as I was searching for some relief and peace was the saying ‘escape into a novel/book’. I never really experienced that sense of being completely consumed by a piece of literature, my memories are more of reading because I had to read for studies, work, etc. I seem to have forgotten the last time I read a novel. I intuitively decided to test this out and began searching for a novel, but which one… I knew I wanted to find and wondered if there is such a work, which covered both my love for Scottish highlands and magic. I found the one pretty quick, which was incredible as if something somewhere guided me towards that piece and relief I was looking for. Trust your intuition I say, it never leads to astray, but always to the heart of what is needed.

The book was set in 1600 in Scottish highlands, Glencoe with a protagonist, who was a ‘witch’, a wild creature. What a gem, what a journey. This woman will remain with me forever. Not only I ‘escaped into the novel’, it connected me with myself, with my inner sacred soul pieces and that unconditional love that shines above and beyond.

Corrag by Susan Fletcher (Kindle edition) is a historical novel, which is based on real-life events, they say, during 1600 when Glencoe massacre took place. The heroin is such a beautifully wonderful creature it was pure magic to read her story and see the land she loved so dearly, as I do, through her eyes. She could have easily be me. The novel took me away into the land of my soul and I melted into that landscape as I walked the land with Corrag and spoke her language.

For those of you, who loves the land of Scotland, history, beautifully evoking, poetic and atmospheric writing, magical ways of the wild woman, unconditional love, deep kindness, herbs healing and humanness most of all – read this novel.

Here are some REVIEWS of this book that saved me from going insane in the moment of being gripped by grief and it will stay with me for years to come. I experienced that ‘losing yourself in a novel’ feeling. It also sparked my desire and enthusiasm to continue writing my own novel, which had been left unattended for many years. Perhaps, it is time to breathe some life into it again.

Please note that this book seem to go under three different titles for reason unknown to me. Corrag title is a Kindle edition and other titles are paperbacks

Corrag

The Highland witch

Witch light