Author: A Solitary Pagan
Lammas: Celebrating Grain in Ancient Cultures
Grain has held a place of importance in civilization back nearly to the beginning of time. Grain became associated with the cycle of death and rebirth. The Sumerian god Tammuz was slain and his lover Ishtar grieved so heartily that nature stopped producing. Ishtar mourned Tammuz, and followed him to the Underworld to bring him back, similar to the story of Demeter and Persephone. In Greek legend, ...
Lammas: A Feast of Bread
In early Ireland, it was a bad idea to harvest your grain any time before Lammas; it meant that the previous year’s harvest had run out early, and that was a serious failing in agricultural communities. However, on August 1, the first sheaves of grain were cut by the farmer, and by nightfall his wife had made the first loaves of bread of the season. The word Lammas derives from the Old English phr...
The Witch’s knot
The Witch’s knot is a common symbol in folk magic. The witch’s knot is a symbolic representation of the knot magic practiced by witches in the middle ages, and was used as a sympathetic charm against witchcraft, and usually scratched over doorways of homes and stables. One aspect of its efficacy as a protective charm lay in the ability to draw the complicated symbol in one continuous motion.
Magickal Knots
Knot magick, sometimes referred to as cord magick, relies mainly on the powers of concentration and visualization. The cord and tying of the knots are points of focus that will link the thought-form to the individual or situation and bind it, or hold it in position. This type of magick is used to stop a person from harming him or herself or another, to stop a situation until it can be dealt with o...
Knot Magick
The knot is a symbol of linking, bonding, or the connection to protective powers. The Egyptians used the knot to symbolize life and immortality. The Isis knot, which resembles an ankh with its arms at its sides, was widely used as an amulet of binding and release. It represented the ability to hold the power of magick until it was ready to be released. In magick and Witchcraft, the knot is used in...
Knots
The tying and untying of knots is used to bind and release energy in many folk magic spells and formulas. The ancient Egyptians and Greeks tied knots in cords for love spells. The “knot of Isis,” a red jasper amulet wound in the shroud of royal Egyptian mummies, summoned the protection of Isis and her son Horus for the dead in the next world. The ancient Romans believed knots could cause impotency...
Cord Magick
Gather around let me tell you about this amazing old folk magical art that has pretty much been utilized by cultures around the world. for those of you that are a little crafty, this could be something for you to work with. It does not matter if you are not creative or crafty. just like candles and colours hold vibration so does coloured cord or ribbon.a candle a cord or a ribbon is just that.when...
Kitchen Witch: Corn
(Zea mays) Planet: Sun Element: Fire Energies: Protection, spirituality Lore: Corn has played a central role in North and Central American religion for thousands of years. The Quiche Mayas of Guatemala and the Navajo believed that the first humans were created from corn. The Mayas, Incans, Aztecs, and nearly every American Indian tribe ate corn and incorporated it into their religious beliefs and ...
Kitchen Witch: Asparagus
(Asparagus officianlis) Planet: Mars Element: Fire Energies: Sex Magical uses: As you prepare the asparagus to be cooked or steamed. Eat with power.
What is a Kitchen Witch
A Kitchen Witch is a Witch who focuses his or her magical practice on the home and hearth and uses things commonly found in the kitchen as magickal tools. Kitchen Witchery may be an expression of religious faith; a Kitchen Witch may focus his or her spirituality on ancestor spirits or hearth Gods or Goddesses, or it may simply be a creative outgrowth of a secular Witch’s homemaking activities – or...
The Kitchen Witch’s Creed
The Kitchen Witch’s Creed In this pot, I stir to the sun an’ follow the rule of harming none. Banishment of bane when goin’ widdershins; an’ with water and salt negativity is cleansed. Household duties are more than chores. Magick abounds when mopping floors. With this broom, I do sweep to clean my house and safely keep. Marigold, Basil, Thyme, and Yarrow my spell is cast for a better tomorrow. Le...
Kitchen Witch: Spoons and Spatulas
The spoon is a bowl with a handle. As such, it is related to the moon and to the element of water. Spoons have been used for thousands of years. Until quite recently in Japan, the shamoji, or rice-spatula, was considered a magical object. Small spatulas were nailed over the front door of a house to guard it, and in the hope that its inhabitants would never go hungry for lack of rice.