Author: A Solitary Pagan

Sharing a meal with friends or those you love is a ritual in itself, there is a certain energy associated with this simple pleasure, and with the magic of food our life is sustained. The oven is one of your magic tools, as alchemy takes place whenever you put something into the oven and it is transformed. Old magic paid attention to the lore of food and the energies that are contained in the food ...

Knives were first created by flaking flint, jasper, and other cryptocrystalline quartzes into finely edged tools. The knife is ruled by Mars and the element of fire. This tool has been used both for life-threatening (stabbing) as well as life-affirming (cooking) purposes. It was the first implement used for eating, for it could both cut food as well as transfer it to the mouth.

We’re all separate, distinct persons, connected with the rest of our fellow-creatures and with the universe, and yet apart. No one diet is correct for everyone, just as no single type of haircut, food, or religion is suitable for all. Opinions vary, but it seems that people of most earlier cultures ate meat. One food scholar states that no exclusively vegetarian society has ever been discovered. C...

When the harvest had been spared, our ancestors thanked their deities with offerings of food. This may have been buried, flung into the air, or tossed into afire. The portion earmarked for the deities wasn’t consumed by humans. Even today, with tremendous botanical knowledge and global weather reporting, farmers in most parts of the world are still at the mercy of natural forces. The increased kno...

(Tuber melanospermum) Planet: Venus Element: Water Energies: Love, sex Magical uses: The Romans believed that truffles were created by thunder. Add truffles to foods designed to increase your ability to give and to receive love. If that’s not the important issue, eat truffles to increase sexual desire.

(Ipomoea batatas) Planet: Venus Element: Water Energies: Love, sex Lore: An English cookbook of 1596 includes the preparation of a sweet potato tart intended to excite sexual desires. Those sweetened, orange tubers often served at Thanksgiving are actually sweet potatoes, not yams. Yams certainly do exist and are eaten in large quantities in Africa, Central and South America, and the West Indies, ...

(Rheum spp.) Planet: Venus Element: Earth Energies: Love, protection Magical uses: Rhubarb is native to China, where it is still used in medicinal herbalism. All parts of the plant are poisonous save for the red stalks. Rhubarb is a love food. The zingy taste ensures zingy, exciting relationships if rhubarb is prepared with visualization. Rhubarb or rhubarb/strawberry pie is one of the ultimate lo...

(Raphanus sativus) Planet: Mars Element: Fire Energies: Protection Lore: Wild radishes, eaten before breakfast, were once thought to protect the diner from being flogged and to enable one to overcome all obstacles and enemies. Magical uses: Slice thinly and eat for protection, especially in salads with onions, bell peppers, and other protective foods.

Planet: Moon Element: Earth Energies: Psychic awareness Lore: Pharaohs in ancient Egypt ate mushrooms, but the common people did not. Romans believed that mushrooms provided strength to the body. Mushrooms, like all fungi, have long been regarded with suspicion. Their seemingly miraculous appearance overnight after a good rain, their mysterious ways of propagation, and their eerie appearance have ...

(Capsicum spp.) Planet: Mars Element: Fire Energies: Protection Lore: From archaeological evidence found in Mexican caves, chili peppers seem to have first been cultivated 9,000 years ago. The Aztecs are said to have used chili peppers in rituals designed to exorcise spirits from possessed persons. Chili peppers were recently banned from one state’s prison system because the burning vegetables cou...

(Brassica spp.) Planet: Moon Element: Water Energies: Protection Magical uses: Broccoli is a fine addition to protective diets. Season with basil, garlic, and mustard seed for increased power

Secale spp.) Planet: Venus Element: Earth Energies: Love Magical uses: The familiar taste and smell of rye bread comes from the caraway seeds used in its creation, not from the rye. Rye, however, is a powerful addition to diets designed to increase your ability to give and to receive love. Caraway fits in here as well