The Ancient Whispers Newsletter

Welcome to the Ancient Whispers Newsletter, a multi-cultural newsletter with a little something for everyone of any creed or religion. Here you will find inspiring quotes, irreverent jokes, crafts, and most importantly, historical and/or religious scholarship. Every Wednesday a new edition should appear on this website with reminder emails sent out the night before to those who have opted to join one of the many forums and mailing lists to which I subscribe. If you wish to share this newsletter with others, please keep it intact with the original authors' names on all the articles. Any articles or sections, to which an author or URL is not affixed, were written by Candace (with the exception of the various jokes found herein).

Questions, comments, and topical requests are encouraged and should be posted to the AskCandace open forum at yahoogroups. I'd like to start a help column for the newsletter, so if you'd like to have your problem featured in a newsletter, let me know when you post.

The name of this month comes from the Latin word aperire, "to open." This is appropriate for a month of blossoming flowers dedicated to Aphrodite.

The Anglo-Saxon name for this month is Eastermonath, the month of Eostre the goddess of Spring and origin of Easter. The Irish word for April is Aibrean or an Giblean. The end of April is known as Seachtain an t-Sionnaich, end of the winds. The Franks called it Ostarmanoth. The Asatru and many other Pagans call it Ostara.

The first Full Moon of this month is called Seed of Planting Moon, Budding Tree Moon, or Growing Moon. It is also referred to as Pink Moon, Green Grass Moon, Planter or Planting Moon, and Hare Moon, names it shares with May’s Moon. It also shares the name, Wind Moon, with March.

On April 20th, the zodiac turns from Aries to Taurus. April’s stone and the birthstone of The sweat pea is the flower for April children. Aries is the diamond, though on some older lists, sapphire is the stone for the month of April. The birthstone for Taurus is the emerald. Aries also lays claim to amethyst, carnelian, garnet, fire agate, pink tourmaline, and topaz, while aquamarine, lapis lazuli, kunzite, rose quartz, and sapphire are associated with Taurus.

Lunar Holy Days

The Christian holiday of Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first Full Moon of the spring equinox. Though one of the most important Christian holidays, it was drawn together from many pagan traditions, and its name came from the goddess of Spring, Eostre. The Easter Bunny is a fertility symbol of Teutonic origin, and the hare was an emblem of Eostre. Eggs, a major part of the celebration, also have their origin as fertility symbols.

The first Thursday after the 19th of April is Sumarda Gurinn-fyrsti, the first day of summer in Iceland.

The first or third Saturday in April is Glen Saturday. The children of Kilmarnock, Ayrshire gather to pick daffodils at Crawfurdland Castle.

Preen-tail Day or Tailie Day

Day of Joy of the Ennead

Megalesia

Hans Christian Anderson

Day of the Counting of Thoth

Megalensia or Megalesia

Ma´at judges the souls

Megalesia

feast day Kwan-Yin or KwanShi-Yin

Tomb Sweeping Day

Megalesia

Megalesia

Blajini

Church of All Worlds

Megalesia

Sealing the Frost

The feast of the Hummingbird

Hana Matsuri/Buddhist Flower festival

Megalesia

A-Ma

Megalesia

the Sun dances

The Day of Bau.

Montague Summers

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Humor: We Are the Other People
by Oberon (otter) Zell

"Ding-dong!" goes the doorbell. Is it Avon calling? Or perhaps Ed McMahon with my three million dollars? No, it's Yahweh's Witlesses again, just wanting to have a nice little chat about the Bible... Boy, did they ever come to the wrong house! So we invite them in: "Enter freely and of your own will..." (Hey, it's Sunday morning, nothing much going on, why not have a little entertainment?) Diane and I amuse ourselves watching their expressions as they check out the living room: great horned owl on the back of my chair; ceremonial masks and medicine skulls of dragons and unicorns on the wall; crystals, wands, staffs, swords; lots of Goddess figures and several altars; boa constrictors draped in amorous embrace over the elkhorn; white doves sitting in the hanging planters; cats and weasels underfoot; iron dragon snorting steam atop the wood stove; posters and paintings of wizards and dinosaurs and witchy women, some proudly naked; sculptures of mythological beasties and lots more dinosaurs; warp six on the star-filled viewscreen of my computer; a five-foot model of the USS Enterprise and the skeleton of a plesiosaur hanging from the ceiling; very, very many books, most of them dealing with obviously weird subjects... To say nothing of the great horned owl perched on the back of my chair and the Unicorn grazing in the front yard. You know; early Addams Family decor. And then, of course, it being late in the morning, you can expect Morning Glory to come wandering out naked, looking for her wake-up cup of tea. Morning Glory naked is a truly impressive sight, and the Witlesses look as if she'd set titties on stun as they stand immobilized, hands clasped over their genitals. With the stage set and all the actors in place, the show is ready to begin.

Their mission, of course, is to save our heathen souls by turning us on to "The Word of the Lord" -- their Bible. I guess they figger some of us just haven't heard about it yet, and we're all eagerly awaiting their joyous tidings of personal salvation through giving our rational faculties to Jesus. Every time they come around, I look forward to trying out a new riposte. Sure, it may be cruel and sadistic of me, but hey, I didn't call them up and ask them to come over; they entered at their own risk! This time should be pretty good. After letting them run off their basic rap while lovely Morning Glory serves us all hot herb tea, I innocently remark: "But none of that applies to us. We have no need for salvation because we don't have original sin. We are the Other People."

"Hunh? What?" they reply eloquently. It's clear they've never heard this one before.

"Right," I say. "It's all in your Bible." And I proceed to tell them the story, using their own book for reference: (Genesis 1:26) The [Elohim] said, "Let us make humanity in our own image, in the likeness of ourselves, and let them be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven, the cattle, all the wild beasts and all the reptiles that crawl upon the earth." Elohim is a plural word, including male and female, and should properly be translated "Gods" or "Pantheon." (1: 27) The Gods created humanity in the image of themselves, In the image of the Gods they created them, Male and female they created them. (1:28) The Gods blessed them, saying to them, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and conquer it. Be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven and all living animals on the earth." Now clearly, here we are talking about the original creation of the human species: male and female. All the animals, plants, etc. have all been created in previous verses. This is before the Garden of Eden, and Yahweh is not mentioned as the creator of these people.

The next chapter talks about how Yahweh, an individual member of the Pantheon, goes about assembling his own special little botanical and zoological Garden in Eden, and making his own little man to inhabit it: (Gen 2:7) Yahweh God fashioned a man of dust from the soil. Then he breathed into his nostrils a breath of life, and thus the man became a living being. (2:8) Yahweh God planted a garden in Eden which is in the east, and there he put the man he had fashioned. (2:9) Yahweh God caused to spring up from the soil every kind of tree, enticing to look at and good to eat, with the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the middle of the garden. (2:15) Yahweh God took the man and settled him in the garden of Eden to cultivate and take care of it. Now this next is crucial: note Yahweh's precise words: (2:16) Then Yahweh God gave the man this admonition, "You may eat indeed of all the trees in the garden. (2:17) Nevertheless of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you are not to eat, for on the day you eat of it you shall most surely die." Fateful words, those. We will refer back to this admonition later. Then Yahweh decides to make a woman to go with the man. Now, don't forget that the Pantheon had earlier created a whole population of people, "male and female," who are presumably doing just fine somewhere "outside the gates of Eden." But this set-up in Eden is Yahweh's own little experiment, and will unfold to its own separate destiny. (2:21) So Yahweh God made the man fall into a deep sleep. And while he slept, he took one of his ribs and enclosed it in flesh. (2:22) Yahweh God built the rib he had taken from the man into a woman, and brought her to the man. Right. Man gives birth to woman. Sure he does. But that's the way the story is told here. (2:25) Now both of them were naked, the man and his wife, but they felt no shame in front of each other. Well, of course not! Why should they? But take careful note of those words, as they also will prove to be significant... Now this next part is where it starts to get interesting. Enter the Serpent: (Gen. 3:1) The serpent was the most subtle of all the wild beasts that Yahweh God had made. It asked the woman, "Did God really say you were not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?" (3:2) The woman answered the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees in the garden. (3:3) "But of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden God said, 'You must not eat it, nor touch it, under pain of death." (3:4) Then the serpent said to the woman, "No! You will not die! (3:5) "God knows in fact that on the day you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil." What a remarkable statement! "Your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil." The Serpent directly contradicts Yahweh. Obviously, one of them has to be lying. Which one, do you suppose? And, if the serpent speaks true, wouldn't you wish to eat of the magic fruit? Wouldn't it be a good thing, to become "like gods, knowing good and evil"? Or is it preferable to remain in ignorance?

(Gen. 3:6) The woman saw that the tree was good to eat and pleasing to the eye, and that it was desirable for the knowledge that it could give. So she took some of its fruit and ate it. She gave some also to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. (3:7) Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they realized that they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together to make themselves loincloths. The author makes an interesting assumption here: that if you realize you are naked you will automatically want to cover yourself. Further implications will unfold shortly...

(Gen. 3:8) The man and his wife heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from Yahweh God among the trees of the garden. (3:9) But Yahweh God called to the man. "Where are you?" he asked. (3:10) "I heard the sound of you in the garden," he replied. "I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid." (3:11) "Who told you that you were naked?" he asked. "Have you been eating of the tree I forbade you to eat?"

And so the sign of the Fall becomes modesty. Take note of this. The descendants of Adam and Eve will be distinguished throughout history from virtually all other peoples by their obsessive modesty taboos, wherein they will feel ashamed of being naked. It follows that those who feel no shame in being naked are, by definition, not carriers of this spiritual disease of original sin!

(Gen. 3:12) The man replied, "It was the woman you put with me; she gave me the fruit, and I ate it." Right. Blame the woman. What a turkey! (3:13) Then Yahweh God asked the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman replied, "The serpent tempted me and I ate. "So of course she blames the serpent. But just what did the serpent do that was so evil? Why, he called Yahweh a liar! Was he wrong? Let's see... (3:21) Yahweh God made clothes out of skins for the man and his wife, and they put them on. Out of skins? This means that Yahweh had to kill some innocent animals to pander to Adam and Eve's new obsession with modesty!

And now we come to the crux of the Fall. Yahweh had said back there in chapter (2:17), regarding the fruit of the tree of knowledge, that "on the day you eat of it you shall most surely die." The Serpent, on the other hand, had contradicted Yahweh in chapter (3:4-5): "No! You will not die! God knows in fact that on the day you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil." So what actually happened? Who lied and who told the truth about this remarkable fruit? The answer is given in the next verse: (3:22) Then Yahweh God said, "See, the man has become like one of us, with his knowledge of good and evil. He must not be allowed to stretch his hand out next and pick from the tree of life also, and eat some and live forever."

Get that? Yahweh himself admits that he had lied! In fact, and in Yahweh's own words, the Serpent spoke the absolute truth! And moreover, Yahweh tells the rest of the Pantheon that he intends to evict Adam (and presumably Eve as well) to keep them from gaining immortality to go with their newly-acquired divine knowledge. To prevent them, in other words, from truly becoming gods! So who, in this story, comes off as a benefactor of humanity, and who comes off as a tyrant? THE SERPENT NEVER LIED!

This story, to digress slightly, bears a remarkable resemblance to a contemporary tale from ancient Greece. In that version, the Serpent (later identified as Lucifer, the Light-Bearer) may be equated with the heroic titan Prometheus, who championed humanity against the tyranny of Zeus, who wished for people to be mere slaves of the gods. Prometheus, whose name means "forethought," gave people wisdom, intelligence, and fire stolen from Olympus. Moreover, he ordained the portions of animal sacrifice so that humans got the best parts (the meat and hides) while the portion that was burned to the gods was the bones and fat. In punishment for this defiance of his divine authority, Zeus condemned Prometheus to a terrible punishment for an immortal: to be chained to a mountain in the Caucasus, where Zeus' gryphon/eagle (actually a Lammergier) would devour his liver each day. It would grow back each night. Zeus promised to relent if Prometheus would reveal his great secret knowledge: Who would succeed Zeus as supreme god? Prometheus refused to tell, but history has revealed the answer... The interesting thing about all this is that the Greeks properly regarded Prometheus as a noble hero in his defiance of unjust tyranny. One may wonder why the Serpent is not so well regarded. On the contrary, snakes are loathed throughout Christendom. (3:23) So Yahweh God expelled him from the garden of Eden, to till the soil from which he had been taken. (3:24) He banished the man, and in front of the garden of Eden he posted the cherubs, and the flame of a flashing sword, to guard the way to the tree of life. So that's it for the Fall. But the story of Adam and Eve doesn't end there. (Gen 4:1) The man had intercourse with his wife Eve, and she conceived and gave birth to Cain... (4:2) She gave birth to a second child, Abel, the brother of Cain. Now Abel became a shepherd and kept flocks, while Cain tilled the soil. (4:3) Time passed and Cain brought some of the produce of the soil as an offering for Yahweh, (4:4) while Abel, for his part, brought the first-born of his flock and some of their fat as well. Yahweh looked with favor on Abel and his offering. But he did not look with favor on Cain and his offering, and Cain was very angry and downcast. Well, why shouldn't he be? Both brothers had brought forth their first fruits as offerings, but Yahweh rejected the vegetables and only accepted the blood sacrifice. This was to set a gruesome precedent: (4:8) Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let us go out;" and while they were in the open country, Cain set on his brother Abel and killed him.

Accursed and marked for fratricide, (4:16) Cain left the presence of Yahweh and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. We can assume that the phrase "left the presence of Yahweh" implies that Yahweh is a local deity, and not omnipresent. Now Eden, according to (Gen. 2:14-15), was situated at the source of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, apparently right where Lake Van is now, in Turkey. "East of Eden," therefore, would probably be along the shores of the Caspian Sea, right in the Indo-European heartland. Cain settled in there, among the people of Nod, and married one of the women of that country. Here, for the first time, is specifically mentioned the "other people" who are not of the lineage of Adam and Eve, i.e., the Pagans. So let's look at this story from another viewpoint: There we were, around six thousand years ago, living in our little farming communities around the Caspian Sea, in the land of Nod, when this dude with a terrible scar comes stumbling in out of the sunset. He tells us this bizarre story, about how his mother and father had been created by some god named Yahweh, and put in charge of a beautiful garden somewhere out west, and how they had gotten thrown out for disobedience after eating some of the landlord's forbidden magic fruit of enlightenment. He tells us of murdering his brother, as the god of his parents would only accept blood sacrifice, and of receiving that scar as a mark so that all would know him as a fratricide.

The poor guy is really a mess psychologically, obsessed with guilt. He is also obsessively modest, insisting on wearing clothes even in the hottest summer, and he has a hard time with our penchant for skinny-dipping in the warm inland sea. He seems to believe that he is tainted by the "sin" of his parent's disobedience; that it is in his blood, somehow, and will continue to contaminate his children and his children's children.

One of our healing women takes pity on the poor sucker, and marries him... (4:17) Cain had intercourse with his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to Enoch. He became the builder of a town, and he gave the town the name of his son Enoch. With both of their first sons not turning out very well, Adam and Eve decided to try again: (4:25) Adam had intercourse with his wife, and she gave birth to a son whom she named Seth... (4:26) A son was also born to Seth, and he named him Enosh. This man was the first to invoke the name of Yahweh. Now it doesn't mention here where Seth's wife came from. Another woman from Nod, possibly, or maybe someone from another Neolithic community downstream in the Tigris-Euphrates valley. But her folks also, cannot be of the lineage of Adam and Eve, and must also be counted among "the other people." But whatever happened to Adam? After all, way back there in chapter Gen. 2:17, warning Adam about the magic fruit of knowledge, Yahweh had told him that "on the day you eat of it you shall most surely die." So, when did Adam die? (Gen. 5:4) Adam lived for eight hundred years after the birth of Seth and he became the father of sons and daughters. (5:5) In all, Adam lived for nine hundred and thirty years; then he died. Hey, that's pretty good! Nine hundred and some odd years isn't bad for a man who's been told he's gonna die the next day!

Well, the story goes on, and maybe next time the Witlesses come to visit I'll tell more of it. But suffice it to say that those of us who are not of Semitic descent (i.e., not of the lineage of Adam and Eve) cannot share in the Original Sin that comes with that lineage. Being that the Bible is the story of that lineage, of Adam and Eve's descendants and their special relationship with their particular god, Yahweh, it follows that this is not the story of the rest of us. We may have been Cain's wife's people, or Seth's wife's people, or some other people over the hill and far away, but whichever people the rest of us are, as far as the Bible is concerned, we are the Other People, and so we are continually referred to throughout.

Later books of the Bible are filled with admonitions to the followers of Yahweh to "learn not the ways of the Pagans..." (Jer 10:2) with detailed descriptions of exactly what it is we do, such as erect standing stones and sacred poles, worship in sacred groves and practice divination and magic. And worship the sun, moon, stars and the "Queen of Heaven." "You must not behave as they do in Egypt where once you lived; you must not behave as they do in Canaan where I am taking you. You must not follow their laws." (Lev 18:3) For Yahweh, as he so clearly emphasizes, is not the god of the Pagans. We have our own lineage and our own heritage, and our tale is not told in the Bible. We were not "made" like clay figurines by a male deity out of "dust from the soil." We were born of our Mother the Earth, and have evolved over eons in Her nurturing embrace. All of us, in our many and diverse tribes, have creation myths and legends of our origins and history; some of these tales may even be actually true.

Like the descendants of Adam and Eve, many of us also have stories of great floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other cataclysms that wiped out whole communities of our people, wherein "I alone survived to tell the tale." Nearly all of our ancestral tribes (and especially those of us who today are reclaiming our own Pagan heritage) lack that peculiar obsessive body modesty that seems to be a hallmark of the original sin alluded to in the story of the Fall. We can be naked and unashamed! Why, our Goddess even tells us, "as a sign that you are truly free, you shall be naked in your rites." Not being born into sin, we have no need of salvation, and no need of a Messiah to redeem our sinful souls.

Neither heaven nor hell is our destination in the afterlife; we have our own various arrangements with our own various deities. The Bible is not our story; we have our own stories to tell, and they are many and diverse. In a long life, you may get to hear many of them... May you live long and prosper!
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Article : Paganism, Me, and the Nature of Existence
representing my own personal views on the nature of existence and our place within it

I've always believed in the "big bang" theory, but not in the way it is touted by the scientific community. I've always thought, yes, there was a tiny ball of energy/matter (relative to what exists now) and that it expanded to all that is. But my belief lies in the nature and reason for the expansion.

Now when people who believe in the "big bang" theory say this ball just blew its cork one day and started expanding, if they get into the spiritual side at all, they treat it like the "Will" to expand came from outside this ball. I've always been of the opinion that the ball itself was sentient, that expansion was a conscious decision, and that, for reasons which I may or may not have correctly determined, it expanded into all that we know today.

I like to refer this ball as "God" - without gender, infinite (because it was all that existed), and solitary. Everything was self-contained and it existed in a void, just as the "big bang" theory states.

So why do I think this "God" decided to expand one day? Well it was all alone, changeless, without any interaction (it had no peers), no stimulus... pretty boring. Of course, expansion would technically mean destruction. By expanding into everything (stars, planets, rocks, trees, animals, people, and the more spirit creatures like the various deities, angels, fae, and various other spirits), it basically gave up its existence. On the other hand, all its little sentient bits get the opportunity to grow, interact, and learn before returning at death (or its equivalent) to what I like to refer to as the "Reforming God."

While individuality may only be a temporary illusion in the grander scheme of things, some people seem to think this therefore invalidates this existence, and that the purpose of life is to severe all ties with what we perceive to be reality in favor of rejoining the divine and/or joining our “higher selves.” I don't see it that way. Reality may be an illusion, but it has a purpose. Dismissing it in favor of what lies outside is like... using all your money to pay for school and never going.

I don’t think this "Reforming God" can completely reform until what some scientists have called the "Big Crunch," when all matter ultimately bounces back into one tiny spot along with all energy. Until then, all things "go into the light" when they die, and sometimes come back through reincarnation for such is the nature of existence and the recycling of energy and matter until the "Reforming God" is complete.

I think this has happened many times before, and will continue to happen. If you read of various cultures... Hindu, Mayan, Nordic, etc, you see that they also believe in ages of destruction and recreation of existence. Of course, I don't think I've ever read anywhere that we had much of an effect on this process, so maybe I'm just giving us more credit than we deserve.

In any event, this is why I have always felt it is important to respect all other beliefs, religions, and beings (everything from rocks and trees to animals, people, and higher beings) -because we are all parts of this "Reforming God." It is important to do good things and act in an honorable way. What we do and think and learn here is taken back into the "Reforming God" when we die. Like a painting, we are all pigments to be applied. If we do it right, it will be a masterpiece and something to be proud of, but if not, it might as well be one of those neglected ad billboards by the side of the highway.

Of course, that's just my opinion, but it works for me. I respect all religions and paths. I take learning new things very seriously, and I try never to deride someone else's opinion. We are all pieces of this "Reforming God" so all ideas are equally valid.

Quote : Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)
Contradiction is not a sign of falsity, nor the lack of contradiction a sign of truth.

Craft of the Week : Creating a Dreamcatcher
From http://www.crystalinks.com/dreamcatcher.html : Please visit this website for diagrams and more information.

5 inch ring
4 yds Suede Lacing
1/8inch 3yds Sinew (waxed nylon string)
1 Small Concho
12 Pony Beads
16 Pony Beads
Feathers
Scissors
Glue
Clothes Pin

If you cannot obtain the supplies, try making one using a small green branch from a tree about 1 cm in diameter and 1 meter long. Just bind the ends of the branch together and then make the web in the same way. This is just one way to make dreamcatchers, I make many different styles, and no two ever look exactly the same. Be creative, and see how many different ones your can make.

1. Cut 8 ft. of the suede lacing. Glue one end of the lacing to the ring. Wrap the suede lacing around the ring until you reach the starting point again. Be careful not to twist the lacing. Glue the end of the lacing to the ring. Hold it in place with a clothespin until the glue dries.

2. To make the web, tie one end of the immitation sinew to the ring. Make nine half hitch knots around the ring spacing them about 1-1/2" apart. Make the last hitch a little closer to the first knot as this prevents a large gap from forming. Keep the thread pulled snug between the knots.

3. Begin the next row of the web in the middle of the thread that you have already weaved on row 1. Continue weaving in the same way until you have a small hole left in the center. Tie a double knot in the cord, add a tiny drop of glue to the knot and cut off remaining thread when dry.

4. To make the loop to hang your Dream Catcher, use a 12" piece of suede lacing. Fold it in half and tie a knot in the open end. At the top of the ring, attach the lacing by slipping the loop end through the ring and then around the ring and over the knot. Pull the lacing tight to secure it in place.

5. To make the hanging sections, cut three 8" pieces of suede Tie two 8" pieces of suede lacing about one third of the way up each side of the ring using a double knot. Slip 3 colored pony beads onto each piece of lacing and secure with a knot.

6. Using the last 8" piece of lacing to attach small concho to top middle of the ring. Slip three pony beads onto each piece of lacing.

7. Finally, push two feathers up inside the beads on each piece of lacing except the one hanging from the concho. Glue the feathers if they are loose. The last 4 feathers are attached 2 each side of the concho.

To make larger sizes: 12 inch rings needs approx. 7 yds of 1/8 suede lacing to bind it 9 inch ring - 6 yds 6 inch ring - 4 yds Remember that you will need extra suede for the laces and hanger.

Dream catchers made of willow and sinew are for children, and they are not meant to last. Eventually the willow dries out and the tension of the sinew collapses the dream catcher. That's supposed to happen. It belies the temporary-ness of youth. Adults should use dream catchers of woven fiber which is made up to reflect their adult "dreams." It is also customary in many parts of Canada and the Northeastern U.S. to have the dream catchers be a tear-drop/snow shoe shape.

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Humor : The Ten Cat-mandments

I am the Lord of thy House.

Thou shalt have no other pets before Me.

Thou shalt never ignore Me.

I shall ignore thee when I feel like it.

Thou shalt be grateful that I even give thee the time of day.

Remember My food dish and keep it full.

Thou shalt spend most of thy money on toys and gifts for Me.

Thou shalt always have thy lap ready for Me to curl up in.

Thou shalt shower Me with love and attention upon demand.

Above all, thou shalt do anything and everything it takes to keep Me happy.
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Who's Who in World Mythology : Aralu
For past articles and the bibliography, please go to the
Who's Who Archive.

Aralu or Irkalla, the Babylonian Underworld, was situated near the confines of the Apsu, pictured as an ocean encircling the earth. This Underworld was ruled over by Allatu or Ereshkigal and Nergal. This is a dark reflection of the living world where the dead are forced to subsist on mud and dust. It was customary to provide food for the dead so they would not have to wander in search of nourishment. In the epic of Gilgamesh, there seems to have been a separate abode for those slain in battle, similar to the Norse Valhal, where the occupants lay on couches and drink pure water. In this case, there may have been still other Underworlds in Babylonian mythology of which we have not heard.

Quote : The Holy Teaching of Vimalakirti
The grasping mind cannot grasp its ultimate inability to grasp; it can only cultivate its tolerance of that inability.

The Magi's Garden: Basil

Basil (Ocimum basilicum)
For past featured foliage and the bibliography, please go to the
The Magi's Garden Archive.

Folk Names: Albahaca, American Dittany, Common Basil, Devil Plant, Kiss-me-Nicholas, Little Love, Our Herb, St. Joseph's Wort, Sweet Basil, Witches Herb

Description: Basil is an annual and a member of mint family. It grows wild in tropical and subtropical climates and in temperate zones of North America. Basil prefers well-drained, rich soil. The thin branching root rises into a bushy square stem two to three feet high, with many branches. The leaves are gray-green underneath with purplish oil cells above. They are opposite and ovate, entire or toothed, and up to one inch long. The two-lipped flowers are white to red, or sometimes tinged purple, and grow in racemes from June to September in whorls of six at the ends of the branches. The entire plant has an unmistakable, pungent, mouth-watering aroma.

Bush Basil (Ocymum minumum) is significantly smaller, growing only to six inches. The flowers are white and grow on smaller branches than sweet basil. Wild Basil (Calamintha Clinopodium) is also referred to as Hedge Basil and Hedge Calamint. It is a straggling plant which may rise to one or one and one-half feet. A thick layer of soft hair covers the plant. The flowers are pinkish.

Effects: strong
Planet: Mars Zodiac: Scorpio
Element: fire
Associated Deities: Krishna, Vishnu, Erzulie (Haiti love goddess)

Traditions:
Basil is holy to the Hindus. A leaf is placed with the dead to ensure a safe journey and access to paradise. In many cultures, the herb is associated with death and is planted on graves. In Egypt, the flowers are placed on graves. It was supposedly seen growing on Christ’s tomb after the Resurrection, and it is one of many herbs said to have been used as an asperge by Solomon in his temple. Such associations may have enhanced the legend that it provided the only known cure for basilisk's poison.

Greeks and Romans believed it would only grow if it were insulted as it was sown. To the Greeks, it represented hate and misfortune and they painted poverty as ragged woman with basil at her side.

In Moldavia however, a fresh sprig of basil is associated with betrothal. A man will love any woman from whose hand he accepts a sprig. It is an emblem of love and romance some parts rural Italy as well, but in Crete it is called “love washed with tears” and represents love and misfortune.

Magic:
The smell of the fresh herb or oil causes sympathy between two people. The gift of a live plant would be especially appropriate at a wedding or bridal shower. For this reason, it may be used to sooth tempers between lovers or maintain or create love between two people. Basil stimulates sensuality, so any love spell containing this herb should not be used lightly. Due to its aromatic nature, it is best used in love incense or sachets, or added to food. Rub the fresh leaves on skin to attract love. In Mexico, a woman may sprinkle basil powder over her upper body, especially over the heart, while her spouse or partner sleeps to ensure fidelity.

In Europe, a young man would love any woman from whose hand he accepted a sprig, but the leaf will whither immediately in the hand of a promiscuous person. One form of love divination involves two fresh leaves on a live coal. If they lie still and burn quickly, a harmonious relationship is foretold, but if they crackle, you will have quarrels in your relationship. If they fly apart with fierce crackling, the relationship you are in or considering is undesirable.

In Mexico, basil is carried in the pocket for wealth. It may be kept in a cash register or placed on a doorjamb to draw customers. You may also soak a half-cup of basil in a pint of water for three days, and sprinkle the water at the entrance or place of business to attract customers and ward off thieves and vandals. This wash water may also be used to wash your new home (floors, walls, etc) before unpacking or the herb may be planted for protection and good fortune. Given as a gift, basil brings luck to a new home.

Basil provides courage in dangerous situation, whether they are mundane, magical, or spiritual. Rub powdered basil on the forehead for protection in crowd, especially among people you don't trust or like, or carry the herb to protect from hexes while attracting friends, money, and success. Small amounts may be left in each room for protection, or it may be scattered over the floor to dispel evil. It makes an excellent exorcism incense, and may be added to purification baths and purification ceremonies.

Basil is said to prevent inebriation, and kept in an open bowl, it dispels sorrow and depression. While it keeps goats away from your property, it was also said to attract scorpions. Being an herb of the element of fire, it may be used when invoking salamanders. It may also be prepared as an incense or tea before meditating on dragons. P> Known Combinations:
none noted

Medical Indications: Parts Used: leaves
Basil is an antispasmodic, appetizer, carminative, galactagogue, and stomachic. It soothes stomach and abdominal (menstrual) cramps, gastric catarrh, vomiting, intestinal catarrh, constipation, enteritis, whooping cough, and headache. Basil prevents organisms which cause dysentery. The flowering tops are used in India and Japan as cold remedies, probably best used in aromatic teas.

Nutrition:
Basil leaves should be torn or crumbled (if dried), not chopped. Though a peppery herb, basil sweetens tomatoes. It is good in eggs, cheese, salads, meat, chicken, fish, sausage, dressings, bland vegetables, and soups. It is an indispensable ingredient in my vegetarian bean-vegetable soup, and it is also an essential component of most pasta sauce.

Mercantile Uses:
I can attest to the fact that bees like basil. I would almost say that the bees liked my basil more than our lavender, though it’s hard to judge as they bloom at different times. The aromatic leaves and flowers are excellent in potpourris.

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Cartoon

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Poem : Winds, Winds, Winds
Sergey Yesenin (1895-1925)

Winds, winds, winds,
Wrap all my life in your flying snows.
I want to be the golden lad I was
Or a flower of the meadow lands.

I want to die for everyone and myself,
While the herdsman pipes his flock.
My ears are filled with starbells
By the white of the snow and the dark.

The unclouded trilling of it is good, good,
As it drowns suffering in the blizzard.
I’d stand on one leg if I could
Like a tree by the wayside.

And neighboring bushes would embrace me
And snorting horses pass me by.
The moon’s hands reach down to me
And hoist my sadness to the sky.

Quote : Seung Sahn
In original nature There is no this and that. The Great Round Mirror Has no likes or dislikes.

The Power of Stones : Ametrine
For past articles and the bibliography, please go to the
Power of Stones Archive.

Ametrine is a combination of citrine and amethyst. The only significant source of natural ametrine is the Anahí mine, in eastern Bolivia. It occurs in veins in a dolomitic limestone.

In addition to properties shared with citrine and amethyst, ametrine has the ability to enhance harmony with the universe. In meditation, it allows you to reach the higher states more quickly. It disperses negativity from the aura and helps in the rejection of material pursuits. Ametrine also allows you to find acceptability with other people.

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Humor : Top Ten Signs you Might be a Punk-Rock Witch

1) Your quarter calls involve the "F" word

2) Your spiral dance leaves bruises

3) You serve consecrated Pabst Blue Ribbon and cold pizza as "cakes and ale".

4) Your secret name for the Lord and Lady are "Sid and Nancy".

5) You use a "black handled switchblade of Art".

6) Your altar is set on a beaten old speaker cabinet held precariously together with duct tape.

7) Your altar candles are road flares.

8) Your ritual robe has liberty spikes.

9) You circle in a dank basement decorated with collapsing heating ducts and cockroach corpses.

10) The Great Rite involves whips, chains, and safety pins.
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A Dreamer's Guide : Omitted for this issue

For past articles and the bibliography, please go to the
Dreamer's Guide Archive.

Due to a horrible cold, their will be no new dreamer's guide for this week.

Quote : George Polya (1887-1985)
There are many questions which fools can ask that wise men cannot answer.

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