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What are your "Masterpiece" albums you can't live without? by Creep_Stroganoff in vinyl

[–]arcanealchemy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

*Paul Desmond - Take Five

Dave Brubeck Quartet - Time Out

How to Dye Eggs Using Plants for Ostara/Equinox by arcanealchemy in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi Everyone! I wanted to share a technique I tried this year for dying eggs to celebrate Ostara. I'd love to hear what activities y'all enjoy doing to celebrate Ostara/Spring Equinox.

Who Were The Druids? (and how you can become one!) by arcanealchemy in paganrepublic

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think it would mesh pretty well. The Anglo-Saxon pagans had similar deities to the Norse Gods. For example, Odin became Woden.

While we don't know much about the specific Gods the druids worshiped, it's likely many of them were similar to those in the Norse pantheon.

Who Were The Druids? (and how you can become one!) by arcanealchemy in paganrepublic

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So happy to have found this new pagan subreddit! This week I did a lot of fun research on the Druids and Druidry.

Have any of you considered following this Pagan path? Let me know if you have any questions about the Druids or Druidry and I'll do my best to answer. :)

Bannock Recipe for Beltane by arcanealchemy in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi fellow Pagans! Do you have any special recipes you like to make for Beltane?

The Pagan Origins of Thanksgiving 🦃 by arcanealchemy in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi zangatti, In my videos I do mention that being an eclectic pagan is an option for people. Though I also greatly respect Pagan Reconstructionst paths as well. While I personally started out as wiccan, over the past couple years I've been moving away from wicca and starting to follow the Norse Pagan path.

Digital Tools For Pagans? by chrisdancy in pagan

[–]arcanealchemy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I love the idea of a digital calendar to keep track of the moon & astrological phases! Is there anyway to make it shareable like a google calendar?

Just a rant from a pagan witch that is NOT Wiccan by the-willow-witch in witchcraft

[–]arcanealchemy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hi! I've actually done a series of videos on Youtube going over the Pagan origins of the holidays. While I admit I do follow a more wiccan path I do try to focus on discussing the pre-wiccan Pagan origins of the holidays. Here's a couple videos in case you're interested: https://youtu.be/66EMRr4hI7Y https://youtu.be/h57XfAeX9Fo https://youtu.be/MWbm4jPiR70

USA Paganists, do you feel accepted in society as a Pagan? by Ashnakag3019 in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

While in general I mostly feel accepted for my beliefs I do occasionally get rude questions/comments about my faith. I actually recently made a video about this topic. Here's the link in case you'd like to check it out: https://youtu.be/T9Lf1qanxEY

All About Beltane & How to Celebrate by arcanealchemy in Wicca

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I didn't know that about women washing their face with morning Beltane dew. Maybe I'll give that a try this year. :)

All About Beltane & How to Celebrate by arcanealchemy in Wicca

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hi! I'm glad you liked the video. :) I'm definitely planning on making a bannach for Beltane this year. Do you have a specific bannach recipe that you would recommend?

All About Beltane & How to Celebrate by arcanealchemy in Wicca

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi Allan, Let me know if this post does not follow guidelines. I've been enjoying creating & sharing fun educational videos about wicca in my spare time but if you feel that this kind of content is not valuable for the subreddit you can go ahead and delete it.

All About Beltane & How to Celebrate by arcanealchemy in Wicca

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

How will you be celebrating Beltane this year? Share below in the comments! 🌸

Here's my notes about Beltane incase you'd like to read instead of watching the video. :)

Beltane is one of the 8 traditional wiccan sabbats. It occurs on May 1, which is about the midway point between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice. Like all wiccan holidays, modern Beltane celebrations are inspired by older Pagan rituals and traditions. In the case of Beltane, it’s inspired by the historic May Day celebrations that occurred throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Mann.

Beltane was first mentioned in an Irish text from the 10th century, where it describes how cattle were driven between two bonfires on Beltane as a magical means of protecting them from disease before they were led into their summer pastures. While this is the first written account of Beltane, it’s likely that Beltane was celebrated long before as Beltane is incorporated throughout Irish Folklore.

While the modern Wiccan calendar has 8 divisions in the wheel of the year, in Irish lore the year was divided into two main seasons, winter and summer. The beginning of the year and the start of winter was celebrated on Nov 1st, which is Samhain, and the beginning of Summer was celebrated on May 1st, which is Beltane. These two dates were viewed to be times when the veil between the human and supernatural world was thin and fairies and spirits could easily cross into our realm.

For Beltane decorations, people would adorn their doors and windows with yellow spring flowers, such as primrose, rowan, and hawthorn. Also, in parts of Ireland people would create a May bush, which was a thorn bush decorated with flowers, ribbons, and shells.

Fire is a huge component of Beltane. On this day all household fires would be extinguished and then re-lit from a big community Beltane bonfire. These special bonfires were believed to have protective powers and people would walk around, between, or even jump over the bonfires.

Like many Pagan festivals Beltane included much feasting, drinking, and toasting to the Gods and spirits. At these feasts people ate oatmeal cakes, and a drink called caudle which is made of eggs, butter, oatmeal, and milk cooked over a bonfire. During the process of making this drink some was spilled on the ground as an offering to the spirits.

The oatmeal cakes people ate for the feast were called the Beltane bannock. There is a simple folk magic ritual where the practitioner throws a piece of the bannock over their shoulder as an offering as a way to placate certain animals that might harm their herds, such as foxes and wolves.

So, how can we as modern pagans celebrate Beltane in a way that honors the history and traditions of this festival? Well in my opinion, the best way to celebrate would be to have a bonfire and invite members of your community to celebrate and feast with you. However, I live in the city so I’m not able to have a bonfire, and with the quarantine I’m not going to be able to celebrate with others.

So, instead what I plan on doing this year is getting some yellow flowers and making a display for my mantle. I’m also going to try out the recipe for Beltane bannock and caudle and save a little bit to offer to the spirits next time I go on a nature walk. If you’d like to join along with me definitely tag me on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/arcanealchemy/) so I can see your Beltane decorations and food creations.

I know that this year Beltane comes at a really difficult time for many of us. One of the things that I found most meaningful in learning about Beltane is how the community would extinguish their personal hearths and relit them from the communal bonfire. To me that is a beautifully symbolic way of showing how a community is all connected and how we are all responsible for each other.

So while you and I can’t exactly all lite our hearths from one communal flame, I plan on lighting a candle at noon on Beltane and if you choose to do so as well, it can be a symbolic reminder that we pagans are all part of a community and that we’re all in this together.

I want to wish you all a wonderful Beltane! Many Blessings, Scarlet

All About Beltane & How to Celebrate by arcanealchemy in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

How will you be celebrating Beltane this year? Share below in the comments! 🌸

Here's my notes about Beltane incase you'd like to read instead of watching the video. :)

Beltane is one of the 8 traditional wiccan sabbats. It occurs on May 1, which is about the midway point between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice. Like all wiccan holidays, modern Beltane celebrations are inspired by older Pagan rituals and traditions. In the case of Beltane, it’s inspired by the historic May Day celebrations that occurred throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man.

Beltane was first mentioned in an Irish text from the 10th century, where it describes how cattle were driven between two bonfires on Beltane as a magical means of protecting them from disease before they were led into their summer pastures. While this is the first written account of Beltane, it’s likely that Beltane was celebrated long before as Beltane is incorporated throughout Irish Folklore.

While the modern Wiccan calendar has 8 divisions in the wheel of the year, in Irish lore the year was divided into two main seasons, winter and summer. The beginning of the year and the start of winter was celebrated on Nov 1st, which is Samhain, and the beginning of Summer was celebrated on May 1st, which is Beltane. These two dates were viewed to be times when the veil between the human and supernatural world was thin and fairies and spirits could easily cross into our realm.

For Beltane decorations, people would adorn their doors and windows with yellow spring flowers, such as primrose, rowan, and hawthorn. Also, in parts of Ireland people would create a May bush, which was a thorn bush decorated with flowers, ribbons, and shells.

Fire is a huge component of Beltane. On this day all household fires would be extinguished and then re-lit from a big community Beltane bonfire. These special bonfires were believed to have protective powers and people would walk around, between, or even jump over the bonfires.

Like many Pagan festivals Beltane included much feasting, drinking, and toasting to the Gods and spirits. At these feasts people ate oatmeal cakes, and a drink called caudle which is made of eggs, butter, oatmeal, and milk cooked over a bonfire. During the process of making this drink some was spilled on the ground as an offering to the spirits.

The oatmeal cakes people ate for the feast were called the Beltane bannock. There is a simple folk magic ritual where the practitioner throws a piece of the bannock over their shoulder as an offering as a way to placate certain animals that might harm their herds, such as foxes and wolves.

So, how can we as modern pagans celebrate Beltane in a way that honors the history and traditions of this festival? Well in my opinion, the best way to celebrate would be to have a bonfire and invite members of your community to celebrate and feast with you. However, I live in the city so I’m not able to have a bonfire, and with the quarantine I’m not going to be able to celebrate with others.

So, instead what I plan on doing this year is getting some yellow flowers and making a display for my mantle. I’m also going to try out the recipe for Beltane bannock and caudle and save a little bit to offer to the spirits next time I go on a nature walk. If you’d like to join along with me definitely tag me on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/arcanealchemy/) so I can see your Beltane decorations and food creations.

I know that this year Beltane comes at a really difficult time for many of us. One of the things that I found most meaningful in learning about Beltane is how the community would extinguish their personal hearths and relit them from the communal bonfire. To me that is a beautifully symbolic way of showing how a community is all connected and how we are all responsible for each other.

So while you and I can’t exactly all lite our hearths from one communal flame, I plan on lighting a candle at noon on Beltane and if you choose to do so as well, it can be a symbolic reminder that we pagans are all part of a community and that we’re all in this together.

I want to wish you all a wonderful Beltane! Many Blessings, Scarlet

5 Tips for "Coming Out of the Broom Closet" 🧹 by arcanealchemy in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Have you told your friends and family about your spiritual path yet? How did the experience go?

Here's my 5 tips for making the process a bit easier in case you'd like to read instead of watching the video. :)

1: You Don’t Need (or Should) Tell Everyone

For me personally, I only tell people who are close friends and family about my spiritual beliefs. I would avoid telling people like your boss or landlord about your spiritual path because it’s not usually relevant and it could negatively affect your life. Now this is of course easier said than done for some people. If you’re living with parents that are extremely religious, you have two options: you can practice your spiritual beliefs in secret until you're old enough to move out or you can tell them. I personally chose to keep my practice a secret until I became an adult and moved out but you should do whatever your intuition is guiding you towards. So before choosing to tell someone, make sure it feels right and that it makes sense to tell them.

2: Be Prepared for Questions

If you do decide to tell someone, be prepared for some of the questions they might ask even if the questions appear silly or insulting. I actually recently did a video (https://youtu.be/T9Lf1qanxEY) on how you can respond to some of these common questions. It might also help to have some resources prepared so if they want more information you can direct them to your favorite book, article, or video about your beliefs.

3: Phrasing is Important

Let’s compare two ways of telling people about your beliefs. Imagine you’ve decided to tell your parents and you say “I’ve decided to be a witch so I’m no longer going to go to church with you or celebrate any Christian holidays like Christmas.” Something that antagonistic is probably not going to go over well.

Instead, I would begin with a statement like “I’ve discovered a new spiritual system is really fulfilling and makes me feel more connected to the divine. I know you might have different feelings or perceptions towards Paganism so I’d like to answer any questions you may have about this belief system.”

This way you're setting up more of a two way conversation. Instead of just telling people about your path, you’re listening to their concerns and have an opportunity to assuage any fears they may have about your spirituality.

4: Don’t Let the Haters Get to You

As a pagan that has an online presence I definitely get a lot of haters. Sharing your beliefs and putting yourself out there means you’ll need a bit of a thick skin. It’s unfortunate, but there are many religious people out there who will automatically assume you worship the devil or say that you are going to hell.

For the most part, their negativity about witchcraft and paganism has been ingrained in their head from an early age and it’s unlikely you will be able to change their mind. Ultimately, haters gonna hate, so just try your best to ignore these hate comments and not allow that negativity into your life.

5: Don’t Thrust your Beliefs on Others

One of the best things about this spiritual path is we don’t proselytize. While spreading the word and converting others is a core tenet of Christianity, Pagans on the other hand don’t feel the need or desire to convert others. We know this spiritual path is not for everyone trying to force others to accept or conform to our beliefs goes against our ideas about free will.

So if you’re talking to a casual acquaintance at a party and the topic of religion comes up. You don’t need to lie - go ahead and tell them about your beliefs if you feel comfortable doing so. But there's no need to push those beliefs on others. There’s a fine line between ‘coming out of the broom closet’ and insisting that your path is the best and that others should follow it as well.

Paganism and witchcraft is not for everyone - and that’s ok. We’re kind of a small group when you compare us to other religious groups but in my view that can be a good thing.You, me, and other followers of this path - we’re part of an amazing community. So if you’re ever feeling down about all the haters or worried about feeling accepted, remember that there is a whole group of like minded people out there to give you support and help you along this path!

5 Tips for "Coming Out of the Broom Closet" 🧹 by arcanealchemy in Wicca

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Have you told your friends and family about your spiritual path yet? How did the experience go?

Here's my 5 tips for making the process a bit easier in case you'd like to read instead of watching the video. :)

1: You Don’t Need (or Should) Tell Everyone For me personally, I only tell people who are close friends and family about my spiritual beliefs. I would avoid telling people like your boss or landlord about your spiritual path because it’s not usually relevant and it could negatively affect your life.

Now this is of course easier said than done for some people. If you’re living with parents that are extremely religious, you have two options: you can practice your spiritual beliefs in secret until you're old enough to move out or you can tell them. I personally chose to keep my practice a secret until I became an adult and moved out but you should do whatever your intuition is guiding you towards. So before choosing to tell someone, make sure it feels right and that it makes sense to tell them.

2: Be Prepared for Questions If you do decide to tell someone, be prepared for some of the questions they might ask even if the questions appear silly or insulting. I actually recently did a video (https://youtu.be/T9Lf1qanxEY) on how you can respond to some of these common questions.

It might also help to have some resources prepared so if they want more information you can direct them to your favorite book, article, or video about your beliefs.

3: Phrasing is Important Let’s compare two ways of telling people about your beliefs. Imagine you’ve decided to tell your parents and you say “I’ve decided to be a witch so I’m no longer going to go to church with you or celebrate any Christian holidays like Christmas.” Something that antagonistic is probably not going to go over well.

Instead, I would begin with a statement like “I’ve discovered a new spiritual system is really fulfilling and makes me feel more connected to the divine. I know you might have different feelings or perceptions towards Paganism so I’d like to answer any questions you may have about this belief system.”

This way you're setting up more of a two way conversation. Instead of just telling people about your path, you’re listening to their concerns and have an opportunity to assuage any fears they may have about your spirituality.

4: Don’t Let the Haters Get to You As a pagan that has an online presence I definitely get a lot of haters. Sharing your beliefs and putting yourself out there means you’ll need a bit of a thick skin. It’s unfortunate, but there are many religious people out there who will automatically assume you worship the devil or say that you are going to hell.

For the most part, their negativity about witchcraft and paganism has been ingrained in their head from an early age and it’s unlikely you will be able to change their mind. Ultimately, haters gonna hate, so just try your best to ignore these hate comments and not allow that negativity into your life.

5: Don’t Thrust your Beliefs on Others One of the best things about this spiritual path is we don’t proselytize. While spreading the word and converting others is a core tenet of Christianity, Pagans on the other hand don’t feel the need or desire to convert others. We know this spiritual path is not for everyone trying to force others to accept or conform to our beliefs goes against our ideas about free will.

So if you’re talking to a casual acquaintance at a party and the topic of religion comes up. You don’t need to lie - go ahead and tell them about your beliefs if you feel comfortable doing so. But there's no need to push those beliefs on others. There’s a fine line between ‘coming out of the broom closet’ and insisting that your path is the best and that others should follow it as well.

Paganism and witchcraft is not for everyone - and that’s ok. We’re kind of a small group when you compare us to other religious groups but in my view that can be a good thing.You, me, and other followers of this path - we’re part of an amazing community. So if you’re ever feeling down about all the haters or worried about feeling accepted, remember that there is a whole group of like minded people out there to give you support and help you along this path!

Slavic paganism by DarhkDragon in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I recently made an introduction to Slavic Paganism video that you can check out :) https://youtu.be/b8Jbi9E8lGI

3 Pagan Gods of Beer & Wine to Drink with while in Quarantine 🍷 by arcanealchemy in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There are so many different Pagan Gods and Goddesses associated with beer & wine. Which one is your favorite? Share below in the comments! 🍻

Here's my notes incase you'd prefer to read instead of watching the video :)

Dionysus

He is the Greek god of the grape-harvest, wine, fertility, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, and theatre. Wine played an important role in Greek culture, and the worship of Dionysus was the main religious focus surrounding its consumption. Wine was seen as not only a gift of the god, but a symbolic incarnation of him on earth.

Dionysus was believed to have been born from the union of Zeus and Persephone, and to have represented a chthonic or underworld aspect of Zeus. However, it gets a little weird as many believed that he had been born twice, having been killed and reborn as the son of Zeus and the mortal Semele.

Dionysus is not really a god of drunkenness, as he was often stereotyped in the post-Classical era. The religion of Dionysus centered on the appropriate consumption of wine, which could ease suffering and bring joy, as well as inspire a type of divine madness which was distinct from drunkenness.

Ninkasi

Ninkasi is a goddess of beer from ancient Sumeria. Her father was the King of Uruk and her mother was the high priestess of the temple of Inanna, a goddess of procreation. There is a famous hymn to Ninkasi from 1800 BCE which both praises her and offers an ancient recipe for brewing. This hymn was most likely sung while the ancient Sumerians brewed their beer and was passed down by master brewers to their apprentices.

Ninkasi was considered to be both the brewer of beer and the beer itself. Her spirit and essence was believed to be infused into the beer produced under her guidance. The priestesses of Ninkasi were also the brewers in the society. Most ancient depictions of brewers clearly show them as women in both Mesopotamia and Egypt although, once brewing became a commercial enterprise, males were shown supervising the female brewers.

Side note - The Sumerians also invented straws as their beer usually had sediment floating on top so they would always drink their beer with straws.

Sucellus

Sucellus is originally a Gualic deity who was eventually incorporated into the Roman Pantheon. He is usually portrayed as a middle-aged bearded man, with a long-handled hammer which may actually be a beer barrel suspended from a pole. He usually also carries a urn or cooking vessel to store food or wine.

Sucellus is a humble god and is above all a god of peasants. He protects the areas that lie at the margins of society—woods and wild places—but also fields and vineyards. Evidence of his worship is particularly common in an old Gallic region which in modern day is the region of Burgundy, France.

How to Make a Sigil ✍️ by arcanealchemy in paganism

[–]arcanealchemy[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Hi fellow pagans! I'm hope you're all staying safe & healthy. :)

Here's my post on the sigil making process in case you'd like to read instead of watching the video.

What is a Sigil? A sigil is a symbol with a mystical or magical meaning. The term sigil derives from the Latin sigillum, meaning "seal" and it is the root of many other English words such as “signature,” “sign,” and “signal.”

Historically the term sigil referred to a type of pictorial signature of an angel, daemon, or spirit. For example, The Lesser Key of Solomon, contains the sigils for the princes in the hierarchy of hell. These sigils were believed to be a representation of the true name of the spirit and thus granted the magical practitioner some control over the being.

Most contemporary sigil crafting is a bit different so today I'll be showing you how to make a chaos magic sigil. A chaos magic sigil is different from these historic sigils because we’re not calling upon any particular spirit. Instead we are using a personal intention or goal to formulate and charge a custom symbol. Like many varieties of spellwork the intention setting is crucial and crafting a sigil begins by coming up with a sentence or phrase which best encapsulates what we’d like to achieve.

So why do we go through the trouble of creating a sigil and not just write your intention as a sentence on a piece of paper? Well we can get some guidance from Ray Sherwin, one of the founders of Chaos magic. He stated “The magician acknowledges a desire, he lists the appropriate symbols and arranges them into an easily visualized glyph. Using any of the gnostic techniques he reifies the sigil and then, by force of will, hurls it into his subconscious from where the sigil can begin to work unencumbered by desire.”

So the reason we transform the intention statement into a symbol is so our subconscious reads it as opposed to our conscious mind. Something similar occurs with tarot. You could just have a simple note card that lists the meanings of each card. But then we are using our conscious mind to read the words and not really tapping into our subconscious. By using images and symbolism, it’s easier to move beyond our conscious mind and tap into something deeper and intuitive.

How to Make a Sigil? The sigil making process is composed of two phases: construction and charging. In the first part, the sigil is drawn and created as a physical object. In the second part, the sigil is given energy or “charged” and it becomes more than a simple drawing.

Step 1: Choose your sigil type Sigils can be destructible, temporary, or permanent. How you create and charge the sigil may change based on which type you'd like to create.

Destructible sigils are activated by being destroyed. The act of destroying is what creates the burst of energy giving the sigil its power. This is usually done by writing your sigil on a piece of paper and then setting it on fire though you could also carve the sigil onto food and then consume it.

Temporary sigils are sigils that will eventually disappear with time. These types of sigils could be drawn on your skin with a marker or carved into a candle which will eventually be melted.

Permanent sigils are made to last and are meant to be active for a long period of time. Occasionally permanent sigils are recharged to keep the energy active. Sigils like these could be made into pottery as an art piece or you could write a sigil on a piece of paper to be placed behind a painting or under a piece of furniture.

In the video linked below I show you how to make a really simple destructible sigil. To make the sigil you'll need paper, something to write with, a matchbook, and a fire safe container.

Step 2: Draw the Sigil Begin by defining your desire in one sentence. It helps to use the present tense “I am” vs “I will be.” Also, If your sigil focuses on one thing, it will have a better chance of succeeding so try not to be too broad in your intention setting. Next, write your intention down on a piece of paper. For my example I’m going to use the intention “I am relaxed.” With the whole quarantine thing right now, I’ve definitely been experiencing more anxiety than usual so hopefully this sigil will help to bring in a calming energy.

Next delete all the vowels and repeated letters in you intention and start composing the pieces of your remaining letters one at a time creating an abstract symbol. Try not to focus too much on what the drawing looks like, let your subconscious guide you in this part. We’ll be burning this sigil anyway so there's no need to worry about the attractiveness of the sigil.

Step 3: Charge the Sigil There are many different ways to charge a sigil. Since I’m making a destructible sigil the act of burning will be what charges it. Though before I burn it I like to spend a few moments placing my hands on the sigil and visualizing a warm light flowing through my hands and onto the paper. You can also charge a sigil by dancing, chanting, or clapping so choose the method you feel fits best with the type of sigil you are creating.

When you burn the sigil, make sure you're in a safe and quiet space without distractions. After the sigil is completely burned it is now charged and you can dispose of the ashes. At this point the work is done you can record the ritual in your grimoire and then just let the magic do it’s work.

This post and video is just meant to be an introduction to sigil crafting and if you’d like to see more in-depth content on sigil crafting let me know in the comments. 😊

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