Posts Tagged ‘goddess’

Dina @ Walking Within the Spiral started this wonderful writing prompt:  What do you belive?  Being Yule/Christmas I decided I had to join in.  Here are the 10 things that I believe. Read the rest of this entry »

In today’s economy, finances are on everyone’s mind. There are plenty of people who have bills piling up on their desk, afraid to answer the phone because of bill collectors. It seems silly, pointless, and a waste of time to write your affirmations.

Don’t let yourself get caught in the downward spiral of thoughts. Whether you believe in the Law of Attraction, God, Goddess, or nothing, the affirmations work! If nothing else, they lift your spirits so that you can face the day and find solutions to your problem. Even if you don’t believe, affirmations will work to bring to you what you desire, if you use them daily.

Starting a new habit is not easy.  It takes work.  Depending on your personality and situation, it may be hard work.  Don’t give up.  Keep going with your affirmations, you will see the results in every part of your life.  I’ve seen it happen in my life when I keep up my affirmations.  When I stop doing the affirmations, then the prosperity and abundance stop.  So I get back to work on doing my affirmations again.

Here is an easy affirmations to  write and say each day.  Write this affirmation out, at least 15 times or until it feels like it’s sunk into your heart and head.  Say it 100 x’s, whenever you want to, but don’t forget to do it today!

All bills are paid.  I have plenty of money for all my needs.

Parenting in this day and age is not an easy thing to do, add to that being a Pagan Parent and you’ve got a whole new challenge on your hands. As Pagan parents we are not only faced with the everyday challenges, but the worry of someone deciding that our religion isn’t “safe” for children and trying to take them away from us is a huge cloud over us. We not only have to decide how to raise our children in our religion, but how to keep them safe from those who would harm us because of our religion. It’s not an easy task and one that some Pagan parents have opted not to cover by keeping their religion hidden from their children. Though this is certainly an understandable path to take, it is a sad one indeed. Silver Ravenwolf put it best “What kind of religion are we practicing if we can’t share it with our children.” in this essay and speech, I hope to not only touch on why we should share our religion with our children, but ways to do just that. At the end of this essay I will give examples of a Ritual, craft projects, spells, & chants that you can do with your child as well as reference books and websites.

The biggest concern for most Pagan parents is someone finding out that we are pagans/witches and they will try to take our children away from us. This is the scariest thing in the world that could happen to a person. There are many ways that a parent can protect their family from this happening. The first thing that all Pagan parents should do is bookmark every Pagan site they can find on the web. There are many, and all of them have fought and won many a battle for pagan parents. Mostly they have contacts in every area that you can get a hold of if the need ever arises. If you happen to be in an area where you feel especially vulnerable to attack, locate your local Unitarian Universalist Church. Often they have a CUUPs (Coven of Unitarian Universalist Pagans) Chapter, and by belonging to a church of sorts, few people question your religion then.

What I have done in raising my two sons is talking with them. Just like with anything else that is inappropriate for public discussion, I’ve talked with them about how our religion and beliefs are to something we discuss when we’re in the store or restaurant or at someone else’s home. I’ve explained to them that not everyone understands other people’s religions and it can sometimes upset other people. I then explain to them, in appropriate ways for their ages, the different religions. I show them how we should tolerate differences, and accept other people, but also teach them that not everyone believes that this is the right way to treat other people. It’s not an easy subject, but they do understand, however you will have to remind them when it is and isn’t ok to discuss religion.

Some parents have decided to completely by pass this step by not sharing their religion at all with their children. Although I don’t agree with this, I do understand it. However, my belief is that if my religion isn’t good enough to share with my children, why am I in it myself? I know my children can understand that you can’t discuss everything you want, anywhere you want. And the more they understand about our religion, the more they will understand about others.

So how much do we share with our children of the craft? Do we let them practice magick? Go to rituals? What is there for children to do in what sometimes seems a very Adult religion? Yes, I share all of this with my children, depending of course on the nature and circumstances.

Rituals

I go to many public, semi-public and private rituals, as well as do my own at home. Depending on my level of participation, the type of ritual, and the level of child-friendly atmosphere of the ritual, I decide if I will bring my children or not. Some of the public rituals that I have attended are such that children would have a hard time understanding what is going on, might be disruptive, or could get scared or disturbed by the nature of the ritual. If there is going to be children activities I take my children, if not I leave them at home and we celebrate on our own. Some rituals are wonderful for children to attend and set up so that children will have as much fun as the adults. When I am going to have a main part in a ritual, I generally leave my children at home because my concentration needs to be on the ritual, not on how my children are acting for whoever is taking care of them. Rituals that I do at home are the same. I have created rituals that are just for my boys to do with me. I have created rituals with specific parts for my sons to do. I have also done rituals where I have had to be completely separated from the rest of the family so as not to be disturbed. This is usually much harder for me, because my sons like participating in my rituals at home and don’t want to leave me alone. So only when it’s absolutely necessary, do I exclude my sons from a ritual?

Spells and Magick

Spells and Magick are simply interactive prayers. I do allow my sons to work Magick with me and on their own. I have taught them the laws of Karma, the three fold law, and to harm none (which isn’t always easy for a 7 yo who is angry at his brother for not sharing a toy). I have also taught them that the power of their thought and energy is very strong and shouldn’t be used lightly. When I do Magick, that they can be involved in, I let them help me by putting their energy into the workings. I have given my sons herbs and tools to accomplish their own spells. Mostly their spells are simple, they want a particular toy, they want their brother to play nicely, and they want more time with mommy. When we do spells together for these goals, generally we just do a little meditation and focus our energy on the goal. Sometimes we gather the herbs and we burn them together.

Introducing the Gods to children isn’t as difficult to do as one would think. There are many movies and books out there that are useful to a Pagan parent. My youngest was introduced to the Egyptian God Anubis through the movie The Mummy. From the first day he saw that movie, even though Anubis was only mentioned briefly in it, my youngest son has been a devoted worshiper of Anubis. What I have done to encourage this is found every book I could on Anubis and the Egyptian pantheon. There are plenty out there for both children and adults. I’ve also searched plenty on the Internet, looking for as much information about Anubis as I could find. In the long run, mostly what have come in handy are my own gut feeling and my sons.

He has spent plenty of time talking with Anubis, and Anubis has done plenty for him. My son, one day, decided that Anubis was going to come and visit us that night. He was adamant about this fact. Said that Anubis would be stopping by at Midnight and that I was to awaken him as soon as Anubis got there. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t talk him out of this idea. I was not sure what would happen if Anubis didn’t show up. I settled myself down and meditated on what to do. Then an idea popped into my head that I should go to the store and look for a gift from Anubis and I did just that.

I went to Wal-Mart and started looking for something, anything that called out to me from Anubis. Suddenly I spotted a big black stuffed dog in the stuffed toy bin. It was on sale as well! This looked exactly like the type of dogs that are associated with Anubis. This was it! But, I knew I couldn’t go home with just one, so I started digging through the bin to find a second one, and came up with nothing. So I searched through the rest of the toy area, pleading with Anubis to send me something for my other son as well. I couldn’t go home with just one toy! Then, as if from heaven, there was the EXACT same dog just lying on a shelf in the middle of the department! I couldn’t believe it, no I could believe it, it was from Anubis himself. He had sent me to the store, he had given me the two dogs, and I knew that he was telling my son that he was with him.

When I got home, I wrote up a little note to my sons from Anubis, saying that he couldn’t stay, but he wanted them to know that he was there and protecting them and the dogs were a symbol of that protection. The next morning my sons woke up and were so excited that Anubis had been there and left them these two dogs to protect them. Anubis has done this many times for my youngest son, letting me and him know that he is with my son at all times. I make sure never to question my son when he says, “Anubis told me”, because I’m sure that Anubis did. The Gods will present themselves to you and your children when they are ready to, be open to what they have to say listen to your children and listen to your heart.

Creating a special Altar for your children can be a wonderful way to teach them about our religion. There are many ways to do this. One way is to take a box, you can either use a box already made or make one yourself with cardboard. Find material that your child likes to put on the sides and bottom of the box as an altar cloth. Either make it removable or permanent. You can also paint the box, both inside and out, instead of having material. Then you gather up things that your child identifies with the elements for the quarters, the god and goddess, and anything else that your child wants on the altar. Also come up with ideas for your ritual tools that are child-friendly. Instead of an athame, make your own wand by going on a nature walk and finding a branch from a tree that has fallen. Instead of candles get colored glow sticks or flash lights.

Whatever you decide to have in your Childs altar box, make sure they understand that these aren’t for playing with, but are for doing rituals and Magick only. Then the next time you do a ritual with them, have them get out their Altar box so that they can use their tools. Make it easily accessible to the child and make sure that you can change it for the seasons. Or instead of just one altar box, create several, one for general Magick, one for each of the Sabbats, one for Moon rituals. Be creative and let your child suggest, as much as they like, it is their altar box.

Another thing that most Pagan parents are concerned about is the socialization of our children. There are more and more children coming to open rituals, but is that enough? With the explosion of the Internet over the last several years, I have found many other pagan parents, and right in my own back yard. Many of which have regular gatherings. There is also a new and growing organization called The Spiral Scouts. This is an Earth-Based alternative to the Boy Scouts. This group not only gives our children ways to socialize with other Pagan kids, but also helps us parents teach our children about our religion! However, there aren’t many groups around the country, so you may have to start one yourself if this is something you’re interested in. They do everything that the Boy & Girl scouts do, but with a Pagan slant to it. However, if this idea doesn’t appeal to you, starting your own Pagan kids group isn’t hard. It takes a willingness to be organized, advertise and talk with other pagan parents.

Creating Rituals for kids is something that is rather new. More and more books are being written for the Pagan Parent, and they all have great ideas. To create your own kids ritual, take a look at your Childs interests. One parent I know created a ritual based totally on Poke’mon. That one show has taught the world’s children about the elements. But it’s not hard to find other cartoons, games, images that appeal to children to use for a ritual. Have fun with it and talk with your child about what they like, and if they’d have fun doing those things. Ideas that are always fun to use are water guns for cleansing with water, flash lights and glow sticks for fire, bubbles for air or water, playdoh for earth, and water balloons. Props in a children’s ritual is very important. Where we adults use props to get in touch with our inner child, props help to keep children focused in a ritual. Also, make sure there is something for each child to do, and depending on their age, try to stay away from anything that is long and boring. Meditations are not good to do in a children’s ritual, especially if the average age for the child is under 14. Instead u se music for energy raising. Have children dance around, sing, clap or bang on drums.

Above all else, keep things moving, fun and light hearted!

To understand Ma’at, balance a feather on its tip in the palm of your hand.

Ma’at literally means “Truth” in Egyptian.  In Ancient Egypt, Ma’at was not
just a Goddess, but was a concept as well. The concept, Ma’at, was that which
all of the people of Egypt had to adhere to. From the lowliest of the peoples up
to the Pharaoh himself. And each class of people had a different amount of
responsibility to uphold the concept of Ma’at. The Pharaoh was the most
responsible because he was the ruler of all of Egypt, so he must be exemplary in
this matter. Whereas the poorest people who were struggling from day to day had
little to no responsibility towards upholding the laws of Ma’at, because they
had enough things to worry about. The concept of Ma’at, was why the Goddess
Ma�at was so important to the Egyptian culture.

The Goddess Ma�at was that which kept balance and order in the entire Universe!
Not just the people of Egypt, but everything in the heavens and the earth bowed
down to the rules of Ma�at. She was what controlled the seasons, she controlled
the water flowing in the oceans, and she controlled the circle of life among the
animals. She controlled life and death, and all that was. And she kept it all in
balance.
The story of Ma�at starts at the beginning of creation. When the God Ra settled
the waters of Nun (the gods of chaos), Ma�at was born. She was his daughter, and
yet she did not answer to Ra, he answered to her. Because she controlled the
entire Universe. And being the Goddess of balance, she is not only there at the
beginning of life, she is also there at the end.

Her greatest duty of all is that of judging those who die. When the Egyptians
died, they went to the Hall of Ma’at (double halls of truth). There they found
the Goddess Ma�at, with her scales and her Ostrich feather. The myth of this
event is somewhat confusing, because in some legends she is the Wife of Thoth,
who has the head of the Ibis, and he is the one who weights the heart of the
dead on her scales. Where as others say that she is the wife of Anubis, who has
the head of a Jackal, and it is he who weights the heart of the dead on her
scales. After the heart is placed on the scales, it is weighted against her
Ostrich feather. If the scales do not tip, then the heart is light and the
deceased may pass on to heaven. But if the scales tip towards the heart, then
they have not lived a life of Ma’at, and will be eaten by the demon Goddess,
Ammuti. This is where we get the phrases �light hearted� and �heavy hearted�.
Another important part of Ma�at�s legends are the 42 Admonitions of Ma�at. These
are 42 rules of how to live your life according to the concept of Ma’at. These
were written 1500 years before the Ten Commandments, and some scholars believe
that these are what inspired Moses to write the Ten Commandments. I see the 42
admonitions as much more detailed, and some more realistic in what makes a
person�s life balanced and just. Some of the admonitions include, �I have not
made anyone to weep�, �I have not turned the earth without cause�, �I have not
exploited the weakness of any man�, �I have not demanded undo praise for my
name�, and �I have not turned away from any god in fear or shame�. These are
principles of how to live your life in balance with man and nature.

Because of the Goddess Ma�at being both a Goddess of truth and justice, and a
concept of balance and order, she was the main icon of Judges and Courts. In
Egypt, the judges would wear a feather on their heads, and most of them were
also priests of Ma�at. The courts were often temples to Ma�at. Because of this,
when the Greek culture took over power, they used the word �Logos� for Ma’at.
Logos was what they used to judge a person�s life. In the bible, �Logos� was
used instead of �Word�, which was also another name for �Jesus�. John 1.1: �In
the beginning was the logos*, and the logos* was with God and the logos* was
God.�

The representation of the Goddess Ma�at was that of a teenage, winged girl.
Sometimes also depicted as twin girls. She always wears the Ostrich plume on her
head, and hold the scales in her hand when weighting the hearts of the dead. She
is wife to either Anubis or Thoth, and has no children of her own. She is a
Goddess of the Autumn Equinox, when day and night are of equal length, and when
the seasons are in the waning. Her name literally means �Truth�, and she is the
Goddess of truth, justice, balance and order. She is the Goddess for Libras. She
is the Goddess Themis in Greece and the Goddess Tiamat in Babylonia. She is
neither good nor evil, because nature needs both to exist, she is neutral.

Sources used for this report:
Invocation of the Gods; Ancient Egyptian Magic for Today by Ellen Cannon Reed

http://www.kemet.org/glossary/maat.html

http://www.touregypt.net/godsofegypt/maat2.htm

http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/EGYPT/MAAT.HTM

http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/pds/Maat.htm

http://www.gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/egypt/anubismaat.htm

http://www.per-sekhmet.org/perankh/maat.html

http://www.susanlevitt.com/ar-equnx.html

http://www.ancientegypt.co.uk/gods/explore/maat.html

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/9999/pantheon/maat.html

http://www.angelfire.com/realm/shades/egypt/maat.htm

I know she exists… how, you may ask? Because it just must be so! She has
affected my life too often for her not to exist. Her name is probably Scarlet,
like in the movie gone with the winds and her motto “I’ll think about that
tomorrow” or “I’ll get to it in a minute”. I do believe I am one of her many
Priestesses, because she speaks through me often! I hear her holy words popping
in my brain often… in fact I’m sure I’ve channeled her many times over again!
Most of her followers have no motivation to finish or even start a web page or a
book about her. Thus making researching this most powerful goddess very
difficult. I can imagine however that her many followers have planned to create
many wonderful things about her. But they couldn’t exactly be her people if they
finished, right?

Her correspondences are as follows (according to my own research and channeling
of her aspect)

Element: Air, for the unpredictability of when she appears and disappears.

Color: undecided… she tends to like that which doesn’t give motivation.. I
think that is usually �clear�.. But sometimes white or black. I think she’ll
tell me later.

Planet: Mercury retrograde; for nothing messes up life more than procrastination
or mercury retrograde.

Tarot Card: the Tower, again upheaval is generally the result of
procrastination.

The Goddess of Procrastination is neither emotional nor logical. Though she
affects both emotions and logic greatly. The true worshiper of the Goddess of
Procrastination can come up with some of the best logic for using
procrastination.. However, sometimes it is purely an emotional reaction and
tears are often a good way of distracting critics of Procrastination.

She is married to the God of Impatience, which is really a poor match indeed.
But because she is partially a Goddess of passion, she can usually keep him from
getting too mad at her procrastination. Yes, she is also a Goddess of Passion.
But not often. Passion is her defense mode when she has been caught in
procrastinating. She must have immediate call on her emotions and can either cry
or seduce her way out of trouble. Another sure sign of her followers.

My research and study of this Goddess is not done… nor may it ever be… since
I am one of her priestesses, finishing this report may be more difficult than I
earlier imagined.