When you get a chance to meet Lon Milo Duquette and talk about the tiny home town you share, you jump on it! And when he asks for a selfie....you grin like an idiot and play it about as cool as you can.
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On February 16, 2020, I had the honor of being Elevated to Senior Priest at Pantheacon in San Jose, California. I have spent the past 6 years studying, researching, writing, and doing the work. It's hard to believe that I've now completed the Clergy Training Program. I have received so many kind words and so much support from my friends and community. I love this community and, while I don't know exactly what the future holds, I'm excited to see what comes next.
I do want to take a few minutes to reflect on the ritual itself and my experience with elevation. I was elevated during the official ADF rite at Pantheacon on Sunday evening. Because my primary hearth is Hellenic, we (those of us who were planning the ritual together) decided to do a ritual for peace honoring Eirene, the Greek goddess of peace and new growth in spring. I was responsible for several parts of the ritual, including calling the being of occasion, as well as honoring Hestia at the beginning of our rite, beginning our praise offerings with my own personal offerings, performing the main ritual omen, and completing my final oath. However, all of the remaining parts were filled by friends and fellow-ADF members, and Rev. Jean 'Drum' Pagano acted as our ringleader. Overall, we had more than 50 members in attendance, and I couldn't be more pleased with how things went. I will warn you now, this may be a VERY long post. I think everyone recognizes that life on Earth would not be possible without the sun. It's what brings warmth and life to our planet. The sun establishes our seasons. It's how we measure the passage of time. The sun is so important, so it makes sense that ancient Indo-Europeans could recognize the role it played and incorporate it into their mythology. Below are a list of sun deities that can be found in several different Indo-European cultures:
Armenian:
I love seeing repeated themes across multiple cultures. For me, it adds a feeling of validity to my personal practice, and I appreciate that. Of course, in addition to this list there are also numerous deities associated with different times of day, such as dawn or dusk, and day or night and other attributes of the sun. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but at least a glimpse into the vast array of sun deities that exist. If you know of an IE sun deity that I have missed, definitely let me know and I'll be happy to add them to the list. Have a wonderful day. I still can't believe that we're already into February. 2020 is flying past and I am trying to stay on top of everything and go with the flow as much as possible. In my life, it's a time of transition and change. It's exciting and sentimental at the same time, so I'm trying to stay focused and take in all of the opportunities I have in front of me, so I was looking forward to seeing what this week's message held. Below is the message I received:
Othala - Home & Ancestors Othala speaks of the comfort of home and the safety that which is known. It is a message of the wealth of family and home, and the ancestors. Dagaz - Hope & Short Timing Dagaz is a message of hope and new opportunities to prosper. However, the rune poem speaks of "Day" which indicates that this hope may be for something in a short period of time. Fehu - Wealth & Abundance Fehu is an omen of prosperity and increase. It shows opportunity for abundance and the importance of sharing that prosperity with others. _______________ This week's omen felt a little more disconnected for me, but that may purely be because I'm less familiar with Runes than with some other methods of divination. However, here is my interpretation: Right now, we're in a space of comfort and familiarity. However, there is hope and new opportunity in the near future but we have to be willing to step out of that comfort-zone in order to find it. By taking on these opportunities, we may find abundance and prosperity. Interpretations come from my favorite quick reference for Rune interpretation, the Runemantis app developed by Rev. Rob Henderson found here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=oracle.rune I hope you all have a wonderful week. Earlier this week, I finished reading Original Magic by Stephen Flowers, PhD. I decided to read this book after thoroughly enjoying The Magician Tarok and wanting to explore more of the Persian magical system.
This book begins by exploring and trying to define the beginnings of magic, describing the wisdom and science of magic as the first great mystery. He dips briefly into the Tripartite system and the different levels of power affiliated with each group. After these explanations have been explored, Flowers begins to explore the religion of pre-Zoroastrian Persia. He begins with a brief explanation of several deities (called ahuras). From there he discusses the theory of the religion, which indicated that humans can gain benefit from the gods by engaging in gift giving. This reciprocal relationship is something we see in many different ancient cultures, like the Xenia of ancient Greece, and the term *ghosti which is a re-constructed word regularly used in ADF. It’s interesting to see so many correlations in religions that appear at first to be vastly different. Flowers then begins to discuss the important actions found in their religion, which includes a large emphasis on sacrificial fire. There is also a brief exploration of some of the culture’s mythology, including a creation myth, cosmological view, and a description of what happens after someone dies. From here, the book moves on to descriptions of the Amesha Spentas which were “beneficial immortals,” which are often interpreted to be Angels or minor deities. This description includes an explanation of Fravashis or the inner guardian angel & guide that lives inside each human. After all of this information has been shared, Flowers begins to describe a magical practice that leads the reader toward initiation. It includes a twelve-month program that involves daily training sessions with meditation, multiple prayers each day, recommended reading, and additional learning of specific words or phrases (both in English & Avestan). The program is quite involved and changes each month to allow the participant to explore themselves and their spirituality in the way of the Avestans. At the conclusion of the study program, the book also contains descriptions and scripts for several different Mazdan Magic rituals. The book ends with a number of appendices, including: History of Eranshahr, Avestan Pronunciation Guide, Analysis of Avestan Manthras, 101 Names of Gods, Astrological Lore, and Resources. Overall, this book has a lot of information in it, and is presented in a way that feels approachable. The study program seems like a good way to establish a daily practice, so I will be experimenting with it personally to see how I like it. While this book isn’t for everyone, I enjoyed learning more about the practices of the ancient Persians and look forward to seeing where these studies take me. I am a day late in getting divination posted this week. I still took the omen yesterday, but didn't have an opportunity to write up and share my interpretation. So, without further delay, below is the message I received for this week:
Two of Pentacles - This card is about reflection and making decisions. It's a card that speaks of trying to find balance in those decisions, and maintaining harmony in your movement forward. Hierophant - This card speaks about finding help with your spiritual questions. It's a message that speaks of the wisdom carried by teachers, and looking to those guides for aid. It is a reminder to lean on those who have knowledge on your questions, and listen when they speak. Nine of Cups - This card is a beautiful message that speaks of happiness and fulfillment. It shows that you're happy with your current position in life and the cosmos. It's a message of self satisfaction, which is a wonderful place to be. ______________ Week after week, we see omens that connect together and build upon themselves. Right now is a time for balance and reflection. However, we also have decisions to make. Listen to your advisers and guides. They have wisdom that is valuable. Listen to them! If you do these things as you move forward, you will experience happiness and fulfillment. What a positive message for a brand new month. This omen comes to us from the Rider-Waite I hope you all have a wonderful week. 2 of Pentacles - time of finding balance, reflecting, and making decisions Hierophant - finding help with spiritual questions, wisdom of teacher 9 of Cups - happiness and fulfillment, self satisfaction This divination comes from the Alice: the Wonderland Oracle by Lucy Cavendish and Jasmine Becket-Griffith |
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