Maiden to Mother

Why being a Pagan sucks: Part 1

2013-12-09T09:31:00.002-05:00

I venture to say that very few of us Pagans were raised Pagan. I'll venture another assumption and say that most of us were probably raised Christian. We all left the church for various reasons and found our spiritual home in Paganism. For many of us, myself included, Paganism was a breathe of fresh air that spoke to our soul.

However, I will admit that sometimes being a Pagan sucks. The problem with Paganism is that it's so old that most/all of it isn't written down anywhere. It's also so "new" that there aren't Pagan temples on every corner and hoards of fellow Pagans gathering in every town. Sometimes being a Pagan is lonely and confusing.

Most of us turn to religion for guidance, connection and community. We want to know how we should live our lives. We want to feel that we aren't a meaningless individual floating in space. We want to commune with fellow believes and feel the strength of that solidarity. All of these things are difficult to find in Paganism.

Christianity (or really any of the Big Three), is equipped with holy book, churches and millions of followers. Paganism, on the other hand, has no definitive holy book, very few gathering places and far fewer followers.

So we can all agree that sometimes being a Pagan sucks. So why be a Pagan? What can we learn from Christians?

Next time I'll talk about why everything that makes being a Pagan suck are the same things that make it awesome.

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Embracing Winter's Darkness

2013-12-05T14:28:00.003-05:00

The Winter Solstice is almost upon us and the days are short, cold and dark. Here, in Vermont, our leaves have long since left the their trees and the temperature has entered the single digits more than once. As far north as we are, the Winter Solstice is not mid-winter, but is instead the first day of winter. We can look forward to many more months of cold and snow before the earth warms again.

As Pagans we must constantly renew our connection to our mother, the Earth. This can be particularly difficult in the wintertime. Unlike the hibernating animals, we are still expected to go to work, care for children, and clean our house regardless of the weather and darkness.

In the Winter our bodies and minds just want to snuggle under warm blankets, drink tea and sleep. Forcing our Summertime-level of activity can lead us to feel stressed and depressed. Although we can't climb into a burrow until Spring, we can still honor our Winter rhythm in other ways:

Stay Warm: If your body is expending large amounts of energy to stay warm you may begin to feel sick and tire. Honor your body's need for warm and layer with wool base layers, socks and sweaters.
Sleep More: Try getting into bed an hour earlier than usual. Even if you bring a book, you're still honoring your body's need to rest. Just as the trees and plants rest during the Winter, so must we.
Walk Outside: You may be tempted to stay inside all Winter- running from the car to the house, but be sure to spend some time outside everyday. Bundle up and breathe in the cold air, look up at the stars (particularly visible in the winter) and tromp through the leafless woods. Renew your connection with the sleeping Earth daily.
Reduce Artificial Light: With such short days, it's tempting to live under a constant glow of artificial lights. Instead, try to embrace the darkness. Light candles at night, enjoy the grey gloom during the day and turn on soft salt lamps in the evening. With less light you'll find your body slowing down as it should during the Winter months.

Don't bide your time until Spring! Slow your pace, hunker down, eat good food and huddle under warm blankets. Embrace the darkness!

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Miscarriage and The First Trimester

2013-11-26T22:15:00.001-05:00

The first trimester is one of the most delicate times during a woman's pregnancy. Although very small, the growing embryo is incredibly vulnerable and fragile. Often, pregnancies end for reasons unknown and women are left confused and sad.

Although perhaps unpleasant, all women should know that 10%-25% of all pregnancies end in miscarriage, the vast majority of which happen during the first trimester of pregnancy. This is an important fact, not to cause fear and anxiety, but to understand that you aren't alone if you have experienced an unexpected miscarriage. Our body's are usually very smart and there may be a very good reason that the body decided the reject that particular pregnancy. Rarely is the miscarriage caused by anything the woman did or didn't do.

If you have experienced a miscarriage, are in your first trimester, or perhaps are pregnant after a previous miscarriage, you may have heightened fear about potentially losing your pregnancy. As difficult as it can be, choosing to trust your body and the Goddess can help alleviate your fear. It's good practice to begin building this trust relationship now because it will serve as an anchor during the throws of labor.

Beginning a daily devotion is one of the most effect ways to foster a positive and trusting relationship with both your body and the Goddess. Mantras or chants can be added to your devotions as a way of positively affirming your intentions and desires. This is a key element in any magical working. Below is a very old set of mantras that you may find inspiring:

As this great earth conceives the germs of the beings, thus shalt thy embryo be-beld fast, to produce a child after pregnancy!

As this great earth holds these trees, thus shall thy embryo be held fast, to produce a child after pregnancy!

As this great earth holds the mountains and the peaks, thus shall thy embryo be held fast, to produce a child after pregnancy!

As this great earth holds the animals scattered far, thus shall thy embryo be held fast, to produce a child after pregnancy!

Sources
Hymns of the Atharva-Veda translated by Maurice Bloomfield Sacred Books of the East, Vol. 42 [1897]
http://americanpregnancy.org/pregnancycomplications/miscarriage.html

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Magical Rings

2013-01-10T14:26:00.000-05:00

Magical talismans can be very useful in your Magical practice. Our human brains often need symbols and objects to contain the ineffable quality of the universe- it helps us focus our will and energy. It is thought that certain herbs, stones, metals, etc. correspond with planets, stars, and purposes. When we pair or group these objects into a single object it can unite with our own will to create a magical talisman. In "The Philosophy of Natural Magic", the author details the process of creating a magical ring:

Now, the manner of making these kinds of Magical Rings is this, viz.; When any Star ascends fortunately, with the fortunate aspect or conjunction of the Moon, we must take a stone and herb that is under that Star, and make a ring of the metal that is suitable to this Star, and in it fasten the stone, putting the herb or root under it—not omitting the inscriptions of images, names and characters, as also the proper suffumigations

One of the dangers of buying or creating a magical ring is choosing the correspondences. There is no definitive tomb with all magical correspondences. You may see in some texts that silver corresponds to the moon and feminine energy. In other texts you may read the silver actually corresponds to Saturn and aids in clear thinking and masculine energy. Which is correct? Unfortunately and fortunately, there is no correct answer. Unfortunately because, as Pagans, we are woefully short in authoritative texts. Fortunately because we then have some freedom to make our own decisions in these matters.

In the footnotes of the same text on Magical rings it warns the reader against trusting charlatans who would sell magical talismans claiming they will cure an ailment or accomplishing some task. The true virtue in these Magical rings is that which the wearer imparts to the object:

Consult yourself, therefore, regarding a personal occult ring, selecting the metal, stone and design that you are most pleased with. Then you have made a proper start, and, in a great many cases, need go no further; thus every plain gold marriage ring becomes a magical ring... Every ring, being a circle, contains occult force and symbolizes the eternal.

Think of those objects, stones and metals that may hold special significance for you. Perhaps you and your partner's birth stones combined on ring to signifying the child as a union of the two of you. Think of your future child and write down, quickly, those colors, stones and metals that come to mind. Often the best talismans come from your instincts. Wear this ring and feed it positive energy daily, thus creating your own Magical ring.

photo credit: Caucas' via photopin cc
The Philosophy of Natural Magic, by Henry Cornelius Agrippa, L. W. de Laurence ed. [1913]

Fertility Rituals: Vietnamese

2013-01-04T09:44:00.001-05:00

I took a bit of a break to celebrate the holidays. It was my son's first holiday season so I wanted to be completely present and in the moment. Although much of festivities was over his head, we all had a wonderful time. I hope all of you had a joyful holiday as well.

Today we'll talk about Vietnamese fertility rituals. Every culture has fertility rituals that aim to help a woman conceive a child. A ritual will help to focus your energy and attention to the act of conception and prepare your mind and spirit for pregnancy.

As with most rituals, the Vietnamese fertility ritual begins with prayers to the Gods. One common Goddess associated with fertility and childbirth is Lieu Hanh, one of the Four Immortals and the main figure in the mother Goddess cult called Dao Mau.

In the town of Huong Tich of Ha-dong province, now in North Vietnam, there is a grotto which has a number of vaguely human-shaped rocks called "Young Girls' and Young Boys' Rocks". After paying proper devotions, the supplicant woman chooses one of these "children of Buddha" and caresses it with exhortations to follow her home. She then goes home convinced that "Buddha's Child" is accompanying her, and in attempts to please it, she buys both sweets and toys, and will even pay double bus fare so that "it" can ride beside her.

From that day forward, a place for "it" is made at the family table, with a cradle being prepared at night until the day when the "invisible visitor" finally decides to become a member of the family. Such a child is referred to as a "prayed-for child" because he is an answer to fervent prayer and the parents tend to spoil it.

The "Buddha's Child" could be associated with the idea that our children's spirits are waiting to be born. Our job, as mothers, is to usher this spirit child into the physical realm. The Vietnamese prepare their homes and their hearts for the impending arrival of their child into physical reality.

Many of us Westerners do something similar in setting up the nursery, but the Vietnamese take it one step further by assuming that the child's spirit is visiting the family until it decides to be born.

How do you feel about this ritual? Do you believe your child's spirit accompanies you until it is born into the physical plane?

The Religions of South Vietnam in Faith and Fact, US Navy, Bureau of Naval Personnel, Chaplains Division [1967]
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Pagan BBT Chart - January

2012-12-23T09:59:00.000-05:00

I'm pleased to be able to offer a Pagan-themed January 2013 BBT Chart. When I was trying to conceive I used the Basal Body Temperature chart to track my peak fertility. I really wanted a Pagan-themed chart that allowed me to track the correspondences, lunar phases and zodiac. The chart is made to be printed and filled out daily.

This is the proto-type that I will be offering for sale at a fair price in the near future. I hope you'll try it out and give me feedback to make it even better!

Thank you and happy holidays!

Download here

Winter Solstice Lore and Ritual

2012-12-20T08:36:00.002-05:00

Tomorrow is the Winter Solstice (in the northern hemisphere) and either the first day of winter or midwinter depending on your location. This holiday is all about light both literally and literally. We celebrate the return of the sun after the longest night of the year and thank the Gods for the lengthening days and shortening nights.

As Pagans, we may choose to celebrate both the Winter Solstice and Christmas. Personally, I observe the Winter Solstice religiously and Christmas as a generic family holiday. As I'm sure we all know, Christmas itself is just the Christian solar festival and Jesus is the "coming of light". Different trappings, but the same holiday in essence.

William Tyler Olcott in his book "Sun Lore of all Ages" discusses the origins of the word "Yule" and where we get our English word "wheel":

In many countries this festival season was known as "Yole," or "Yuul," from the word Hiaul, or Huul, which even to this day signifies "the sun" in some languages. From this we get our word "wheel," and the wheel is one of the ancient symbols of the sun, the spokes representing the sun's rays.

For thousands of years humanity has been celebrating this holiday. There is, perhaps, no other holiday that is so shared by so many cultures and civilizations through time and space.

Procopius describes how the men of Thule climbed the mountain tops at the winter solstice, to catch sight of the nearing sun after their thirty-five days of night. Then they celebrated their holiest feasts.

Plutarch, referring to the solar festivals of Egypt, says, that "about the winter solstice they lead the sacred cow seven times in procession around the temple, calling this the searching after Osiris, that season of the year standing most in need of the sun's warmth."

In China, the Great Temple of the Sun at Peking is oriented to the winter solstice, and the most important of all the State observances of China takes place there December 21st, the sacrifice of the winter solstice.

...the day was adopted in the western church where it appears to have been generally introduced by the fourth century, and whence in time it passed to the eastern church as the solemn anniversary of the Birth of Christ, Christmas Day. As a matter of history no valid or even consistent early Christian tradition vouches for it." Many of the early dignitaries of the Church reveal in their writings the solar character of this festival. Augustus and Gregory discoursed on "the glowing light and dwindling darkness that follow the nativity," and Leo the Great denounced in a sermon the idea that Christmas Day is to be honoured, not for the birth of Christ, but for the rising of the new sun.

One of my favorite ways to celebrate this time of year is with a beautifully decorated tree. You may choose to call it a Christmas tree, holiday tree or Yule tree; it matters not.

The lighting of the Christmas tree is but the light to guide the Sun-God back to life, and the festival cakes of corn and fruit, made in honour of the Sun in ancient times, and laid on the sacred altars of the Persians as an offering of gratitude to the Lord of Light and Life, find their prototype in the plum pudding that graces the board at our Christmas feasts of rejoicing.

If you have experienced a period of darkness in your life this is the time to welcome the light back in. Perhaps you've been experience infertility or postpartum depression and have lost your joy. Take time on this special day to rid yourself of this darkness. Try this simple ritual:

Sit at your altar. Light an offering of incense and allow the smoke to swirl around you. Close your eyes and open your heart and mind to the voices of your Gods. Take a small slip of paper and write down all of the darkness in your life. As you write, imagine the ink pulling the morose out of your body and onto the paper. When you're done, light a candle on your altar and hold the paper to the flame. Stare into the flame and envision the rising of the glorious sun after a long, dark winter. Feel the flame and sun burning the darkness out of your life and body. Welcome the Sun God into your life and ask his blessing of fire and warmth. When your paper is ash offer your gratitude to the Gods for the blessings in your life and open your heart to any messages they may have for you. It would also be appropriate to draw a tarot card.

Happy Yule!

Sun Lore of All Ages, by William Tyler Olcott, [1914]
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Goddesses of Childbirth: Ayopechcatl

2012-12-17T10:10:00.001-05:00

Ayopechcatl (ah yoh PETCH kat uhl) is an Aztec goddess of childbirth and newborn babies. She is mentioned in Daniel Brinton's "Rig Veda Americanus":

Cane Cana ichan, ayopechcatl cozcapantica mixiuhtoc.
Cane Cana ichan ayopechcatl cozcapantica mixiuhtoc, cane ichan chacayoticaya.
Xiualmeuayauia, xiua xiualmeuayaauiaya yancuipilla, xiualmeuaya.
Auiya xiualmeuaya, ueya, xiua, xiualmeuaya, cozcapilla xiualmeuaya.

Truly in whatever house there is a lying-in, Ayopechcatl takes charge of the child.
Truly in whatever house there is a lying-in, Ayopechcatl takes charge of the child, there where it is weeping in the house.
Come along and cry out, cry out, cry out, you new comer, come along and cry out.
Come along and cry out, cry out, cry out, you little jewel, cry out.

There is also a beautiful story in the book "Voice of the Vanquished: The Story of the Slave Marina and Hernan Cortes" by Helen Heightsman Gordon in which the character bathes her the newborn girl and sings her this song:

Down there, where Ayopechcatl lives,
The jewel is born, a child has come into the world.
Down there, where Ayopechcatl lives,
The jewel is born, a child has come into the world.
It is down there, in her own place,
That the children are born.
Come, come here, newborn child, come here.
Come, come here, jewel-child, come here.

If you are near your birthing time, consider calling on Ayopechcatl to help you usher your baby from the spirit realm to the physical plane. Visualize her cradling your jewel in her arms of protection and lovingly passing the baby to you through the birth canal.

Happy Monday!

Crafts for your Pregnancy Altar

2012-12-13T18:09:00.001-05:00

Themed altars are a great way to focus your energy on a goal or task. You may choose to create a whole new and separate altar or just add a few items to your permanent altar. There are so many crafting methods that even the most artistically challenge are sure to find something they can do!

Felting: Involves shaping wool into a dense, semi-harden fabric. There are several different felting techniques.

Knitting: Involves two or more needles and yarn to create a fabric. Some practice and skill is required, but it's addicting once you begin!

Crocheting: Involves a hook and yarn to create a fabric. Easier to learn than knitting and much faster to work up.

Crocheted penis pattern
Crocheted fish pattern (Chinese fertility symbol)

Felted Reproduction

Drawing/Painting/Sketching. If you prefer 2D you can add pictures to your altar

How to draw an elephant (Indian fertility symbol)

How to draw a lotus flower (Hindu fertility symbol)

Objects. If you don't want to try your hand at a craft you can also go out and gather a few objects symbolizing fertility:

Mistletoe
Hazelnuts
Pomegranate

If you successfully conceive, play your fertility object in a silk or satin bag and keep it on your altar during your pregnancy. Every morning when you do your devotional you may choose to focus and direct some energy towards the bag as a symbol of your growing womb.

Happy Crafting!

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photo credit: Linda (Pane, amore e creatività) via photopin cc
photo credit: TM - the crocheteer! via photopin cc

Yoga for Pregnancy and Childbirth

2012-12-10T12:03:00.001-05:00

Previously I spoke about Yoga for fertility and the benefits of using Yoga exercises to regulate your menstrual cycle. Today I found some older text about Yoga for pregnancy and childbirth. Specifically, the author
suggests the "Fish Pose" as a way to deeply massage and strengthen the internal muscles necessary for a successful vaginal birth:

12. HOW TO ACHIEVE PAINLESS CHILDBIRTH THROUGH YOGA
To achieve painless, or "normal," childbirth, Yoga offers exercises and postures which will foster healthful development of secreting organs, especially those located within the waist and pelvic zones, and of the muscular and nervous systems.
The Western fashion world demands that women have thin waists. Actually, a woman requires a larger waist because her liver, stomach, spleen, kidneys, pancreas and colon are in the waist zone, and are proportionately larger than these organs in the male. This is part of nature's provision for motherhood. The fashionable small waist necessarily is accompanied by displaced stomach and bowels and perhaps by a dislocated liver and a "floating" kidney.
The health of the woman's internal organs is largely dependent on proper nutrition and drainage which eliminates all physiological impurities from the body. Women's pelvic organs are often congested. In the case of abdominal displacement, the pressure of the displaced organs inhibits normal, free flow of blood which, in turn, affects the health of the abdominal viscera and the sex organs. Woman is more prone to this combination of unhealthy complications, as her sex organs are within the same cavity as the visceral organs.
Constipation is the first evidence of the lack of tonicity of this part of the body. Alleviation, according to Yoga, can come only from full stretching of the anterior and deep muscles. The woman who wants easier childbirth through Yoga, should keep in mind that these exercises are not the muscle-building type, but specific non-violent and non-fatiguing exercises.
Matsyasana, or Fish Pose

A pose especially developed to contribute to the health of the pelvic and sex organs, this exercise provides both gentle exercise and a deep internal massage. Sit with your legs fully stretched out and adjust the footlock, as directed for the Semi-Lotus Pose, by folding the legs so that the feet are against the opposite groins, with the soles turned upward. While inhaling, slowly and carefully fall back, using your arms, if necessary, to guide your fall. Next, lay supine, with your legs folded, keeping the footlock in place. For comfort in the supine position, you may fold your arms under your head as a cushion. To complete this asana, return to the starting position while exhaling. Try to repeat this exercise about five times a minute. At first work at this for about one minute. Later you can extend the time to three minutes. The exercise can be used at all times. However, it should be discontinued during advanced pregnancy.
The ethical and the Yogic points of view are that in all that concerns sex physiologically, the consummation of the ideal for woman is motherhood. It has been found in India that those women who have regularly followed Yoga exercises normally enjoy pregnancies which are free of pathological or psychological problems. Childbirth to them is devoid of any gruesome experience. The Yoga diet is the most suitable during pregnancy and the Yoga processes of cleansing and elimination, which have been dealt with in other parts of this book, supply the best anti-toxic measures. However, the principles of Yoga are in no way an antithesis to modern medicine. No woman should feel that the practice of Yoga is a substitute for prenatal and postnatal care.
Painless childbirth does not mean complete absence of pain. The term, as used medically, means an easy delivery which is quite possible for the great majority of mothers. However, it may be affected by such factors as the pelvic construction, the form of presentation, etc. Perhaps the greatest factor in easy childbirth is the tone and power of contraction of the uterine muscles and the abdominal muscles. The groundwork for painless parturition must be laid early in life, and the young girl who begins Yogic exercises soon after puberty will be certain to achieve proper development of both the external and deeper muscles. The mature woman may have to work more intensively to correct her body tone. Full results may depend on the degree to which the body has been neglected and the care with which the postures are carried out regularly.

It's so important to remember that pregnancy and childbirth in incredibly physical! Labor and delivery stresses your body as much or more than running a marathon or competing in an Iron Man competition. We cannot forget to prepare our bodies physically as well as nutritionally and sexually for pregnancy and childbirth.

Did you try the Fish Pose? Tell us how it felt in the comments!

Image: Traditional Fish Pose
Image: Beginner's Fish Pose
Text: Relax With Yoga, by Arthur Liebers, [1960]

The Importance of Rhythm

2012-12-04T13:07:00.000-05:00

Rhythm is such a large topic one could dedicate an entire blog just to its discussion. Its importance cannot be underestimated nor overstated. One could argue our entire religion is centered around the goal of "living within the rhythm".

Have you ever been in a group of people? Maybe there is one person in the group who doesn't quite fit in. Maybe they are mean, tell tasteless jokes or a braggart. Notice how this disharmony negatively effects the group's dynamics. The discordant personality can cause various effects: One person may leave the group (escape), another may begin to exhibit similar behaviors (pragmatism). Maybe someone starts to tell jokes at their own expense (deflection) or ignores the offender all together (avoidance). Irrespective of the reaction, the group's existence and dynamic has shifted in response to this disharmony. The group can no longer function healthily because it has lost its rhythm.

All life has a rhythm, an eternal heartbeat we all share. Our jobs, as Pagans, is to attune ourselves and our lives with this cosmic rhythm and correct our discordant behavior. The first step is to know our place in the web or circle of life. Despite the popular view, humans are not philosopher kings amongst noble savages. We are just one of many species sharing this planet and really one of the most juvenile. Knowing our place does not diminish our importance, but rather enhance it. To feel kinship with our fellow mammals and sameness with the trees is like being welcomed into a loving family. How could we ever feel alone if everything around us is our brother and sister?

Think of our species as that group we talked about before. If we work against the natural rhythm and live in disharmony, our species' purpose and dynamic has become corrupted. Instead of creating beauty through words and actions, we create destruction and chaos. Some of us may try to escape, others become cynical and still others ignore the discordance. None of these reactions are helpful or healthy. We must, as Pagans, seek to right the balance and live within the rhythm. Doing so begins with our own mind-body and we'll continue this discussion next time with a look at our menstrual cycles.

What activity allows you to tap into the cosmic rhythm? Walks in the woods? A swim in the sea? Tell us about it in the comments!

Beginning a Daily Devotion

2012-11-30T15:04:00.002-05:00

Doing a daily devotion to your Gods can become a very important part of your spiritual practice. Taking a moment to pray, give thanks and ask for guidance is a wonderfully fulfilling way to strengthen or renew your bond with the divine. If you are trying to conceive, currently pregnant or preparing for birth, this daily practice is even more important.

It is okay to feel silly or lost when you first begin the practice. You may find yourself thinking ahead to daily errands or dinner preparations instead of focusing on your devotional. Don't worry about it! At first, the real task will be to just find and set aside the time every day. Examine your schedule. Do you have a bit of extra time in the mornings or evenings? Do you want to start or end your day with a conversation with your Gods? When will you be less likely to be disturbed? All questions that will help you determine when your devotional should occur.

After determining the "When" you can determine the "Where". If you have a permanent altar or shrine, that would be the most obvious place to sit for a few minutes. Your living area may not have the space for a permanent setup so consider a few objects easily put in a drawer that you can bring out during your devotionals. A small statue or figurine and some incense is more than enough to create a temporary, sacred space.

Finally, you must decide the "How". Don't feel that your routine must be static. Let it flow and evolve as your life circumstances change. There be times when you will just sit and be thankful, others where you will need guidance and still other times where you just open yourself to receive. At first you may wish to start your time with gratitude and incense. Thank the Gods for blessings you received the previous day and light a stick of incense as an offering. Next, ask for guidance, protection, or insight. If you are trying to conceive you may ask a/the Goddess for help while visualizing your future baby in your womb. If you are preparing for birth take time to ask for strength and protection and visualize your ideal birth experience. Consider ending your devotional by pulling a Tarot card. It is not necessary to have a question in mind, you may just ask the Gods for any message or wisdom they may have before pulling the card.

However you decide to proceed, beginning a daily devotional is key to preserving and strengthening your faith. Give time to your spiritual practice and you will be amply rewarded with inner peace and a outlook of gratitude throughout your day.

Do you do a daily devotional? Share your practices in the comments!

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Goddesses of Childbirth: Jana/Diana

2012-11-29T15:26:00.000-05:00

Most religions have a god or goddess that presides over childbirth. Childbirth was, and sometimes, still is a dangerous endeavor so having the gods' favor and protection is always a good thing. Today we're going to feature Jana or Diana (Roman/Greek), the goddess of doors, thresholds, the Moon and childbirth.

Diana is a complicated goddess as she is associated with both virginity and childbirth. I prefer to think it is her connection with doors and thresholds that lends her protection to childbirth. Childbirth can easily be seen as a doorway from the spiritual to the physical plane of existence. There is a wonderful poem that I read often as I prepared for birth and afterwards felt the truth of it:

Giving birth is priestess work; it requires a woman to pass through a painful and dangerous initiation in which she journeys to the threshold between worlds and risks her own life to help another soul cross over. - Jalaja Bonheim

If you are pregnant, consider asking for Diana's protection and assistance during your birth. Wearing one of her symbols may also give you a meditative focus during labor. The key and the metal silver are two of her symbols as mentioned by William Thomas and Kate Pavit in their work "The Book of Talismans, Amulets and Zodiacal Gems":

The Key Talisman was a very important one with both Greeks and Romans. It is the joint symbol of Janus (or Apollo) and Jana, his wife (Diana, or the Moon) ... Diana, or Jana, his wife, presided over doors and thresholds and was the special protectress of childbirth, and as keeper of the Gate of Heaven held the key of light and life. Some of these ancient key Amulets were made in silver (Diana's own metal)

Do you have a patron goddess for your birth? How do you honor her?

Text: The Book of Talismans, Amulets and Zodiacal Gems, by William Thomas and Kate Pavitt, [1922]

The Beaver Moon

2012-11-27T11:22:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow is the night of the full moon or esabat. From the "Farmer's Almanac", this moon is referred to as the Beaver Moon or sometimes the Frosty Moon:

This was the time to set beaver traps before the swamps froze, to ensure a supply of warm winter furs. Another interpretation suggests that the name Full Beaver Moon comes from the fact that the beavers are now actively preparing for winter. It is sometimes also referred to as the Frosty Moon.

The practice of naming full moons was adopted from the Native Americans and although there is some variation, the names are fairly consistent in the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior.

In neo-Paganism we often associate the Moon with the feminine divine. As it turns out, this is not a recent connection and in Timothy Harley's 1885 work, "Moon Lore", he discuss the Moon's long association with all things feminine and water. He quotes Kenrick's Phœnicia:

The name Astarte was variously identified with the moon, as distinguished from the sun, or with air and water, as opposed in their qualities to fire. The name of this goddess represented to the worshipper the great female parent of all animated things, variously conceived of as the moon, the earth, the watery element, primeval night, the eldest of the destinies.

As such, full moons are particularly important to the Pagan woman. We must take the time to revel in our femininity and appreciate those qualities that make us uniquely female. If you are trying to conceive this is a good time to do a ritual honoring the Goddess or female divine in the world and in yourself. Imagine the Moon wrapping your reproductive organs in silver healing light. Ask the Goddess to ease the passage of your eggs to the womb and create a loving environment for your baby to grow. Put a jar of pure water outside to absorb the full Moon's energy and for the next month anoint yourself daily with this lunar elixir.

Text: Moon Lore, by Timothy Harley, [1885]
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The Nine of Cups: Tarot and Conception

2012-11-26T16:49:00.000-05:00

Not every Pagan uses Tarot cards and not everyone who reads cards is Pagan, but nevertheless, the two often go hand-in-hand. Choosing a Tarot card during your morning devotions can be beneficial to both your spiritual practic as well as your journey towards conceiving a child.

Why Tarot?
It is often difficult to clearly hear the messages of the universe and the Gods. Our own minds are cluttered with dinner preparations, job worries, and the latest movie. Despite our best intentions, we often cannot perceive the hints and messages they Gods may direct towards us. It is not solely a side effect of our modern lives, it is also a simple limitations of our mortal coil. Unfortunately, the Gods cannot write us an email or send us a text so often we struggle to interpret their voices. Tarot cards are one of many tools we have to ask the Gods questions and receive answers in return. The cards channel the messages into universal images and concepts that our brains can easily absorb.

In relation to pregnancy, the Nine of Cups is often the card most often associated. In his book, "General Book of the Tarot", A.E. Theirens explains the significance of the Nine of Cups:

P.S.--In the more profane branch of divination this card is called the 'nine-months-card,' owing to the belief that it means pregnancy and expectance of childbirth. The latter is significant of the fifth house, the former confirms our idea, that the cups have to do with months in time.

Draw a Tarot card tonight and find out what message the Gods have for you!

Text: General Book of the Tarot, by A. E. Thierens, [1930]

Pregnancy Journal Prompt: Gender Determination

2012-11-25T19:23:00.000-05:00

Almost as exciting as the surprise of pregnancy itself is the discovery of your baby's gender. Some women choose to find out at their 20 week ultrasound, others decide to preserve the element of surprise until the birth. Whichever course you take know that the modern woman is not alone in her curiousity about her baby's sex. There are many old wives tales and folk remedies to determine the sex, although with the advent of medical technology these have largely fell out of use.

Sir Richard Burton translated a works called "The Perfumed Garden". In it the Sheikh Nefzaoui discusses different ways a woman can tell if she carries a boy or a girl:

Know, O Vizir (God be good to you!), that the certain indications of pregnancy are the following: the dryness of the vulva immediately after coitus, the inclination to stretch herself, accesses of somnolency, heavy and profound sleep, the frequent contraction of the opening of the vulva to such an extent that not even a meroud could penetrate, the nipples of the breast becoming darker and, lastly, the most certain of all marks is the cessation of menstruation.
If the woman remains always in good health from the time that her pregnancy is certain, if she preserves the good looks of her face and a clear complexion, if she does not become freckled, then it may be taken as a sign that the child will be a boy.
The red colour of the nipples also points to a child of the male sex. The strong development of the breasts, and bleeding from the nose, if it comes from the right nostril, are signs of the same purport.
The signs pointing to the conception of a child of the female sex are numerous. I will name them here: frequent indisposition during pregnancy, pale complexion, spots and freckles, pains in the matrIx, frequent nightmares, blackness of the nipples, a heavy feeling on the left side, nasal haemorrhage on the same side.
If there is any doubt about the pregnancy, let the woman drink, on going to bed, honey-water, and if then she has a feeling of heaviness in the abdomen, it is a proof that she is with child. If the right side feels heavier than the left one, it will be a boy. If the breasts are swelling with milk, this is similarly a sign that the child she is bearing will be of the male sex.
I have received this information from savants, and all the indications are positive and tested.

Based on the signs he details what is the sex of your baby? In your journal write about your guess on your baby's sex based on your own intuition and Sheikh Nefzaoui's "signs".

Text: "The Perfumed Garden of the Shaykh Nefwazi" Translated by Sir Richard Burton [1886]

photo credit: seier+seier via photopin cc

Yoga for Fertility

2012-11-24T16:11:00.001-05:00

I've always been attracted to yoga even before converting to Paganism. After I began practicing my faith, yoga took on a whole new meaning to me. Not only was I exercising physically, I was also connecting to the earth. I found, increasingly, that our place in the animal kingdom is forgotten. As a species we seem to have a need to distinguish ourselves from "the animals". Birth needs to be sterilized with epidurals and c-sections, bottles replace breasts, anything seen as "animal" or "base" must be shunned and labelled shameful. Thus finding myself on a treadmill watching the Maury show where my sweat was quickly dried with the air conditioner made me feel as if exercise too had become sterilized. Yoga, in contrast, has no equipment, can be practiced anywhere and brings your attention to every body part. No more zoning out to a talk show while mechanically moving your legs, yoga forces you to focus, to be in the moment and unite your body and mind.

Most of us women have spent a large portion of our lives trying to avoid pregnancy. Many of us, myself included, resort to hormonal birth control. While effective and useful, there's no arguing that we are, in essence, tricking our body's to block our fertility. It's no surprise then that many of us have trouble becoming pregnant once we are ready. Birth control is a wonderful thing and so important to the liberation of women, but once you're ready to become pregnant it's often not as a simple as just tossing the little pills in the garbage. Often we must reconnect with our bodies, our cycles.

Yoga is a way for us to restablish our connection with our bodies. We are aligning our mind's intent to conceive with our body's natural fertility. Just as the Wheel turns, the moon waxes and wanes, so does our natural fertility. What better way to re-align our bodies with it's natural rythmns that by purposeful exercise of the body, mind and spirit?

There are many pre-natal yoga videos out there, but my personal favorite and the one that resulted in a successsful pregnancy for me is "Restoring Fertility". It has a routine for each phase of your menstural cycle and uses stretching, pressure points and visual meditation to re-establish your body's natural rythym.

Whichever video you buy, yoga is a great way to tap into the earth's energy and feel the heartbeat of life that we all share. Make sure you check with your doctor before beginning an exercise regime!

Under Construction

2012-11-20T15:12:00.002-05:00

As I write my book, I hope to fill this site with some of the tibits I pick up a long the way. This will also be the home of the Pagan-themed BBT Chart soon to be available for download. Check back soon!