E is for Eggs

This week was not hard for me to choose what to write about at all.  Eggs have always been something special to me because of my Mother.  She is a collector of eggs.

Eggs have great significance in magick.  They are a sign of fertility, protection and can be used for cleansing.  Egg shell has many uses either in its natural state or made into chalk or paint.  I have found them most useful during meditation as well.  I think personally one of the most interesting things I have ever used an egg for was when I was 13.  I had read in one of the books I had just bought that if you write your troubles on an egg and bury it that the problems will work themselves out.  From my personal experience a lot was going on in my life back then with my family and while I think some of the things I wrote on the 4 eggs I buried did work itself out, a lot just took time. 

When I was really little we used to have chickens also.  It was one of my favorite things to go into the coop and find all the fresh eggs.  Granted I had/have a fear of chickens so it was a sketchy task but still fun.  I guess I never realized how nice it was to have an almost endless supply of fresh eggs until we moved to the city and no longer had chickens.  Not only were they great for cooking but when needed it was nice for cleansing.  Something about being able to go into a coop and find 'your' egg for the task makes the experience all the more fulfilling.

Well I figured that I would share pictures of my Moms collection with everyone.  I think she started this collection before I was even born.  Don't judge that some serious dusting needs to happen.  This is at the apartment that neither of us have lived in since before Christmas.  Lol

I think that some of my favorites are the actual Emu and Ostrich eggs.  Of course the clear glass egg full of the smaller eggs is fun too.  But I think my all time favorites would have to be these two...  The green one I fell in love with the first time my Mom showed it to me.

Well I hope that you all enjoyed the photos.  Again excuse the dust!  Lol  Hope that all of you are doing well.

D is for Dreams

I have always had a certain fascination with dreams.  The hidden meanings within and the way people interpret them.  I have a big book of dreams which I often find myself flipping through whenever I am bored.  I am definitely no expert at dream interpretation.   I can't even say that I can interpret them at all.  Dreams have always been a mystery to me, but I don't really mind.  Honestly I think some of it may be a little fear?  What would I discover if I were to look into the meanings behind the things I see when I am asleep.  Many of the dreams that I do happen to remember which is not often is usually a dream of myself in some sort of situation.  Whether it be completely bizzar or extraordinarily ordinary.  ;)

Sometimes the situations I dream myself in are down right terrifying.  Not by the situation but by the things that I do and how completely unlike myself I appear to be.  I have dreamt of myself doing the most awful things which I don't care to admit.  It leaves me frightened of what it could possibly mean and too ashamed to ever let anyone know how I behaved, even in a dream.   

Anyways so inspired by this weeks letter I decided to do an experiment I had read from a book.  I more often than not don't remember the things that I dream about unless they are bad.  In a book (can't remember exactly which at the moment) I had read that a way to recall ones dreams is to sleep with a mirror beneath your pillow, preferably small and round.  I know the more common practice is to keep some sort of writing material next to your bed to write down your dreams when you wake before the dream leaves and is forgotten.  I just thought this was a little more interesting of an approach.

Surprisingly I did remember the dream I had the first night!

It was strange to say the least.  At least I think it was strange.  I dreamt of being in the mirror...  Like I was a little person in the mirror looking out.  I could see me through my pillow with my face smashed against it mouth a gap and slightly snoring hair in a huge matted mess.  I could see my bf with his arm thrown carelessly across my pillow right above my head, he too was snoring.  I could see our dog squeezed between the headboard and my bfs pillow with his face inches away from mine.  I remember looking at the blanket and yet I could see threw it and into the rest of the room.  It was almost like I was poking my head out of the little mirror and taking a peak at the dark sleeping room.  

Another night I dreamt of ribbon.  Red ribbon in darkness just unraveling going all over the place.  I think I saw something like it in a movie once.  I don't think it was a particularly long dream because at one point it was like the unraveling ribbon did a big drop and it caused me to have the sensation of falling and I jolted awake.  

Then another night I dreamt of grocery shopping and coming home and eating an oreo ice cream cake.  It was delicious.

So I found this practice with the mirror to be extremely helpful as far as remembering the dreams that I am having.  I am no closer to understanding the meaning behind them lol.  Who knows maybe one day.

Sorry that this post is so late.  Been busy but I am trying not to give up on this challenge as I really enjoy reading everyone else's post and want to be a part of the fun.

I hope you are all well and had a nice week leading into an awesome weekend.

Centering

I know I said that I was going to continue to write about Cosmetics and Magic this week.  Truth be told though I just didn't have the inspiration to write about it.  One I have found that it is really hard to find anything on modern day make up and magick.  As most thing go it is one of those things that really depends on the person who is practicing that will determine how their make up is done.

What has been on my mind is Centering.  Now I don't think that I have to really go into explaining exactly what this is.  It is something I am sure most of us learn early on in the pagan path.  It is an essential tool of sorts.  At least that is what I think.  Before most rituals, tarot readings, and spell work a lot of the time we take a few minutes to sit and gather our thoughts and clear our minds.  Some even meditate on an everyday basis in the morning before they start the day and others like myself at night before going to bed.

This topic choice shouldn't really be surprising seeing as I have been having problems sleeping and it was suggested to me that I start centering myself as I lay down ready to go to sleep.  I have meditated before sure.  But really centering myself, returning all my scattered thoughts to home?  I have always had a hard time with mediation.  If there is anything that I struggle with that is calming my thoughts.  I have a hard time just quieting down.  Constantly have something on my mind which will stem a random thought which stems another, just like anyone else.  Just a long continuous chain reaction.  Before I would sit to meditate and be chanting in my head "don't think don't think don't think."  Which I know!  Is totally not the point of meditation and then I would frustrate myself knowing that chanting in my own head was not going to solve the problem which would lead to more irritation that I had lost focus.

Lol needless to say it took me some time to learn to just 'be'.  I am not even going to pretend like I have mastered that because I have not.  I know some people like to listen to calming music when they mediate and I have found this useful on very rare occasions.  Most of the time though I can't have any music in the background it really distracts me.

I think when I lay down to go to sleep at night I have such a hard time falling asleep because I don't have any activity that is focusing my attention.  Instead I am laying there in the quiet and my thoughts go everywhere all the good and the bad just comes back and plays through my mind.  I try to work out all the problems and sometimes only make it worse by picturing the worst things that could happen.

So the act of centering myself has helped the last couple of nights.  Just taking a few minutes to reel in all the scattered thoughts.  All the different mental trails I have made throughout the day just bringing them all back in.  I can't really say if I have fully accomplished this.  Since the act itself the last couple of times I have tried it have led to me falling asleep in the middle of it.  I don't really consider that a bad thing though.  In fact I prefer it to being awake all night, thoughts going a hundred miles and hour.  If just the simple exercise of pulling in my scattered bit of attention and focus relaxes me enough to fall asleep then I think it is an accomplishment.

Its going to sound funny but when laying down and doing this I visualize all this energy being pulled away from my head.  Like all these thoughts being balled up into this tight ball of energy and if I let go of it its all going to just scatter all over the place again so instead I just move it down and out of my head, down all the way until it leaves through the bottom of my feet.  Of course the thoughts aren't gone but picturing this just helps silences everything long enough for me to relax and get to sleep.

Other than that I think one of my other favorite practices to do is counting sounds.  I think that is one of the reasons I am not a fan of music playing when I meditate.  More often then not I will sit and count the sounds.  I try not to search for sounds, straining to hear the world around me, but whichever sounds manage to make there way to me I will count it.

Well that is all for today.  I hope you all had a wonderful week.  I have been pretty busy this week but that is a good thing.  Have a great weekend!  I will be working woot woot.  Will find out on Sunday if I officially have the new job or not!  =)

Cosmetics

Cosmetics and magic.  Guess I never really thought about putting the two together.  I mean I know some people today and more often in the past painted designs on their bodies for things like protection.  Henna is still a very common form of make-up, where varying designs are painted on the hands, and feet for all kinds of different reasons.  I have read that many in the pagan community will bathe, dress, and do their make-up in a  very specific way depending on the spell/ritual they will be doing.  I haven't ever done this but it makes sense and is definitely something that has peaked my interest.

I have mentioned before that right now I am currently reading this book called The Magical Household by Scott Cunningham and David Harrington.  A lot of what I am going to write about today is based from what I read from their book.  So for those who don't want to have the book's content spoiled I would read no further!  This is just a bit of what I took from the book.

'Cosmetics were originally magical in nature.  Make-up, a part of magical rites, was deemed necessary for the protection of the body.' (S.C. & D.H.)

Maybe I really should be more aware of how I do my make-up in the morning when I know I will be 'practicing'.  In truth I usually don't do my make-up at all if I am aware I will be doing something significant.  I guess I have this romance of an all natural idea. Cunningham and Harrington go on to talk about how cosmetics were used to heal the sick, preventing evil from entering the body, warding off dangers...  When I picture this I see bodies painted with many symbols each with their own meaning and purpose.  Really though just your average everyday make-up can have significance as well.  Cunningham and Harrington mention a little on how the Egyptians would oval outline their eyes with kohl, both men and women, so that the evil eye could not pass.

I am not sure about anyone else but I had to look up exactly what the evil eye was since I had only ever heard about it in the newer Sleepy Hallow movie.  What I read, which wasn't too much so don't quote me on this, gave me the jist that it is when someone sort of has ill intent almost like a hex.  It can bring injury or misfortune to the person whom it is directed at.  So I guess its not all that complicated.

Moving along though, the Egyptians also used colors of importance.  Painting their upper eyelids blue and lower lids green was thought to strengthen their physic ability as well as protection.  Lipstick was used to keep evil from entering as well.  While make-up is now more directed towards beauty cosmetic magic is still around, more so in certain parts of the world that others but its not gone completely.  Egyptians are not the only ones who recognized the importance of color.  It is commonly known throughout the magical community that colors are of great importance.

Continuing to read I realized that just about every act of getting ready for the day is its own ritual, can have its own purpose if we are just aware of it.  Eye shadows, lipsticks, perfumes, colognes, oils, all of this can have a purpose in magic.  Hair was discussed a bit more in depth.  'Combing and brushing the hair is another daily activity loaded with magical overtones.' (S.C. & D.H.) I had never heard before that some thought that cutting ones hair is considered superstitious and believed to decrease power.  I know in the past the Japanese (samurai if I am remembering right) used to never cut there hair unless defeated in battle.  It was a sign of insult and disrespect if another cut their hair knot. Anyways, Cunningham and Harrington do say that cutting your hair won't really decrease your ability to preform effective magic seeing as how the entire body is a manifestation of power not just your hair.

All through their book I can't help but smile at little things like when they talk about braiding hair.  They said it was once a common practice designed to foil negativity.  That the knots or intertwingings spoiled baneful spells and also guarded the head.  I braid my hair almost every single night.  Not with the intention of protecting myself from negativity but to ward off the evil horrors of bed head in the morning.  All you curly haired girls out there know what I am talking about right?!  

Ok so since the post is turning out to be much longer than I first anticipated I will just talk about two more things mentioned in the book that I thought were interesting.  'If you wish  to remain passionate, don't brush your hair after dark.  This is a sure-fire way to lose your desire for sex.' -  (S.C. & D.H.)  Ok.... well.... so maybe I really only have one more thing to talk about.  You know I had a string of thoughts that I thought I would put to words because of this but now... I think it is better that I keep those thoughts to myself.  *wink*

And lastly '...an old Persian spell instructs us to stand in the dark before a mirror, combing or brushing the hair without thinking, speaking or otherwise moving.  Ghosts should appear in the glass.' - (S.C. & D.H.)  I couldn't help but wonder if this is where many of the ghost stories/games we hear as children started.  Bloody Mary, and the Candy Man, ect.  I as a child was always much too terrified to participate in these games and often was stricken with paralyzing fear when around those who did play the game.  It often led to me wide eyed, and heart going a hundred miles and hour, standing outside the bathroom door with the light on listening as my friends repeated the various names.  Then later on I alone was awake late at night convinced that the only reason no ghost appeared for them was because the spirit knew that I really believed in them and was definitely more afraid than the rest of my friends and was waiting to come and get me instead of them.  Too this day there isn't a soul on this earth who could convince me to play one of these 'games'.  

You know I have always had a weird..... nevermind I had this long paragraph written out about mirrors but I will save that for another day maybe wait until letter M week rolls around, since this post is supposed to be about Cosmetics.  Anyways I think next week I am going to maybe stick with the whole cosmetic topic but this time maybe try and throw in a  little bit of personal experience, some different sources other than Cunningham and Harrington's book.  I feel like this post is a bit dry but I am happy with it I hope that you all enjoyed it.  I will try to work on writing about things a bit more interesting with the following weeks.  I have to admit that I am still a little bit at a loss of how to approach this whole thing.  We will see where it all ends up though.  =)  Very excited to see what other people came up with for the this week!