GRIMTALK - Week 9

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Basic Homesteading Skills

Crafts

quilting

embroidery

cross-stitch

knitting

crochet

sewing

Cooking and Baking

homemade bread

homemade butter

homemade extracts

dandelion jelly

Canning

26 canning recipes

canning jars 101

60 canning recipes

Gardening

edible trees to plant

what to plant to save the bees

cure and braid garlic

save seeds for next year

braid onions for long term storage

build a greenhouse

Animals

homemade chicken feed

raising mealworms for chickens

why to raise nigerian dwarf goats

Outdoors

starting a fire with sticks

trail signs

knotting

find true north without a compass

Medicine

homemade neosporin

all purpose healing salve

Numbers and their Meanings

0 - the void. infinite possibilities. eternity. cycle. circle of life.

1- independent. will. beginnings. pioneering. individuality. 

2 - balance. partnership. diplomacy. contrast. polarity. connection. 

3 - creativity. joy. communication. self expression. groups. fun. 

4 - foundations. pragmatism. material reality. problem solving. 

5 - adventure. change. innovation. risk. freedom. challenge. conflict.

6 - harmony. community. domestic. love. healing. service. 

7 - spirituality. truth. intellect. personal growth. solitude. metaphysical. 

8 - authority. manifestation. business. leadership. abundance. goals. 

9 - wisdom. closure. completion. serice to humanity.

Basic Homesteading Skills

Crafts

quilting

embroidery

cross-stitch

knitting

crochet

sewing

Cooking and Baking

homemade bread

homemade butter

homemade extracts

dandelion jelly

Canning

26 canning recipes

canning jars 101

60 canning recipes

Gardening

edible trees to plant

what to plant to save the bees

cure and braid garlic

save seeds for next year

braid onions for long term storage

build a greenhouse

Animals

homemade chicken feed

raising mealworms for chickens

why to raise nigerian dwarf goats

Outdoors

starting a fire with sticks

trail signs

knotting

find true north without a compass

Medicine

homemade neosporin

all purpose healing salve

Dried Orange Peels

•Latin Name: Citrus Aurantium

•Dried Orange Peel Magickal Attributes:

house and financial blessings, love, luck, divination, offering for deities, money, happiness, friendship (strength/progress), relationships (progress/strength) good fortune

•Common Magickal Usages:

put orange peels (dried) in a spell sachet to help aid somebody or yourself make up your / their mind

put dried orange peel in amulets to promote a prosperous business

make a spell jar for a friend or loved one and include orange peel in it to strengthen your bond

the scent of orange lifts spirits so put some orange scented drops in your diffuser etc (sun energy !!)

orange peel is also used as a yule decoration as a promise of the sun even after the hardships of winter :)

I can feel…the serotonin and dopamine dropping…i need to make…Crafts

i must make…

b e a d l i z a r d

Safe Crossings for Someone Who’s Passed

A simple ritual to help someone who’s passed find peace.

Ingredients:

A small candle (white or black is good, or a color you associate with the deceased)

A small piece of paper and pen/pencil (or special treat or toy if for a beloved pet)

Rosemary oil or leaves

Thyme

Violet, marigold, or rose petals

Ground clove

A pinch of sugar (any kind)

A small candle-safe bowl/holder (needs to be a bit larger than the candle itself so herbs can be placed around)

1.) Write the name of the person or pet on the piece of paper. Write what you wish for them (peace, rest, happiness, love, reunions, etc.). Include the toy and/or treats around the bowl if for a pet.

2.) Place the paper under the candle. If you have rosemary oil, rub the candle with it lightly. If you have the leaves, you can stick them into the candle in a ring around the outer edge.

3.) Create a ring around the candle with the herbs and petals. Sprinkle the sugar around on top last.

4.) Light the candle and say the pet/person’s name and the things you wish for them.

5.) Leave the candle burning as long as you are able, but it’s okay if that’s a short amount of time.

6.) Bury the herbs/petals and paper- or burn them if you’re unable to bury.

How can you tell if a "magic" book is full of it? I'm sure with experience you can, but what about beginners?

Reading these books needs a good ‘bullshit detector’.  There are a few telling signs:

1) Look at the book’s bibliography. A bibliography can give you, if it’s a good one, the primary sources an author used, and can give you an idea of other books to read. A bad bibliography can save you time - if a book hasn’t got one, or it’s a very short one, or it references only other neo-pagan texts, it’s not going to be long on facts and you might be better off reading something else.

2) Magic and witchcraft aren’t inherently religious. If the book implies or states that a neo-pagan religion is necessary in order to practice witchcraft, it’s probably not worth the read.

3) If the book says it’s about a neo-pagan religion of some kind, but talks endlessly of spells instead, it’s probably a waste of your time if you’re looking for the religious practice first. Some neo-pagan faiths will involve practicing magic, but others don’t.

4) Neo-pagan books that talk about ancient matriarchal religions spanning Europe, a ‘Great Goddess’ and all that jazz, are based in the historical theories of Margaret Murray. They were all fairly thoroughly debunked, but it still lingers in neo-pagan circles.

5) Know that things like the ‘Triple Goddess’ and the Wheel of the Year are modern inventions - they aren’t ancient, and forcing ancient deities or practices into those concepts will not always work or be appropriate.

6) If the deities you’re reading about are described as being very different from their historical selves, it’s probably a good sign that author hasn’t done their home work very well. 

7) ‘The Burning Times’ did happen - but it was not a systematic genocide of a pagan religion or practitioners of magic. What you had was a mass hysteria created by the church, and taken advantage of by greedy people. They had no qualms in killing unloved neighbours or relatives for their property, with witchcraft as a scapegoat. Maybe a few witches died - but so did thousands of Christians who were unfortunate enough to be disliked, or without family, or to be a better farmer or gardener. ‘Nine Million’ is certainly hyperbole, and is not factually accurate.

8) Be aware of things that don’t fit: for example, we have what’s called the ‘potato test’. Potatoes are not native to Europe and were not discovered until explorers began invading South America. So an author that talks about an ancient Irish potato deity, for example, is absolutely full of it.

9) Authors who are patronizing and talk down to their readers, no matter the subject, should be tossed on their ears. You’re a beginner, perhaps, but you’re not stupid and you’re not a child. You don’t need the author to coddle you or ‘simplify’ the information - their assumption that you do is just rude. If you wouldn’t let someone talk to you like that in real life, why would you read a book that does the same thing?

10) Whenever you can, space your neo-pagan or magical reading out with primary sources and proper non-fiction history and anthropology texts. A primary source is going to give you the closest thing to being there, at whatever time and place you’re looking at. Academic texts can be a chore to get through, but they’re going to give you the grounding you need to have a detector of your own.

Read what you can get your hands on. At first, like you said, it’s hard to tell the gold from the dross, but you’ll get the hang of it. A couple of really awful books will give you a guideline, and you’ll find authors you can trust vs. authors you can’t.

Read critically. Don’t be afraid to be a skeptic.  Similar doesn’t equal same - cultures have similar concepts but it doesn’t make their gods or their practices the same thing with different names. If you think something sounds like horseshit or too good to be true, it probably is.

Good luck, and happy hunting. :>

For this Strawberry Full Moon on June, you can still make great spells during these weekend.  Spells about friendship are ideal! (it can also be about breaking them, or making new ones) but this one here is about blessing a friendship.  It´s important to make it in the nights close to the time of the full moon, wether its before or after, when the  moon is at its brightest and use only candles as source of light.

You will need Dill Powder, 5 things that you both like (it can be between a large group of friends too), and rope or a thread.

First make a circle with the rope and start placing the things around it (not inside) , then spread the dill powder all over them. Once its done, each of the involved have to say why the friendship is important to them.

In the end , both say how long you wish your friendship to last and blow the candles out.

Energy Work Masterpost

General:

Basic Elements of Energy Work

Choosing Your Energies

Energetic Blockages

Energy Clearing and Infusing

Energy Feeds and Magic Fatigue and A Clarification

Energy for Beginners Part I and Energy for Beginners Part II: Gathering, Raising, Storing, and Casting

Energy Work and the Chakras

Energy Work Masterpost

An Energy Work Primer (You Don’t Have to “Feel” Anything)

Protect Your Energy

Sensation & Direction - A Beginner’s Guide to Energy Work

Tired After Energy Work?

Types of Energy: Air / Airy Correspondences | Earth / Earthy Correspondences | Fire / Fiery Correspondences | Water / Watery Correspondences | Practical Elemental Work

Visualization:

Different Kinds of Visualization

Having Trouble Visualizing?

How to Visualize

Magical Visualization - Some Basics

Mistakes I Made with Visualization

Simple Visualization Exercises

Using Your Intent (an ask)

Charging / Enchanting:

Charging 101: The Quick Basics

Charging an Object

Charging and Dedicating Stones and Crystals

Charging Objects

Enchanting Things with Touch

Witch’s Guide to Charging

Witch’s tl;dr Guide to Charging

Witch’s Guide to Programming

Witch’s tl;dr Guide to Programming

Energy Manipulation / Exercises:

Animist Reset Ritual

Banishing the Energies of Others

Beginner Energy Manipulation Resource List

Channeling Energy to Work Magic

Competitive Magic

Dispelling the Notion of “Bad” Energy and Learning a New Way to Recycle

Energy Manipulation: Aura Shaping

Energy Manipulation: God Energies

Energy Manipulation: People and their Elements Part I and Part II

Energy Manipulation: Polarization Habits (Don’t Make You a Bad Person), and How to Break Them

Energy Manipulation Element Series: Air | Air/Fire | Earth | Earth/Fire | Earth/Water | Fire | Water | Element Posts F.A.Q.s

Energy Practice

Energy Work: Expansion vs. Contraction

Energy Work - Distance Charging

Energy Work - Elemental Nails

Energy Work - Energetic Check

Energy Work - Energy Ball

Energy Work - Energy Cannonball

Energy Work - Texting Predictions

Energy Work - Tree in a Jar

Energy Work and Making Contact

The Fluffy Pillar and the Spheres

Harnessing Sex Energy

How to Energetically Cleanse an Item

How to Send Energy to Other People

Let’s Talk Basics: Directing Energy

Method of Remote Viewing

Personal Energy Cleanse

Reflecting Negativity

Scream Jars

Sensing Energy Exercise 

Shielding / Warding:

Altering Shields

Badass Things to Inspire Shields

Checking and Repairing Shields

Energy Warding

Energy Work: Shielding

Forming a Basic Shield - Creation and Sealing

Fun with Auras (aka, Shielding)

How to Undo Shields

Magically Making Friends - Reforging Your Protections

Personal Shielding

Removing and Deactivating Shields

Shielding/Transmuting and the Solar Plexus Chakra

Shielding & Aura Manipulation

Shielding and its Purpose

Shielding for General Protection

Shielding for Specific Protection

Shielding vs Aura Manipulation

Stacking Shields

Stealth Shielding

Transmuting Energy: An Alternative to Shielding

Two-Sided Shielding

Using External Power to Shield

Witch’s tl;dr Guide to Shielding

Grounding:

Airy Grounding Guide

Beach Surf Grounding

Gale Grounding

Grounding

Grounding

Grounding (Energy Work Series Part 1)

Grounding and the Root Chakra

Grounding or ‘Earthing’

Grounding Techniques

Grounding Theory and Application

Grounding via Aura

Grounding with Pasta

How Do I “Ground”?

Notes on Being Grounded

Release Grounding

Sea Witchcraft: “Sinking”

Witch’s Guide to Grounding

Witch’s Guide to Grounding - Sturdy as Stone

Witch’s tl;dr Guide to Grounding

Centering:

Centering and Grounding

Energy Manipulation 101: Grounding and Centering, or That Thing Everyone/Book Says to Do But Never Really Explains Why…

Grounding and Centering

Witch’s Guide to Centering

Witch’s Guide to Centering - Crystal Gem Fusion Dance

Witch’s tl;dr Guide to Centering

Thoughtforms:

A Bit on Entities and Thoughtforms

Creating a Physical Vessel for Your Thoughtform to Live In

Creating a Thoughtform

Creating Positive Thought Forms

Destroying Your Thoughtform

An Exercise to Help with Creating Mental Spaces for Thoughtforms

An Exercise to Help with Creating Thoughtforms

Have Your Thoughtform Go to Work

Keeping Track of Your Thought-Forms

Letting Your Thoughtform Die, Dealing with Thoughtform Injuries

Projecting Your Thoughtform

A Short Guide to Thouhtforms

Technowitchcraft - Thoughtforms

Thoughs on Thoughtforms

Watching Your Thoughtform Grow

What is a Thoughtform?

What is a Thought Form?