Weekly Linkage
The post I enjoyed reading most recently was this one by Kaye; it touched on a lot of points that have been rolling around my brain recently, as well as topics that I’ve seen brought up in other polytheist spaces.
Joe on Caffeine-Fueled Magick has a post about fear that reminds me of some of the best rituals I’ve conducted or participated in.
Lorna Smithers wrote an interesting and engaging post on the term ‘awenyddion’ and the nuances of cultural appropriation.
I can remember so many times when I’ve word vomited at people to explain to them why I am in a place, or why I am in another place, or why, why, why, why, why, as if I’m spinning a prayer wheel to the Gods asking for some definitive answer(s) about where and with whom I belong and how I find a path and how I find this, that, or another community, or when you know that you’re in or out.
Kaye, ‘The “Why” Is Not and, and Cannot Be, Uniform’
Tommy Elf has a post on the how and why of his self-described unconventional spiritual practices. I think it’s worth a read if you’re thinking of innovating yourself or if you find yourself resistant to changes to established ritual or magical practice.
You may have complications that you can’t overcome. Maybe your family situation doesn’t leave enough time to devote the necessary hours to practice and service. Maybe your health restricts what you can do.
The fact that some people can seemingly do it all doesn’t mean you can… and you never know how closely their circumstances match yours.
John Beckett, ‘You Will Never Be Ready – Do It Anyway‘ on Patheos Pagan
Lastly, here is a post about Navrarti, a 9 day festival in the Hindu tradition. I’ve been participating in Navaratri online with a group of polytheist friends and acquaintances, as part of my goal to participate in more non-Otherfaith polytheist and Pagan activities.
Daily Observances 29 September – 4 October
I’ve been wanting to record more daily notes and observations for a few weeks now, as fall has set in solidly where I live. I decided to finally commit after seeing these posts by Morag Spinner and Jenett Silver. I’ll be posting every week on Friday, rounding up all my notes on the natural world as well as journal entries. A lot of the observation information likely won’t be interesting to most people – it’s mainly here so I can track how the world is slowly changing season to season and day to day.
The journal entries I include will reflect how I actually write in my journals nowadays: somewhat clipped, incomplete sentences. I am trying to just get ideas down before they flutter away out of my grasp, after all. If there isn’t anything relevant or if a day’s entry is too personal I will not include an excerpt for that day of the week.
Also included in these posts will be things like what books I have been reading, my projects for the previous and upcoming weeks, and notes about my devotional practices.
Books from the Week
Llewellyn’s 2020 Sabbat Alamanc. Currently reading through the Yule essays. A little bummed the removed the section for ‘Sabbat Tips on the Go’ and replaced it with a section on gems, but that’s because I don’t use gemstones in my own practice.
ADF Membership Guide. Part of trying to decide what sort of national/large Pagan organization I want to join. I ordered the guide from Amazon, and it oddly came with another book printed in the middle of it (a coloring book). Looking at it, it seems there must have simply been a printing error, as the two books are unrelated but printed from the same place.
Sunday, 29 September 2019
- Sunrise: 0726
- Sunset: 1914
- Moonrise: 0755
- Moonset: 2001
- Moon Phase: Waxing (is it visible?)
- Temperature (Actual): 13*C
- Temperature: Somewhat chilly
- Weather: Breezy, some strong gusts, scattered clouds, blue sky
- Notes: More yellow in trees. Still a lot of green. Some trees are shedding, yet many retain their fiery foliage. Air smells nice. Bright sun. [Afternoon] clouds rolled in, steady rain. Later, storm.
Journal Entry
Veiling again today. […] Washing dishes felt good, contemplative. Sweeping was spontaneous, just to handle fur overload. Good contemplation. Thought that the Clarene […] desires from us action, attempts, effort. Not perfection. Cheekily thought that the Laetha does desire perfection, hence his focus on denial and restriction. I think both paradigms are useful.
Monday, 30 September 2019
- Sunrise: 0728
- Sunset: 1912
- Moonrise: 0918
- Moonset: 2027
- Moon Phase: Waxing
- Temperature (Actual): 17*C
- Temperature: Chilly, breath visible
- Weather: Mostly cloudy, cold, strong sun when visible
- Notes: Very wet due to yesterday. Strong chill and scent in the air. No noticeable changes to flora. Clouds moving swiftly in the sky. Selfishly hoping for more rain.
Journal Entry
Do not yet feel desire/compulsion to veil. Perhaps it occurs after sunrise? I do not yet have any outfits I feel comfortable veiling in publicly…though all that is really required is something that covers wrists and ankles.
Tuesday, 1 October 2019
- Sunrise: 0729
- Sunset: 1910
- Moonrise: 1039
- Moonset: 2055
- Moon Phase: Waxing
- Temperature (Actual): 20*C
- Temperature: Unnoticeable
- Weather: Stormy in afternoon, grey all day
- Notes: More leaves on ground, some trees entirely yellow and red. No skeletal trees yet. Chill was gone from the air but the sun never broke through the cloud cover. Missed most of the storm, began around 1700.
Journal Entry
Morning prayers were quiet today. Ended prayers with petition to the Gods to keep my focus on Them. Want to incorporate/create(?) prayers for the spirits of the month’s holy days, as well as for various spirits generally.
Wednesday, 2 October 2019
- Sunrise: 0731
- Sunset: 1907
- Moonrise: 1157
- Moonset: 2126
- Moon Phase: Waxing
- Temperature (Actual): 13*C
- Temperature: Unnoted
- Weather: Grey, until the sun broke through late afternoon
- Notes: Remained inside most of day. Grey clouds were almost oppressive, and the sun that managed to scatter them came late enough in the day to feel weak.
Journal Entry
Current morning routine: dishes leftover from night. Prepare tea and breakfast. Offer morning prayers in shrine room. Finish prepping food. Open all windows/shutters. Chant for Navratri (currently).
Then the day becomes more amorphous. More structure needed.
Want to watch more productive/challenging/motivating videos, instead of drama and spite channels.
Thursday, 3 October 2019
- Sunrise: 0734
- Sunset: 1905
- Visible: Yes
- Moonrise: 1311
- Moonset: 2203
- Moon Phase: Waxing
- Temperature (Actual): 14*C
- Temperature: Cold
- Weather: Scattered clouds, bright sun, gave in to complete cloud cover
- Notes: Very chill in the morning. Lots of leaves falling and yellow in the trees.
Journal Entry
None for today.
Friday, 4 October 2019
- Sunrise: 0735
- Sunset: 1903
- Visible: No
- Moonrise: 1418
- Moonset: 2246
- Moon Phase: Waxing
- Temperature (Actual): 14*C
- Temperature: Very chill
- Weather: Complete cloud cover, slight wind, rain
- Notes: Not as dark as other cloudy days. Wind rattling the bushes, carries a sweet smell along with the scent of wet and rain. No strong smell of rot and soil yet.
Journal Entry
Want to try a different inking style for today’s art. Something thinner and sketchier. Also want to pick up some Copics for the color. Feeling defeatist about art – but why? The point isn’t perfection. I suspect frustration comes from my art not being in any style I personally like.
Goals for October
Community Goals
- Canonization Polls # 3 – 4
- The current expectation is for the next polls to focus on the Fall of the Mortal (Arabella) and the Sundering of the West.
- October Hangouts
- I will be trying to organize a Halloween (or around that time) hangout where we can watch horror or other season-appropriate movies. Every Friday I will voice-chatting in the Otherfaith Discord for office hours.
Writing Goals
- 30 Days of Devotion for the Clarene
- I plan to begin posting essays for the various 30 Days of Devotion prompts starting sometime in November, but I want to get almost all of them written out before then.
- Rabbit Troupe & Flower Maiden Stories
- Origin stories for the Flower Maidens and Rabbit Troupe (who are celebrated at the end of the month) need to be written.
Liturgy & Prayer
- Spirit Prayers
- As I am consistent with my morning devotions, I want to add in more specific prayers. Developing prayers for certain spirits, especially those relevant to the current month, is one of my plans going forward.
- Dedication Ritual
- Creating a ritual for those who want to dedicate themselves to the Four Gods is a project that has been in the works for the past few weeks. I am hoping to have a draft out to the Other People by the beginning of November, at which point we will begin to decide when we want dedications to happen.
Songs of the Week
Weekly Linkage
In the past year I’ve been working on an alternate ritual structure based on my experience in Wicca, Druidry, and Heathenry. In particular I have been studying modern psychological research and attempting to incorporate some best practices to improve the flow and meaningfulness of ritual.
Melissa Hill, ‘A New ritual Structure for Neo-Pagans and Earth Spiritualists‘ on Patheos
Though a bit different than how I approach meditation, this post by Astrea gives some ideas on how to get started with meditating.
Phoenix LeFae has a short post on community and why we continue returning to it.
Mat Auryn has a great post on using (simple) oracle cards in combination with Tarot to help clarify readings.
…I can tell you why I consider [the month] holy.
Molly Khan, ‘The Holy Month is Coming‘ on Patheos
This is the time in which the earth gives to us. We receive such great bounty, such immeasurable gifts; it seems impossible that anything I give back will be suitable. At the same time as we are receiving these amazing gifts of life, the life around me is either dying or preparing to go dormant as the cold winds and drifting snows loom. This is sacrifice – so much death so that I might continue to live.
Here’s a post on ideas for cheap/no-cost offerings.
The Wild Hunt has an opinion piece on community, Pagan Pride, and the pressures of being Pagan.
Lastly, two posts by Kaye on KALLISTI, one of my favorite blogs (likely obvious from how much I link to it): a prayer to Mnemosyne and a post on re-usable tea light containers.
Reblog: Haunted by Emptiness on Opalfish
When discussions of the Eighth God came around, I was living on the grounds of a defunct state hospital in my hometown. Most of the buildings on the massive campus — numerous and spanning an extensive range of eras in construction and architecture — sat empty and in disrepair, some having been that way for decades and others only boarded up for a matter of years or months.
Time + Place #1: Haunted by Emptiness | Adventures of Opalfish
Songs of the Week
Weekly Linkage
Whether we can say with certainty that they were intrinsic to Anglo-Saxon religion, modern practitioners of Fyrnsidu seem to have gravitated toward certain things that our Norse counterparts are usually less enthusiastic about. The aforementioned interest in herbalism, leechcraft and plantlore has certainly found a prominent place among 21st century Anglo-Saxon Heathens and it’s something that I think should be included in any curriculum designed for the budding Fyrnsidere. If we’re going to continue to distinguish ourselves as a standalone entity, then we need to celebrate and expand on those small things that modern practitioners have gravitated towards.
Wodgar Inguing, ‘ A Retrospective in Anglo-Saxon Heathendom‘ on Sundorwic
Priestess of Aphrodite has a useful elemental cleansing ritual. I’ve begun taking better notes for rituals as I’ve found myself doing more public (and private) ritualizing, and keeping track of where I got what ideas is important.
But, most importantly, it’s also left me with questions about where my witchcraft lives. I mean, we’re always saying it’s-not-about-tools and the-gods-are-within-us and nature-is-my-church and whatever, but just look at all the stuff we produce and consume. We call it art and we talk about things being imbued with spirits and we find ways to justify having, but it ends up being weight on the moving truck just like everything else.
Thorn Mooney, ‘Moving, Materialism, and Finding My Feet Again‘ on Patheos
Keen has a post on miasma and fallow times that reminds me of some other pieces I’ve read about miasma recently. Treating miasma with less moral implications radically reframes how we approach it, I think. I especially liked the point about the creative process is ‘inherently polluting’, as I’ve found that potent art-making often has a distinct flavor to it.
Results from 1.5 Canonization Poll
In order to establish a solid canon for the Otherfaith myths, I’ve begun a series of polls to allow the community to decide what will be considered canonical going forth. It’s important to note that the options that do not become enshrined as canon will not be considered ‘bad’, ‘wrong’, or ‘off-limits’. The main goal of establish a clearer canon is so that we can include the stories in printed materials and begin delineating between canon and headcanon.
These are the results from the follow-up poll to the first poll, largely focused on clarification questions like names to use and deification order. I did vote in this poll, but I will not be voting in any of the main storyline polls.
Follow-Up Questions
I’m glad that the result for this question was so solidly in the ‘vague’ direction, as assigning a specific town that none of the Other People have been to – essentially picking a place out of a hat – would feel a bit icky, in my opinion.
Pallis has never been correlated with a specific star in any previous Otherfaith stories, and his nature as a fallen star meant that assigning an actual star or constellation would prove interesting.
We don’t have any origin story for the Ophelia; she just shows up in the Clarene’s path and becomes a god shortly after. I did have an origin story back in 2011-2012 for the Ophelia, but I don’t believe I posted it anywhere publicly. An origin story for the Ophelia is going to likely take a while to come together and be canonized, but I look forward to it.
As much as I do like the name Misia, meaning ‘hate’, for the main antagonist for the First Season myths, Mircea is the name that has been associated longest with the rival star that falls along with Pallis. Mircea itself has meanings of ‘peace’ and ‘world’, adding an irony that I enjoy. (Two of Mircea’s attendant spirits are Charity and Chastity, names chosen for their irony as well.)
For the fairy princess the Clarene originally falls in love with a variety of names were provided. The majority of the names were connected to ‘peace’ with a few being tied to ‘rainbow’, both associations the princess has. We ended up with a tie between Eirene and Irene, with two other votes going toward Irida and Iria. We’ll be following up this question in the next poll.
I’m bundling these two together as they are essentially tied to the same overarching question: should a Laetha and Dierne exist before Arabella and Pallis take up the mantle? As the yes votes won out, we find new questions coming up. Are the roles of Laetha and Dierne somehow inherent to the Westernlands? Does the Laethic Firebird exist from the beginning of the West? What does it mean, exactly, to be the Dierne?
The next poll, moving into the ‘Stars in the Westernlands’ section of the myths, will start up on Saturday.