12 Days of Yule: Day Nine

Green and Red are our traditional colours for this time of year, but what do they symbolize? Each colour resonates differently with each person, so these are just "common" associations. Do a bit of personal research to see what works, or doesn't work, for you.

Green
Uses: Healing, promotes prosperity; money, rituals for good Luck, fertility, harmony, and rejuvenation, earth mother, physical healing, success, tree and plant magic, growth, personal goals, generosity, abundance, good fortune, monetary, charity, wealth, renewal, marriage and balance, north cardinal point
Element: Earth
Direction: North
Chakra: Fourth, heart Chakra
Planet: Venus, Jupiter, Mars
Day: Friday/Venus-Love, friendship; Wednesday/Mercury-Business transactions; Thursday/Jupiter-Luck, prosperity
Number: 4
Magical Tool: Wand, Cauldron
Scent/Oil: Elder, mint, musk, sage, vanilla, pine, sweetpea, mugwort, patchouli, vervain, cinnamon, marjoram
Plant/Herb: Birch, catnip, blackberry, coltsfoot, foxglove, thyme, yarrow, feverfew, burdock, pennyroyal, plantain, briar, verbena, elder, basic, cedarwood, sage, dill, clove, mugwort
Wood: Bitch, elder, almond, hawthorn, fig, oak, palm, pine
Animal: Gnomes, Dwarfs, fishes, bee, bull, rabbit, rat, alligator, turtle, grasshopper, bison, frog
Stones: Emerald, Peridot, jade, malachite, coral, green tourmaline, aventurine, green quartz, gold, silver, rock crystal, onyx, azurite
Tarot: Emperor, sevens
Gods: Agathadaimon, Bonus, Daikoku, Eventus, Buddha, Gansea, Inari, Jambhala, Jupiter, Pluto, Tamon
Goddesses: Anna Koun, Anna Perenna, Benten, Brighid, Buddhi, Carna, Chala, Felicitas, Foruna, Janus, Kichijo-Ten, Lakshmi, Ops, The Muses, Vasudhara, Syn
Gender: either
Zodiac: Cancer, Aquarius, Pisces and Leo
Colour Codes: #008000, #00FF00 (same colour, just different codes for some reason)

Red
Uses: Love, passion, good health, energy, strength, enthusiasm, element of fire, stamina, career goals, charity, fast action, lust, moon blood, driving force, survival, sexual love and potency, fertility, courage, will power, increases magnetism in rituals, romantic atmosphere, south cardinal point, draws Aries and Scorpio energy, enthusiasm
Element: Fire
Direction: South
Chakra: Root Chakra
Planet: Mars
Day: Tuesday
Number: 5
Magical Tool: Sword, cauldron, incense burner, candle
Scent/Oil: Dragons Blood, Basil, Pine, Cinnamon, Mullein, Musk
Plant/Herb: Sunflower, Nettles, Holy Thistle, Crowfoot, Hops, Wormwood, Cranesbills, Chilli Pepper, Chives, Spikenard, Onion, Cornflower, Rose, Mustard, Garlic Rosemary, Dill, Hibiscus, Woodruff, Tobacco, Pepperwort, Heather, and Yew
Wood: Redwood, Cherry
Animal: Bear, Horse, Wolf, Ram, marsupials and night creatures, Tigers, Lions, Badger, Alligator, Ants, beetle, Cardinal, porcupine, Chicken, and Peacock
Stones: Ruby, garnet, bloodstone, spinel, red tourmaline, red topaz, agate, rubelite rhodonchrosite, Quartz crystals, tigers eye, pyrite, tektite, diamond, red jasper
Tarot: The magician, cups, fives
God: Achilles, Ares, Atlas, Hercules, Mars, Thor, Zeus
Goddesses: Athena, Eris, Kali, Minerva
Gender: Male
Zodiac: Taurus, Gemini, Leo, Capricorn, Sagittarious
Colour Code: #FF0000

A Book of Shadows-A Guide

A Book of Shadows, in a traditional sense, is a Wiccan book, or set of books, that holds the individuals or covens basic ritual works, from reference lists to simple observations jotted in the margins. Some books are very organized, even self-published for the group or individual. Other books are very unorganized to an outsider.

Most Wiccan covens treasure a Book of Shadows. Such books are rarely mass published or even shown to non-initiates. In them, the coven’s specific beliefs and modes of worship are thoroughly or sketchily outlined. Though contents and organization of these ritual manners vary, most Books of Shadows include instructions for the circle casting and banishing; religious rituals; the consecration of tools; laws; coven organizational notes magical rites; prayers and perhaps herbal lore. Some contain lists of the coven’s pantheon, training exercises for new students and, finally, initiation ceremonies.

Such books are vitally important to the establishment and maintenance of all Wiccan covens, for without them, the coven’s specific rites and other lore must be carefully memorized and passed down by word of mouth. This always leaves room for error, misinterpretation, and even loss of the material. Don't misunderstand this: no Wiccan tradition has been able to record every single bit of information—though I’m trying to. Much is verbally passed from teacher to student. Still a covens Book of Shadows provides and unchanging guide and memory trigger for the practitioner.

There are many different Books of Shadows today. Some are used by hundreds of Thousands of Wiccans. Others are created by Solitary Wiccans and never shown to others.

Not every coven is very secretive about their Book of Shadows. Some will, if the coven is particularly old, well-known or has famous members/past members, the coven will publish a section or their entire Book, and other Pagan’s will adapt the coven’s practises into their own. This is helpful for people who are overwhelmed when it comes to creating a book of shadows, or are anal about such things. Like me. I was going to hand write my BoS, put it in a binder, and I just about killed myself. I may not look organized to someone like my mother or aunt, but I do have a system.

Some pagans have more than one Books of Shadows, with many different volumes. For example, a coven or individual may keep a volume for holidays and traditions, a volume for spells, a volume for reference, a volume for personal observations, a volume for divination practise, you get the idea.

Some Books of Shadows are simply reference books, complied as a quick-and-easy guide. This is what my digital Book of Shadows is. I call it USBoS, and it’s got a whole folder on my computer desktop, and a backup on my external drive. Before it got huge, it used to be backed up on a USB thumb drive. I save observations on my blog, and once I start reading tarot, I’ll have a tarot folder divided by months and probably posted to my blog. This is the Technopagan version of a traditional Book of Shadows. Some may keep multiple disks or thumb drives as backup copies. DON’T SKIMP ON THE BACKUP!! I can’t stress this enough. I really can’t.

Books of Shadows are very personal things. Do what feels right for you. If a blog is the way to go for you, as it is for me, do it! Most blog hosts can be made private so that you or only certain people can read it. If you go for the traditional, hand written copies, there are plenty of notebooks, binders, and scrapbooking stuff you can look into (some links are at the bottom of this post). The thing with Paganism, you can make things like this customizable. Instead of deciding between what translation of the bible to use, you can design a Book of Shadows from the bottom up. This is a great way to imprint your energy in the book itself. Technopagans can do that too, it’s not just for the people who want to hand write a BoS. Technopagans imprint energies in different ways, that’s all. Everyone has a unique energy transferral...thing, as everyone is different.

I hope this guide has helped you pick out what you want to do for a Book of Shadows, and has helped you understood what a Book of Shadows really is.

LINKS
For Scrap Bookers
Sacred Mists Create-A-Grimoire
Michaels Arts and Crafts Scarpbooking

For Hand-Writers
Arsenic and Old Lace Writing Suplies
Green Earth Journals
Staples Business Depot Binders
Staples Business Depot Journals

For Technopagans
Staples Business Depot USB Drives
Staples Business Depot External Drives

Please note: the only ones I know FOR SURE are in Canada are Green Earth, Michaels, and Staples. I think Sacred Mists also ships to Canada, as I think my mother got me some Yule presents there, but I won’t be able to know until the 25th. For my American friends, you’ve got more choices in pagan-themed items (lucky!) so you can look at local pagan stores as well.

Dark Gray

A lot of people associate gray and dark gray with being bored or depressed. However, in candle and colour magic, dark gray is assoiated with glamour.

To use this colour magically: burn candles, use ribbons, paint a room or wall, or buy clothes in that colour.

Technopagans: The hex triplet colour code for Dark Grey is A9A9A9.

Deities and Adabtability

Yes! It’s my 100th post! Oh my Gods, have I really been able to keep up for 100 blog posts? Wow, that feels so weird. I’ve never been able to really keep things up. I leave them for months and then come back.
I’ve actually been updating pretty much every day, and now we’re at out 100th post. To me, that’s just surreal. Because, you know, I’m amused by simple things.
A big THANK YOU to everyone who reads this blog and puts up with my weirdness. You guys are really what keeps me going. Every time I see a comment or a new watcher, or having my blog on a blogroll, or on some sort of inspiration list, I literally freak out with joy. So, again, you guys ROCK and I thank you a million times over.
As you know, I had my surgery today, and I’m feeling okay. A little groggy, so you’ll have to forgive some grammar errors. I can give you an actual account of my surgery if you want me too (just ask, then check back under your comment in a couple of hours!), but I won’t bore you here.

There is a perfume company called the Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab. They have a collection called A Picnic in Arkham, which is perfume based on the Cthulhu Mythos. I recently got the Necronomicon Tarot, an H. P. Lovecraft inspired tarot deck. I never really got into H.P. Lovecraft until I got this deck. It sparks memories of a dream I had when I first met Quetzalcoatl. He identified himself as Cthulhu, even though I recognized him as Quetzalcoatl.

Now, I’m asking for the collection H.P. Lovecraft’s short stories for Christmas, and since it’s only about $11 at the most expensive (my Mom checked it out), I’m probably getting the perfume as well, and the Cthulhu plushie from ThinkGeek. It’s a Cthulhu fest.

Now, my question then became, why do I want all this Cthulhu stuff? Are the Elder Gods coming and I am going to be eaten first (“Chick Tract” explanation)? Actually, I think I have an explanation.

I think Quetzalcoatl loves H.P. Lovecraft. I only vaguely knew of it, and after my dream, I read all the Wikipedia stuff on the Cthulhu Mythos. All this Cthtlhu stuff is coming to me.

I have a theory about deities. Most of us tend to think of them as these immortal beings in their palaces in tune with the culture they are associated with. We may call them into modern settings, but I don’t think we see them blending into modern settings. To be honest, I don’t think many can blend into modern settings, especially ones that are incredibly ancient like Mesopotamian deities.

I think the vast majority of deities treat the modern world almost like the annoying family members: you visit them, but you wouldn’t want to live there. I think there are some that are really terrible at meshing in with this world and don’t exactly know how to transition from their world to ours.
I think there are a few that are great at changing with the times, and I think Quetzalcoatl is one of them. He loves Indiana Jones, How Sharper than a Serpent's Tooth (Star Trek episode), and H. P. Lovecraft.

Maybe it’s the drugs talking.

Anyway, does anyone have any thoughts on this? I’d love to hear your opinions and/or experiences.

Also: holy shit! I started this post at, like 4pm. It’s almost 3 hours later, and it’s barely 600 words. I am easily distracted in this state.
Bring on the Tylenol threes!

Copper

Colour magic is probably one of the easiest forms of magic, in my opinion. You can use colour magic by:
- Tying a ribbon to yourself
- Wearing a certain colour of clothing
- Burning a candle of the same colour
- Painting a room/wall in the colour

Todays colour is copper. Copper is a money and business colour. It is associated with professional growth, business, fertility, career manoeuvres, passion, money, and goals.
If you are starting a new business, you may wish to paint your walls copper. If you are going to a job interveiw, try incorporating some copper.

Now, the metal copper is different and much more powerful for different reasons. This is about the COLOUR not the METAL. They are different things, they just happen to have the same hue.

For all you technopagans out there, the Hex Triplet colour code for copper is #B87333, the RGB colour code for copper is 184, 115, 51

This Might be my Least Spiritual Post yet!

So, I’m really sorry for my lack of post yesterday. We found out what was wrong with my computer. You all remember my post “What A Hard Drive Problem Has Taught Me?”, well...heh, funny story.

We got that hard drive fixed and back around August 9th. In fact, the first crashed drive is still sitting on my altar. Anyway, on Thursday, September 10th, my hard drive crashed again! It gave me a fatal error, and on Friday we took it to Staples. They are going to give me ANOTHER new hard drive.
My dad got so fed up with the fact that my HP failed twice within a month, we looked at the “Clearance” laptops.
And there it was. The Toshiba I fell in love with when my first hard drive crashed. On sale.
So, on a whim (and a lot of anger directed at HP) he bought it.
Day later: He goes back and exchanges it for the bigger version at only an extra $100. It’s 3 in the afternoon, and we’re setting this thing up.
Yeah, that failed.
Well, it didn’t fail so much as there was some issues in first starting it up, so we had to set it up twice. So, after ten hours, or 1 am, we finish it.

This puppy is amazing. I love it. It’s got a really cool feature too: If this computer moves to suddenly, the computer automatically protects the hard drive. That’s got to come in handy.

Okay, new computer, new start. I’m going to get a sort of schedule, so my posts are totally random. This isn’t saying that it’s going to be uniform, there is still a degree of random.
So, without further ado! The working schedule!
Monday: Deity of the Day
Tuesday: USBoS page*
Wednesday: Deity of the Day
Thursday: USBoS page
Friday: Pagan Blog Prompt
Saturday: USBoS page
Sunday: Anything Goes
Feel free to let me know what you think. Also, if there is something pagan-related you want me to blog about, let me know and it could be featured on an Anything Goes day. Also, I’m still looking for people to interview, so if you’re interested, please let me know as well.

*This means that I’ll be starting to post pages from my own Book of Shadows (and since it used to be saved on a USB drive, I called the folder I keep everything in my USBoS, or USB BoS).

Hard Drive

So, my computer crashed a while back, and I just got it back with a brand-new hard drive. Here’s the thing: they gave us the old one back. The fried one? Yeah, it’s sitting on my altar at the moment.
Pagans form connections to things that mean a lot to us. I think we all know I’m very attached to my computer. But, when I think about it, I’m not attached to my computer, I’m attached to the files and the things a computer can do. So, that would basically make me attached to the hard drive.
I suppose you can say it has a high concentration of my energy, because my computer is, quite literally, glued to my lap from the time I wake up until the time I crash.
When I found out they gave us back the old drive, I immediately took it and now, it’s sitting on my altar, doing nothing.

I don’t want to just pitch it. It’s a part of my life. When I hold it, I can feel it’s energy. But, I have no idea what to do with it. Do I just have it sit on my altar? Do I make a talisman? Do I use it as a ritual item? I don’t know. I don’t exactly know what to do with it.
I suppose I’ll find the answer eventually, but at the moment, I seem like a hoarder.

What A Hard Drive Problem Has Taught Me

So, sorry for the delay in my post for Friday, July 24. My computer decided to get some kind of corrupted hardware issue. It’s under warranty, so we’re taking it to Staples (where we bought it) to get it looked at.
I know a lot of people think I am very, almost overly, attached to my computer. And to a degree, yeah, I am. I would say this is an addiction of sorts. I do use my computer all the time.
Being a technopagan, my computer has become an extension of my life. I mean, it is a fairly lame life, but it’s still my life. Also, as a technopagan, I see my computer as an actual ritual item. This is my Book of Shadows, so even when I’m sitting on the floor even purifying new crystals, I keep my laptop near me. I may not have MSN going (or I ignore it), but my media player will be on, and of course I’ll have my USBoS loaded and ready in case I need to check anything.
So, I guess when my computer has any sort of error, be it one that is easily fixed or one that isn’t, it’s still like a ritual tool is broken. Imagine how shitty you would feel if you found your athame to be broken.

This actually has taught me a couple of things, and being the wonderful person I am, I’m going to share them.
First off, this has taught me that important things like a USBoS needs to be backed up. I had always saved my pagan files on an external hard drive (hence USBoS), but hard drives are fallible. I have been lucky with my USBoS, but I can’t always trust luck. If I had all my formal documentation typed up, then I wouldn’t be as concerned, because I would have printed off backups. But I’m still processing raw documents, ranging from 5 documents to a folder, to over 200. Printing THAT is like hell.
I backup my files on MediaFire now. It’s much less fallible than a hard drive, and I can access it from any computer.

It’s also taught me to write shit down. I never write anything down unless I plan to use it. So, because of that, I never even just copied the URL for a site I Stumbled-Upon. I should have kept a list of sites I got information from on a scrap of paper, just handwritten. Then, I could go back at re-copy information if I had to. Sure, the sites that I have bookmarked, and of course m books make it easy to go back, but all the sites I just randomly found and never bothered to write down or save in some manner...what do I do about that?
Seriously, write shit down, even if you fully plan to just toss the list when you’re done.

It’s a rather conflicting feeling, when you lose a ritual item, and such a big part of your life. On one hand, it is just a computer, and it is an addiction. On the other hand, it is a ritual item and I do use it as such.

In case you were curious, we went to Staples, they diagnosed a hard drive problem, and since we’ve got the two year warranty plan, they fix it. Put in a new hard drive, new disk drive, and it comes back “out of the box new” in about a week.