tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32037930760175499512024-03-12T18:37:49.313-06:00Tomes of Lore, Grimoires of WisdomReviews and discussions of books and texts of esoteric interest.Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-48768859310659521532013-12-31T15:21:00.001-07:002013-12-31T15:27:50.549-07:00Way of the Ponderosa Pine: Excerpt from the Book of WaysExcerpt from the Book of Ways: Lore from the Keeper of Ways and Builder of Paths<br />
<br />
Way of the Ponderosa Pine<br />
<br />
Consider the Ponderosa Pine. In Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado, the presence of this pine mark the edge of the Plains, for they are found in the hills at the western edge, but not out onto the plains themselves. In the hillls to the south of the Northern Frontrange, they grow among Gambel oak thickets. In the Foothills to the west, they grow on southern facing slopes with juniper primarily, with the north facing slopes mostly lodgepole pine. In the Highlands to the north, they grow on the ridges and hills, with scattered shrubs below them.<br />
<br />
Ponderosa pine have a much shorter fire cycle than lodgepole, with fires occurring naturally every two to fifteen years. Unlike the lodgepole, which has thin bark and is easily killed by fire, Ponderosa have thick bark that protects them, the fires killing off the seedlings and clearing the forest floor and leaving the mature trees scarred but alive. As a result, natural Ponderosa forests have tall trees with very few small ones, other species making up the ground cover. The fires in Ponderosa stands are also very low intensity, compared to the raging fires of the lodgepole.<br />
<br />
The bark also makes this pine more resilient to the western pine beetle, so even though it is still a threat, not near as many are killed by the beetle as are the lodgepole.<br />
<br />
The thick bark just mentioned it the most clear offset of the Ponderosa from other species. It has yellow to red bark that is very thick, with dark to black crevices in it, giving it two of its common names, the blackjack pine and the western yellow pine. It also has tufts of long needles, setting it apart. In the Rocky Mountains, most have three needles per tuft, or occasionally two.<br />
<br />
The Ponderosa has had many indigenous uses. The pitch was used as an ointment for various things including sores and scabs, back aches, ear aches, rheumatism, and inflamed eyes. It was also used to help infants sleep. The needles were used for female reproductive issues and for skin issues, and for insulation in storage pits. The roots were used for blue die. The boughs were used for muscle pain, hemorrhaging, and treatments for children. The wood was used for building fences, housing, and snowshoes. Logs were made in canoes. The bark was used for roofing. Pollen was used with needles in healing. Pitch, seeds, cones, bark, buds and cambium were used for food. There is no part of the tree without a practical use. It is a tree that provides and nurtures.<br />
<br />
It also provides for and nurtures the animals that make their homes in its forests. Birds roost and nest in its limbs and use it as protection from birds of prey. Chipmunks, squirrels, and many types of birds eat its seeds. Grouse use its needles for nesting material. Rodents and porcupines use its bark for nesting.<br />
<br />
A specific example is the Albert's squirrel, which lives only in Ponderosa stands. This squirrel doesn't gather food to live through the winter nor hibernate like more squirrels and other rodents. Through the winter, it feeds on the inner bark of the branch tips of the Ponderosa. It feeds near the top of the tree, chewing off a needle clump, removes the outer bark, then eats the inner bark. They always return to the same tree each winter. The Ponderosa has a symbiotic fungus, the EM fungus. Like the blue stain fungus of the lodgepole, EM fungus for root systems with Ponderosa. These act as extensions to the roots, helping the tree draw in more water, nitrogen, phosphorus, and various other nutrients from the soil. In return, the tree provides carbohydrates that the fungus needs to survive. This is relevant, because the main source of food for the squirrels during the growing season is the sporocarps of this fungus. The spores survive in the squirrel's digestive tract and are spread through the forest by them, where they join with other pine root systems. It is possible that the fungi concentration effects the inner bark the squirrel eats, drawing them to return to certain trees, and also that the stunting the squirrels cause on those trees and the reduction in those trees in reproduction as a result to the squirrel effects its relationship with the fungus, causing more sporocarp production.<br />
<br />
The Ponderosa grows best in well draining soil, mostly loam, but it will grow in sandy soils as well. In does well in dry climates and can handle the heat of the sun quite easily.<br />
<br />
The Ponderosa pine is outer earth and inner fire.<br />
<br />
The outer earth nature is evident in its bark. The bark is similar colour to much of the soil it grows in. Like the surface of the earth, it protects what's inside, from fire, from cold, from heat, from insects and other threats. And like the earth, it nurtures and provides for those that come to it, not just animals, but humans as well.<br />
<br />
That outer nature is nurturing and and very mother-like, though the fire inside is unforgiving of those that don't respect the tree and can be dangerous to those who don't approach in a respectful manner.<br />
<br />
This fire is evident in its intolerance for moist undraining soil, its ability to grow well in hot climates and full sunlight, and its short fire cycle that leaves mature trees unharmed. These fires are part of its nurturing and providing, as it is important for the health of a forest to be cleaned out periodically. It provides for both the creation aspect, by providing what those under its care need for life, and the destruction aspect, cleaning things out every so often, but with low intensity and less risk to the animals than a roaring fire would be.<br />
<br />
Earth over fire.<br />
<br />
Consider this well, and think on it.Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-88037400978128985332013-12-30T17:00:00.004-07:002013-12-30T17:00:57.846-07:00The Wind has Teeth: Excerpt from the Book of the Lost: Lore from the Keeper of the Lost and Builder of Storms<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>The Wind has Teeth</b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Excerpt from the Book of the Lost: Lore from the Keeper of the Lost and Builder of Storms</div>
<br />
<br />
There was once a woman who loved fire. She was a wanderer, never living in one place for long, and every time she moved on to a new place, it followed a fire, maybe a grass fire or forest fire, maybe a building. She loved fire. She might have been someone known by many, or she might have been unknown, blending in to her surroundings. She wasn't either of these, but somewhere in between, known by some, a friend to some, but forgotten when she moved on. And she always moved on.<br />
<br />
One day, she knew her time in the place she was at was running out. It would be time to move on soon. It was early summer, the hills starting to dry out after the spring rains. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
She packed light, a pack with only the essentials, a bit of something to burn, the things needed to start a fire, only a small one, that was all it ever took.<br />
<br />
She left at dawn, making her way slowly on foot up through the river valleys, working her way to the highlands above. It was a cloudy day, with strong wind, and she sometimes had to bend her back against it, walking slowly, but she kept going. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
The higher she went, the more wild the winds got, and stronger, and the lower the clouds got, the landscape becoming almost misty, not quite fog. She walked with her head down, bowed before the wind, taking one step at a time, only looking at the ground in front of her feet. The wind wasn't steady, not blowing from one direction, but gusting and changing, coming from everywhere and no where. She had never experienced anything like it. But she kept going. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
Further up and further in she trudged, and morning gave way to afternoon, and afternoon gave way to evening, the light of dusk fading to the darkest night she had ever seen. The clouds hung low, so low she almost thought she could touch it, and the wind was biting, strong and gusty, bringing tears to her eyes, making it hard to see, even harder than the darkness. She could barely see, but she trudged on. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
She had walked many places and much distance in her life. She was one who could never call a place home for long, enjoying more the freedom of the road, and the wonders of new places. Wanderlust, some called it, and maybe it was. She couldn't see spending life in one place. How could others abide that? And she couldn't help but leave her mark before leaving. How could she not? She loved fire.<br />
<br />
Each place she went was as different as the place before as she could make it. Northern logging towns, desert tourist traps, fishing towns, mining towns, big cities, a ranch out in the country, a wind swept light house. She could do many jobs, she was a woman of many skills, and in each place she went, she picked up a few more. She collected vocations like some collected coins. She was a smith and a fisherman, a weaver and a carpenter, a naturalist and a logger, a tour guide and an activist. There was nothing she couldn't do, if she chose to, and the more varied her jobs, the more varied the locale, the less likely anyone would look into her past. She was a private person. And she loved fire.<br />
<br />
Her name changed with her profession, and her appearance as well. Who was she really? She didn't know this herself, so how could anyone else? She had lost that somewhere along the way, burned away who she really was. The flames had scourged it from her, leaving a changling, a woman with no past, no future, a wanderer, ever moving. A wanderer who loved fire.<br />
<br />
And onward she trudged, into the dark, dark night, the wind whipping around like a thousand hands, reaching for her, pulling at her. Or a thousand teeth. But she pushed on, ignoring it as best she could. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
But the wind had more than teeth, it had eyes. Or so she thought as she plunged on. She felt watched, not by a person following her or waiting for her, but from anywhere and no where, like the wind itself watched her with a thousand eyes, eyes that glistened red in the darkness, eyes she couldn't see, but could swear she thought she could, a glimpse of thousands of eyes where there was only darkness, eyes that watched hungerly, eyes with teeth. The wind had eyes and teeth, she thought, and shuddered as the hairs rose on the back of her neck. But still she kept going. What else could she do? She loved fire. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
But the sense of being watched got worse, as did the conviction that the wind had teeth. What did that mean? She wasn't certain. A memory came to her, a story she had heard as a child, a story of something called the Wild Hunt. The details were wrong. She didn't have the sense of horses or dogs, of riders or something moving across the night. But the name stuck in her mind. The Wild Hunt. Somehow the details didn't matter. She was sure it was the right name. And she named the wind the Wild Hunt. The wind that had eyes and teeth. She shuddered in fear, the hairs on all her body on end. She wasn't sure what to make of it, whether it was a fancy of her mind or real. But she kept going. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
And on the wind, she thought she heard a voice, not heard but heard, a thousand voices, from a thousand mouths full of teeth, the voice of the wind, not heard as much as felt. She struggled to make out words, knowing she was just hearing things, they weren't real voices, just a trick of the mind, a trick of the wind. A hiss, a thousand hisses, the tongues of serpents, yet one voice, the voice of the wind. And she made out words, whether spoken or her mind playing tricks.<br />
<br />
You love fire, do you? I hear you do. These hills have eyes and teeth, this wind has eyes and teeth. Burn us, you say? Why do you burn? Try. Try to burn us. We dare you. Can your fire outlast ours? We've known the fire of a thousand blazes, years without end. Fires that burned hot and mild fires. We are no strangers to fire, yet still we endure. Why do you burn?<br />
<br />
I don't know, she thought. I love fire. And I must move on, and must leave my mark. Wanderlust, firelust. And move on she did, keeping going despite the hissing serpent words, despite the whipping wind, the teeth, the eyes. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
We have eyes, we see you. You don't see you. You are blind even though you see. You are lost, you know not where you wander. Or why you burn, why the fire burns. But we have eyes, the wind has eyes. We see you. Do you see us?<br />
<br />
I see nothing, she thought. All is darkness, all is wind. Maybe I am blind. But she knew she wasn't, just as she knew she didn't really hear the hissing whispering voices, just as she knew she wasn't really watched by red eyes in the darkness, just as she knew the wind didn't really have teeth, that the Wild Hunt was a myth, and didn't look or feel like this anyway, it was a different thing. It was the darkness and the wind playing tricks on her. And maybe it was. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
We have teeth, we smell you. You smell of fear and prey. We are hungry. Our teeth can burn like fire. You can find fire, you can burn. What do you seek when you wander? Do you seek true fire, tongues of fire, teeth of fire? Do you seek our hunger? Are you prey? You fear. You fear like prey. We hunt, you fear. Can you run? Will you run? Will you run like prey? The wind has teeth.<br />
<br />
And she did run, as best she could in the mist and wind and darkness. She ran with all she had, pushed forward by her fear. And the wind had teeth, she was sure now. The wind hungered. The wind smelled her fear. So she ran, she ran like prey. She ran hoping she could outrun the wind. It was as good of time as any.<br />
<br />
She ran and ran, as fast as she could. She stumbled, fell, but rose and ran. Onward and upward, further in and further up, trying to outrun the wind, the wind that had teeth.<br />
<br />
And she fell in the end, fell with pain and breaking bones. She struggled to rise but could not. She could run no more, and she couldn't fight. How can you outrun the wind? How can you fight the wind? The wind had teeth, she found, and they were sharp and hungry.<br />
<br />
And she was no more in this world, and the next day, a rancher found blood across the grass of the hill, as he had before and would again. And he muttered something about the lost and shook his head, and moved on, and never spoke of it.<br />
<br />
But in the hills it is whispered that there are dangerous things, and that there is a wind, and the wind has teeth.Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-86867257970586685262013-05-07T00:17:00.003-06:002013-05-07T00:17:59.549-06:00An Ode to Sky Gods and Thier IlkOk, so I'm testing out Create Space, Amazon's self publishing system, to see if it will work for my book. As a test, I'm putting together a collection of poetry and photos called An Ode to Sky Gods and Their Ilk. It's going to contain a bunch of my poems about things in the sky and photos of the Wyoming sky. I wrote the poems over about a year, a few years back, and took pictures to go with them, originally planned as a blog post, but it ended up too large and never got posted. A few of the poems, I've posted on Muninn's Laughter, but most no one has seen. Some of the photos I've shared places, some I have not. We'll see how this goes. Hopefully people will like it.
FFF,
~Muninn's Kiss
Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-84047218654441551692013-05-05T10:14:00.002-06:002013-05-05T10:28:12.933-06:00The Spider's Song: I Made an Offering of Wind...<div style="text-align: center;">
I made an offering of wind upon the altar of dust. ~Grimr</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
In the beginning was a song. The song. The only song there ever was, and ever will be. It was a love song, and a song of loneliness. It was a song of joy and sorrow, of love and loss, of peace and war, of life and death. It was the song of creation, the song of all things. It was the spider's song.<br />
<br />
It began with one note, ringing out through the outer darkness, like a single bell rang in a place of silence, or a the first harp string plucked. It was a pure note, perfect, the only note that could pierce that silence, the silence of the outer dark. It was the voice of the Nagara, the single note that was all, the love song of the Nagara to the Nagara, deep calling out to deep. And it hung there in the darkness like a spark of light, like a seed, like a single harp string, or a single thread. It was the first thread of the web, a single thread in the abyss of the outer darkness, a note ringing for none to hear.<br />
<br />
And it echoed. That single note reflected back on itself, reflecting off that which is not, the dark curve of the darkness. It echoed back and in doing so, it changed, not the same as it was going out. It rang in harmony with itself, a perfect harmonic, a perfect fifth. The danced, round and round, catalyst and nexus, nexus and catalyst. And so, one note became two, one thread became two, both vibrating in the darkness of the abyss, in the outer darkness, the first two threads of the web. Two notes, hearing each other, responding to each other, first in dissonance, then in consonance, the dance of the twins.<br />
<br />
From their play a third note arose. It vibrated between them, both notes moving the third, the perfect third, a chord in the silence of the dark. Three notes ringing out, moving, shifting. A perfect chord. Three mothers, three weavers each moving each other. Three threads hanging in the abyss, the first three threads of the web.<br />
<br />
But the song wasn't finished. The chord grew and the perfect seventh came forth, four notes, four threads, stretching out into the abyss in four directions, four winds. And still the song grew, for where there's a first, a third, a fifth, a seventh, there, too, there's a second, a fourth, and a sixth. Seven notes ringing out through the darkness, and a melody formed, the vibrations of the web. Seven builders, seven keepers, seven guardians.</blockquote>
Breath. What is breath? Breath is life, for even many one celled life take in oxygen and need it to live. Breath is wind, for it is the movement of gas, in or out. There is no breath in a vacuum.<br />
<br />
Breath. What is breath? Breath is the most basic of sounds. From it comes the vowel sounds in all oral languages, the sounds made without obstruction, without build up. Sound passing through only changed in sound by the narrowness or movement of the side it passes between. It is outward moving air, unblocked, unfettered, unbound, loosed.<br />
<br />
Breath, vowels, are the first notes of music, pure sound, untempered. They are the notes of the sound of the music, of a song, the song, the first song. They are the beginning.<br />
<br />
Breath bound, tied, constrained, blocked, fettered, becomes consonants. As the vowels are given form, as the tent pole is raised, the bound vowels becomes first Three Mothers, then Seven Doubles, then Twelve Singles. 22 consonants, 22 letter. Two Dancers, Three Weavers, Seven Builders, twelve in all, twelve notes, twelve threads, Twelve Watchers.<br />
<br />
And consonants gather around vowels, the bound around the loosed, and words form. Words, symbols of ideas. And the complexity grows, the song grows. Three Mothers, Seven Doubles, Twelve Singles, 22 consonants, 29 sounds, become 231 Gates, each gate a pair of consonants, the first and the fifth. And the 231 Gates are joined by others, 20 consonants added to the beginning, to the middle, to the end, 13,860 roots if none repeat. And roots combine to be words, and words combine to form sentences, and sentences combine to form paragraphs, and paragraphs combine to form chapters, and chapters combine to form books, and books combine to form sets and series, and sets and series combine to form shelves, and shelves combine to form racks, and racks combine to form rows, and rows combine to form stacks, and stacks combine to form floors, that the whole world is a library, the 10,000 things.<br />
<br />
Every note holds power. Every breath holds power. Every vowel holds power. Every sound holds power. Every consonant holds power. Every word holds power, every sentence, every paragraph. And the longer they exist, the more they are used, the more their power grows.<br />
<br />
Stand in a used bookstore or library. Look at all those books. How many are there? How many words do they contain? How many letters do those words contain? Each sound is a note in the song, the song of creation. Each sound is a vibration in the web that is all, stretched across the face of the deep, the abyss, the outer darkness. How much power is in those pages? What secrets? What notes?<br />
<br />
Now think of the world. How many books are in the world? Right now. And how many words in each one?<br />
<br />
Now think of all time. How many books have there been? How many will there be? And how many words in each one?<br />
<br />
Now realize that books are just the ideas, the thoughts, the words that have been written down. They are written language. They have meaning because of the oral language that spawned them, the consonants with bound flow, the vowels with looses flow. The power is in that oral language, the written is only that small piece that was written down, loosed power bound into a page. How many words are spoken that are never recorded? Each is a note in the song, the song of creation, the spider's song.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Now the earth was unformed and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters. And God said: 'Let there be light.' And there was light." ~Genesis 1:1-3 JPS 1917 Edition of the Hebrew Bible in English</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"darkness was upon the face of the deep" - וּ וְחֹשֶׁךְ עַל-פְּנֵי תְהוֹם - v choshek 'al-peniy tehowm</blockquote>
וּ - v - and<br />
וְחֹשֶׁךְ - choshek - darkness, obscurity, secret place<br />
עַל-פְּנֵי - 'al-peniy - the face, the presence, the person, the surface of, that which is in front of, before, toward<br />
תְהוֹם - tehowm - deep, depths, deep places, abyss, sea, ocean, abyss, grave<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"spirit of God" - וְרוּחַ אֱלֹהִים - Ruwach 'elohiym - Ruach Elohim</blockquote>
רוּחַ - Ruwach, Ruach - breath, wind, air, gas, spirit, vivacity, vigour, courage, temper, anger, desire, sorrow, will, energy of life<br />
אֱלֹהִים - 'elohiym, Elohim - rulers, judges, divine ones, angels, gods, god, goddess, godlike one, G-d<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"hovered over the face of the waters" - מְרַחֶפֶת עַל-פְּנֵי הַמָּיִם - mrachaphit 'al-peniy mayim</blockquote>
מְ - m - from<br />
רַחֶפֶת - rachaphit - to grow soft, relax, to hover<br />
עַל-פְּנֵי - 'al-peniy - the face, the presense, the person, the surface of, that which is in front of, before, toward<br />
הַמָּיִם - mayim - water, waters, urine, springs, fountains, flood<br />
<br />
So we could read is as:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"and the secret place was upon the surface of the ocean, and the breath of the rulers settled upon the surface of the water."</blockquote>
or:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"and that which hides the face of the abyss, the wind of the gods, from the face of the water."</blockquote>
or:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"and darkness was the presence of the grave, the temper of the gods toward the flood."</blockquote>
But, a bit of a tangent.<br />
<br />
Ruach is breath, but also wind and life. Ruach is also, in Kabbalah, part of the soul. In this way, it is the emotions, will, and energy of life.<br />
<br />
The Breath. The Soul. The Wind. Life. Ruach, hovering above the waters of the abyss, in the darkness, is the notes of the song, which are also the threads of the web.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
In the beginning was a song.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The song.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
The only song there ever was, and ever will be.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
It was a love song, and a song of loneliness.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
It was a song of joy and sorrow, of love and loss, of peace and war, of life and death.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
It was the song of creation, the song of all things.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
It was the spider's song.</div>
<br />
I made an offering of wind upon the altar of dust.<br />
<br />
FFF,<br />
~Muninn's Kiss<br />
<br />Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-90880071185481214282012-12-14T21:06:00.002-07:002012-12-14T21:06:55.987-07:00Kickstarter Campaign a No-Go but Book Still in the Works<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">Okay, I think I timed my kickstarter campaign for my book poorly. The campaign ends tomorrow, but with work changes, I haven't had any time to promote it or give updates, and I haven't received a single pledge. At this point, any pledges </span><br />
<div class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">
won't be enough, so no one will be charged anything and no money will come to me, even if people pledge in the next day. So if you were thinking about it, don't worry about it. I'll either find a cheaper or non-self funded method of publishing or it will be released later. I'm still going to try to complete it before summer, but publication will probably be further out. This probably just means it wasn't time for the book yet, which I'm fine with. I'll keep everyone updated as I progress and as I find other options if there's a better way to do it. Any advise is appreciated. You can still read the campaign, but please don't pledge on it at this point, as it won't help and will just take your time that would be better used elsewhere.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/muninnskiss/grimrs-grimoire-a-book-of-myths-from-the-spiders-w" rel="nofollow nofollow" style="color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: initial;" target="_blank">http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/muninnskiss/grimrs-grimoire-a-book-of-myths-from-the-spiders-w</a></div>
Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-42798991160380135722012-11-15T22:49:00.001-07:002012-11-15T22:49:13.065-07:00Kickstarter: Grimr's Grimoire: a Book of Myths from the Spider's Web<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/projects/275364/photo-full.jpg?1348559462" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/projects/275364/photo-full.jpg?1348559462" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I've launched the Kickstarter project to raise funds to publish my book, if anyone wants to pledge, to help me make this happen.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/muninnskiss/grimrs-grimoire-a-book-of-myths-from-the-spiders-w">http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/muninnskiss/grimrs-grimoire-a-book-of-myths-from-the-spiders-w</a><br />
<br />
FFF,<br />
~Muninn's Kiss<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-54980393833461984672012-11-06T16:49:00.001-07:002012-11-06T16:49:02.461-07:00Book Update: Grimr's GrimoireOkay, I'm looking at seriously moving forward on my book that I've discussed a few times. I've been working on it off and on, and have the basic idea and structure worked out, and some of the content.<br /><br />This will be the first of three books if I can pull it off and there's enough interest to move forward on more after the first. I've nicknamed this one the White Book. It will be called Grimr's Grimoire: a Book of Myths from the Spider's Web. The second potential book, the Black Book, will be Tome of the Builders: a Book of More Myths from the Spider's Web. The third and final, the Red Book, will be Codex of the Dancers: the Final Book of Myths from the Spider's Web.<br /><br />The purpose of the books is to teach the fundamentals of Grimr and my practice in a way that can be applied outside the Grimr context and lead people to a more independent, dynamic, and powerful esoteric practice. They will include myths, lore, poetry, experience, theory, and praxis in a consistent format that people with different backgrounds and learning styles can connect with. I will attempt to do in writing what is fundamentally accomplished through oral teaching. Not all readers will connect with the material, because it is essentially esoteric mystery. My hope is that enough will to make the writing and publishing of the books a worth while venture.<br /><br />At the moment, I intend for all three books to have the same basic structure to each chapter. Each chapter will start with an opening poem to set the stage for the chapter and plant the seeds in the reader that will grow throughout the chapter. This will in a way be an invocation.<br /><br />After the opening poem, there will be a major myth. This myth will be the core of the chapter, and all the myths in the books will tie together with larger themes. The myth will relate the core material of the chapter in story form, with the purpose stories in many cultures serve to pass down the ideas that are central to the family or tribe.<br /><br />Following each major myth will be a commentary on that myth, helping the reader to connect on a conscious, intellectual level. After the commentary will be a ritual section, maybe one ritual, maybe three, not any more than that but I don't want to limit to one if the chapter lends well to multiple. The rituals will probably vary a lot in nature and makeup. I don't want to just give a script and say, do this, I want to provide a framework to help the reader develop their own while still experience the material in a tangible, usable way that will allow them to understand the material on a physical, emotional, and intuitive level. But I also want to help them be able to use what they learn from the material on a practical real level, not just creative visualization and psychobabble. And I want them to come away from the book knowing how to construct their own ritual to be able to do the work themselves and not just follow ceremony and scripts.<br /><br />After the commentary and ritual sections, I'm planning on closing the chapter with a minor myth related to the first but pulling things back from head space and ritual space back into story, tying everything back together. And then I'll have a closing poem bringing it to a close.<br /><br />The first book is currently slated to contain the following thirteen chapters:<br /><br />1. Exitium in Initio Ponebatur: An Introduction to Grimr and the Grimoire<br />2. The Prophet and the Mirror: Through a Mirror Darkly<br />3. The Priest and the Bridge: Across the Abyss<br />4. The Poet and the Cauldron: Stillness and Motion and the Inspiration of Change<br />5. The King and the Wasteland: Sacred and Sacrificial Kingship and the Land<br />6. The Wanderer and the Mask: A Thousand Frightful Faces<br />7. The Mistress and the Blade: Hidden Lovers and Thrice Cut Threads<br />8. The Watchers and the Ten Thousand Things: A Myriad Divisions of Variety and Distraction<br />9. The Builders and the Compass: The Star Map of Eternity<br />10. The Weavers and the Threads of Fate: Into the Spider's Web<br />11. The Dancers and the Eternal Dance: The Catalyst and The Nexus<br />12. The Nagara and Everything: Secret Names and the Unity of Illusion<br />13. Ex nihilo: The Beginning of All Things<br /><br />I have created a Kickstarter project to raise the necessary money to get the first book written and published. I'm hoping for publication next June (2013) if I can get the writing and footwork done by then. I have not made the Kickstarter project live yet, but hope to in the next week or two. I'm going to attempt to raise $2000 to cover the expenses to get it to press and available as an eBook with the major readers, plus provide some copies and fun items for some of those that contribute to the project. The project will only run for 30 days, and if I don't reach the $2000 goal, I won't get any of it to work with, so I'm hoping it brings in enough to make this happen.<br /><br />FFF,<br />~Muninn's Kiss<br />Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-77895408504425456322012-09-23T17:37:00.000-06:002012-09-23T17:41:02.369-06:00Reading List<br />
<div>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<div>
Below is my newest updated reading list. The official version I will update, in an indexed form, can be found by link at the top of this blog or with any of the following links:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.grimr.org/reading-list">http://www.grimr.org/reading-list</a><br />
<a href="http://blog.grimr.org/p/reading-list.html">http://blog.grimr.org/p/reading-list.html</a></div>
<div>
<a href="http://muninnskiss.grimr.org/p/reading-list.html">http://muninnskiss.grimr.org/p/reading-list.html</a></div>
<div>
<a href="http://tomesoflore.grimr.org/p/reading-list.html">http://tomesoflore.grimr.org/p/reading-list.html</a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
While it is practice that defines a path, tradition, or system, and it cannot be learned from books, but only passed down or experienced, books and other media can provide pointers to practice and can serve as guides or inspiration to find the Truth that must be found alone. The reading suggestions on this page form a collection of pointers that might help the seeker, student, or practitioner to dig deeper and find the Truth they seek. This list is mostly non-Grimr sources but contain truth and ideas relevant to Grimr. All must be taken critically and not taken as necessarily true or complete. There is a saying in Huna, that not all knowledge is taught in one school. Use this list to find tidbits and hints to find what you truly seek.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Non-Fiction</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
The following are called "non-fiction" not because anything in them is true, but because they are no intentionally fiction. There is truth in all things, but also illusion, lapwings, and lies. Always judge for yourself. The following are arranged by category. None are directly Grimr books, but contain truth that will help both those pursuing Grimr and those on different paths. Take what you can, throw out what you can't, and weigh and judge all. May you find a seed of wisdom in each of these books. Some categories overlap, and I've listed the books in multiple categories. The categories reflect my views on the books, not necessarily those of the authors or other readers. In each category, books are sorted by author, series, and date.
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>American Witchcraft</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America - Margot Adler</li>
<li>Fifty Years in the Feri Tradition - Cora Anderson</li>
<li>Thorns of the Blood Rose - Victor H. Anderson</li>
<li>Lilith's Garden - Victor H. Anderson</li>
<li>Heart of the Initiate: Feri Lessons - Victor and Cora Anderson</li>
<li>Etheric Anatomy: The Three Selves and Astral Travel - Victor H. Anderson, Cora Anderson</li>
<li>Evolutionary Witchcraft - T. Thorn Coyle</li>
<li>Kissing the Limitless: Deep Magic and the Great Work of Transforming Yourself and the World - T. Thorn Coyle</li>
<li>Goddess Initiation: A Practical Celtic Program for Soul-Healing, Self-Fulfillment & Wild Wisdom - Francesca De Grandis</li>
<li>Share My Insanity: It Improves Everything - Francesca De Grandis</li>
<li>Children of Cain: A Study of Modern Traditional Witches - Michael Howard</li>
<li>The White Wand: Ruminations, Meditations, Reflections Toward a Feri Aesthetic - April Niino</li>
<li>The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Goddess - Starhawk</li>
<li>Truth or Dare: Encounters with Power, Authority, and Mystery - Starhawk</li>
<li>The DustBunnies' Big Damn Handout Volume I - Valerie Walker</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Balkan Witchcraft</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Balkan Traditional Witchcraft - Radomir Ristic, Translated by Michael C. Carter, Jr.</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>British Isle History</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Book of Invasions - Anonymous</li>
<li>History of the Kings of Britain - Geoffrey of Monmouth</li>
<li>Blood & Mistletoe: The History of the Druids in Britain - Ronald Hutton</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>British Witchcraft</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Azoetia: A Grimoire of the Sabbatic Craft - Andrew D. Chumbley</li>
<li>Qutub. Or, The Point - Andrew D. Chumbley</li>
<li>Mysticism: Initiation and Dream - Andrew D. Chumbley</li>
<li>The Robert Cochrane Letters: An Insight into Modern Traditional Witchcraft - Robert Cochrane, Evan John Jones</li>
<li>Pillars of Tubal Cain- Nigel Jackson, Michael Howard</li>
<li>The Book of Fallen Angels- Michael Howard</li>
<li>Children of Cain: A Study of Modern Traditional Witches - Michael Howard</li>
<li>The Roebuck in the Thicket: An Anthology of Robert Cochrane Witchcraft Tradition - Evan John Jones, Robert Cochrane, Michael Howard</li>
<li>The God of the Witches -Margaret Murray</li>
<li>Tubelo's Green Fire: Mythos, Ethos, Female, Male & Priestly Mysteries of the Clan of Tubal Cain - Shani Oates</li>
<li>The Star Crossed Serpent Volume I: Origins: Evan John Jones 1966-1998: The Legend of Tubal Cain - Evan John Jones & Shani Oates</li>
<li>The Star Crossed Serpent Volume II: The Legacy Continues: Shani Oates 1998-Present: The Legend of Tubal Cain - Shani Oates</li>
<li>The Rebirth of Witchcraft - Doreen Valiente</li>
<li>Witchcraft: A Tradition Renewed - Doreen Valiente, Evan John Jones</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Buddhism and Hinduism</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Kalachakra Tantra: Rite of Initiation - His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Translated by Jeffrey Hopkins</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Celtic Myth and Legend</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Book of Invasions - Anonymous</li>
<li>Blood & Mistletoe: The History of the Druids in Britain - Ronald Hutton</li>
<li>The Grail: From Celtic Myth to Christian Symbol - Roger Sherman Loomis</li>
<li>The Encyclopaedia of Celtic Myth and Legend: A Definitive Sourcebook of Magic, Vision, and Lore - John and Caitlin Matthews</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Ceremonial Magic, Grimoire Tradition,Rosicrucian, Golden Dawn, and Thelema Related</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>231 Gates of Initiation & The 32 Paths of Wisdom Tarot - Rawn Clark</li>
<li>Magic in Theory and Practice - Aleister Crowley </li>
<li>The Book of Lies - Aleister Crowley</li>
<li>The Book of Thoth: A Short Essay on the Tarot of the Egyptians, Being the Equinox Volume III No. V - Aleister Crowley</li>
<li>The Book of the Law: Liber Al Gel Legis - Aleister Crowley</li>
<li>Chicken Qabalah - Lon Milo DuQuette</li>
<li>The Lesser Key of Solomon - S. L. MacGregor Matters</li>
<li>The Greater Key of Solomon - S. L. MacGregor Matters</li>
<li>The Middle Pillar: The Balance Between Mind and Magic - Israel Regardie</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Charms and Spells</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The ABC of Magic Charms - Elizabeth Pepper</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Christian Mystics and Mysticism</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Cloud of Unknowing - Anonymous</li>
<li>The Interior Castle - St. Teresa of Avila</li>
<li>The Way of Perfection - St. Teresa of Avila</li>
<li>The Life of Saint Teresa of Avila By Herself - St. Teresa of Avila</li>
<li>The Dialogue - Catherine of Siena</li>
<li>Little Flowers of St. Francis - Brother Ugolino</li>
<li>Living with Contradiction: An Introduction to Benedictine Spirituality - Ether de Waal</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Cultus Sabbati</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Azoetia: A Grimoire of the Sabbatic Craft - Andrew D. Chumbley</li>
<li>Qutub. Or, The Point - Andrew D. Chumbley</li>
<li>Mysticism: Initiation and Dream - Andrew D. Chumbley</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>The Devil</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Satan: The Early Christian Tradition - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Lucifer: The Devil in the Middle Ages - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Mephistopheles: The Devil in the Modern World - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>The Prince of Darkness: Evil and the Power of Good of History - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Etruscan, Greek, and Roman Myth and History</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Golden Bough - James George Frazer</li>
<li>The Golden Ass of Apuleius - Translated by Robert Graves</li>
<li>Diodorus Siculus: Library of History - Diodorus Siculus</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>European Heresy, Dissent, and Religious History</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Miracles and Pilgrims: Popular Beliefs in Medieval England - Ronald C. Finucane</li>
<li>Blood & Mistletoe: The History of the Druids in Britain - Ronald Hutton</li>
<li>The Return of the Dead: Ghosts, Ancestors, and the Transparent Veil of the Pagan Mind - Claude Lecoiteux</li>
<li>The Formation Of A Persecuting Society: Power And Deviance In Western Europe,<a href="tel:950-1250">950-1250</a>- R.I. Moore</li>
<li>The Origins of European Dissent - R.I. Moore</li>
<li>Inquisition - Edward Peters</li>
<li>Dissent and Reform in the Early Middle Ages - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Witchcraft in the Middle Ages - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Religious Dissent in the Middle Ages - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Satan: The Early Christian Tradition - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Lucifer: The Devil in the Middle Ages - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Mephistopheles: The Devil in the Modern World - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>The Prince of Darkness: Evil and the Power of Good of History - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>A History of Medieval Christianity: Prophecy and Order - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>A History of Witchcraft: Sorcerers, Heretics, Pagans - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Dissent and Order in the Middle Ages: The Search for Legitimate Authority - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>A History of Heaven: The Singing Silence - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>Paradise Mislaid: How We Lost Heaven and How We Can Regain It - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Faeries and other Hidden People</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>An Encyclopedia of Fairies: Hobgoblins, Brownies, Bogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures - Katharine Briggs</li>
<li>Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins: An Encyclopedia - Carol Rose</li>
<li>A Field Guide to Irish Fairies - Bob Curran</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Feri Tradition and Related or Influenced Traditions</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Fifty Years in the Feri Tradition - Cora Anderson</li>
<li>Thorns of the Blood Rose - Victor H. Anderson</li>
<li>Lilith's Garden - Victor H. Anderson</li>
<li>Etheric Anatomy: The Three Selves and Astral Travel - Victor H. Anderson, Cora Anderson</li>
<li>Heart of the Initiate: Feri Lessons - Victor and Cora Anderson</li>
<li>Evolutionary Witchcraft - T. Thorn Coyle</li>
<li>Kissing the Limitless: Deep Magic and the Great Work of Transforming Yourself and the World - T. Thorn Coyle</li>
<li>Goddess Initiation: A Practical Celtic Program for Soul-Healing, Self-Fulfillment & Wild Wisdom- Francesca De Grandis</li>
<li>Share My Insanity: It Improves Everything - Francesca De Grandis</li>
<li>The White Wand: Ruminations, Meditations, Reflections Toward a Feri Aesthetic - April Niino</li>
<li>The Spiral Dance: A Rebirth of the Ancient Religion of the Goddess - Starhawk</li>
<li>Truth or Dare: Encounters with Power, Authority, and Mystery - Starhawk</li>
<li>The Dust Bunnies' Big Damn Handout Volume I - Valerie Walker</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Healing, Plants, and Herbalism</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Web That Has No Weaver - Ted J. Kaptchuk</li>
<li>The Herb Book: The Complete and Authoritative Guide to More than 500 Herbs - John B. Lust</li>
<li>Practical Chinese Medicine - Penelope Ody</li>
<li>Plants of Life, Plants of Death - Frederick J. Simoons</li>
<li>The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy: Over 600 Natural, Non-Toxic and Fragrant Recipes to Create Health, Beauty, A Safe Home Environment - Valerie Ann Worwood</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Italian Witchcraft</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Aradia: Gospel of the Witches -Charles Godfrey Leland</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Jewish, Arabic, and Middle Eastern Magic and Traditions</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Black Book of the Yezidi</li>
<li>Sefer Yetzirah: The Book of Creation</li>
<li>The Zohar</li>
<li>The Jewish Book of Days: A Companion for All Seasons - Jill Hammer</li>
<li>Magic that Works: Practical Training for the Children of Light - Frances Harrison, Nineveh Shadrach</li>
<li>I Asked For Wonder: A Spiritual Anthology - Abraham Joshua Heschel</li>
<li>The Guide for the Perplexed - Moses Maimonides</li>
<li>The Kabbalah: The Essential Texts From the Zohar - Bharat Rochlin</li>
<li>Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism - Howard Schwartz, Caren Loebel-Fried, Eliot K. Ginsburg</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Judaism and the Kabbalah</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Sefer Yetzirah: The Book of Creation</li>
<li>The Zohar</li>
<li>The Jewish Book of Days: A Companion for All Seasons - Jill Hammer</li>
<li>I Asked For Wonder: A Spiritual Anthology - Abraham Joshua Heschel</li>
<li>The Guide for the Perplexed - Moses Maimonides</li>
<li>The Kabbalah: The Essential Texts From the Zohar - Bharat Rochlin</li>
<li>Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism - Howard Schwartz, Caren Loebel-Fried, Eliot K. Ginsburg</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>King Arthur, the Grail, and Arthurian Legend</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Sir Gawain and the Green Knight - Anonymous</li>
<li>The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Arthurian Legends - Ronan Coghlan</li>
<li>The Grail: From Celtic Myth to Christian Symbol - Roger Sherman Loomis</li>
<li>The Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend - Alan Lupack</li>
<li>Le Morte D'Arthur - Thomas Malory</li>
<li>The Elements of the Grail Tradition - John Matthews</li>
<li>The Faerie Queene - Sir Edmund Spenser</li>
<li>Erec and Enide - Chrétien de Troyes</li>
<li>Cligès - Chrétien de Troyes</li>
<li>Yvain, the Knight of the Lion - Chrétien de Troyes</li>
<li>Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart - Chrétien de Troyes</li>
<li>Perceval, the Story of the Grail - Chrétien de Troyes</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Literary Theory</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Monster Theory: Reading Culture - Jeffrey Jerome Cohen</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Miscellaneous Non-Fiction</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Book of Qualities - J. Ruth Gendler</li>
<li>Sophia: Goddess of Wisdom - Caitlin Matthews </li>
<li>Stillness Speaks - Eckhart Tolle</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Mythology, Faerie Tales, Folk Stories, and Inventive History</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Book of Invasions - Anonymous</li>
<li>Phantoms and Fairies from Norwegian Folklore - Tor Age Bringsvaerd</li>
<li>The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Arthurian Legends - Ronan Coghlan</li>
<li>A Field Guide to Irish Fairies - Bob Curran</li>
<li>Roles of the Northern Goddess - Hilda Ellis Davidson</li>
<li>The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion - James George Frazer</li>
<li>History of the Kings of Britain - Geoffrey of Monmouth</li>
<li>The White Goddess: A Historical Grammar of Poetic Myth - Robert Graves</li>
<li>The Golden Ass of Apuleius - Translated by Robert Graves</li>
<li>Witches, Werewolves, and Fairies: Shapeshifters and Astral Doubles in the Middle Ages - Claude Lecouteux</li>
<li>The Return of the Dead: Ghosts, Ancestors, and the Transparent Veil of the Pagan Mind - Claude Lecoiteux</li>
<li>Aradia: Gospel of the Witches -Charles Godfrey Leland</li>
<li>The Grail: From Celtic Myth to Christian Symbol - Roger Sherman Loomis</li>
<li>The Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend - Alan Lupack</li>
<li>The Elements of the Grail Tradition - John Matthews</li>
<li>The Encyclopaedia of Celtic Myth and Legend: A Definitive Sourcebook of Magic, Vision, and Lore - John and Caitlin Matthews</li>
<li>Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins: An Encyclopedia - Carol Rose</li>
<li>The Religion of the Teutons - Pierre Daniel Chantepie de la Saussaye</li>
<li>Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism - Howard Schwartz</li>
<li>Diodorus Siculus: Library of History - Diodorus Siculus</li>
<li>Plants of Life, Plants of Death - Frederick J. Simoons</li>
<li>The Poetic Edda - Snorri Sturluson</li>
<li>The Prose Edda - Snorri Sturluson</li>
<li style="list-style: none;">Primal Myths: Creation Myths Around the World - Barbara C. Sproul</li>
<li>Goddess of the North - Lynda C. Welch</li>
<li>Magical Creatures - The Witches' Almanac, LTD.</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Northern European and Asian Shamanism</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Phantoms and Fairies from Norwegian Folklore - Tor Age Bringsvaerd</li>
<li>Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy - Mircea Eliade</li>
<li>Witches, Werewolves, and Fairies: Shapeshifters and Astral Doubles in the Middle Ages - Claude Lecouteux</li>
<li>Riding Windhorses: A Journey into the Heart of Mongolian Shamanism - Sarangerel</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<b>Northern European and Heathen Traditions, Myth, Magic, and Practice</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Roles of the Northern Goddess - Hilda Ellis Davidson</li>
<li>The Elements of the Runes - Bernard King</li>
<li>Witches, Werewolves, and Fairies: Shapeshifters and Astral Doubles in the Middle Ages - Claude Lecouteux</li>
<li>The Religion of the Teutons - Pierre Daniel Chantepie de la Saussaye</li>
<li>The Poetic Edda - Snorri Sturluson</li>
<li>The Prose Edda - Snorri Sturluson</li>
<li>Northern Magic: Rune Mysteries and Shamanism - Edred Thorsson</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Possession</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Drawing Down the Spirits: The Traditions and Techniques of Spirit Possession - Kenaz Filan, Raven Kaldera</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Robert Cochrane, Clan of Tubal Cain, and Related or Influenced Traditions</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Robert Cochrane Letters: An Insight into Modern Traditional Witchcraft - Robert Cochrane, Evan John Jones</li>
<li>The Roebuck in the Thicket: An Anthology of Robert Cochrane Witchcraft Tradition - Evan John Jones, Robert Cochrane, Michael Howard</li>
<li>Tubelo's Green Fire: Mythos, Ethos, Female, Male & Priestly Mysteries of the Clan of Tubal Cain - Shani Oates</li>
<li>The Star Crossed Serpent Volume I: Origins: Evan John Jones 1966-1998: The Legend of Tubal Cain - Evan John Jones & Shani Oates</li>
<li>The Star Crossed Serpent Volume II: The Legacy Continues: Shani Oates 1998-Present: The Legend of Tubal Cain - Shani Oates</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Saints, Sages, Hermits, and Other Figures</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Encyclopedia of Mystics, Saints, and Sages: A Guide to Asking for Protection, Wealth, Happiness, and Everything Else! - Judika Illes</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Taoism, Chinese Folk Religion and Practice, and East Asian Thought and History</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>I Ching - Anonymous</li>
<li>The Web That Has No Weaver - Ted J. Kaptchuk</li>
<li>The Elements of Feng Shui - Man-Ho Kwok, Joanne O'Brien</li>
<li>Practical Chinese Medicine - Penelope Ody</li>
<li>Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai - Yamamoto Tsunetomo</li>
<li>Tao Te Ching - Lao Tzu</li>
<li>The Art of War - Sun Tzu</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Traditional Witchcraft and Witchcraft History</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Drawing Down the Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America - Margot Adler</li>
<li>Fifty Years in the Feri Tradition - Cora Anderson</li>
<li>Heart of the Initiate: Feri Lessons - Victor and Cora Anderson</li>
<li>The Robert Cochrane Letters: An Insight into Modern Traditional Witchcraft - Robert Cochrane, Evan John Jones</li>
<li>Magic and Witchcraft: From Shamanism to the Technopagans - Nevill Drury</li>
<li>The Book of Fallen Angels - Michael Howard</li>
<li>Children of Cain: A Study of Modern Traditional Witches - Michael Howard</li>
<li>Pillars of Tubal Cain - Nigel Jackson, Michael Howard</li>
<li>Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft - Ronald Hutton</li>
<li>Masks of Misrule: The Horned God & His Cult in Europe - Nigel Jackson</li>
<li>Witches, Werewolves, and Fairies: Shapeshifters and Astral Doubles in the Middle Ages - Claude Lecouteux</li>
<li>Aradia: Gospel of the Witches -Charles Godfrey Leland</li>
<li>The God of the Witches -Margaret Murray</li>
<li>Balkan Traditional Witchcraft - Radomir Ristic, Translated by Michael C. Carter, Jr.</li>
<li>Witchcraft in the Middle Ages - Jeffrey Burton Russell</li>
<li>A History of Witchcraft: Sorcerers, Heretics, Pagans - Jeffrey Burton Russell and Brooks Alexander</li>
<li>The Rebirth of Witchcraft - Doreen Valiente</li>
<li>Witchcraft: A Tradition Renewed - Doreen Valiente, Evan John Jones</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>War, Martial Thought, and Fighting</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai - Yamamoto Tsunetomo</li>
<li>The Art of War - Sun Tzu</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Poetry</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Victor Anderson once said, "White magic is poetry, black magic is anything that works," and "Every poem is a love letter to the Goddess." Poetry is the language of the soul, or ritual, of magic. It speaks on a deeper level than prose does, and can say things that can't be put into words any other way.</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Thorns of the Blood Rose - Victor H. Anderson</li>
<li>Lilith's Garden - Victor H. Anderson</li>
<li>Azoetia: A Grimoire of the Sabbatic Craft - Andrew D. Chumbley</li>
<li>Qutub. Or, The Point - Andrew D. Chumbley</li>
<li>The Faerie Queene - Sir Edmund Spenser</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Fiction</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Not all stories are false, not all tales are lies. The following are considered fiction because they were written as fiction, not because the are not true, or true for that matter. These is truth in all things. Read them as fiction, but look for the truth underneath. I have grouped them in categories, then sorted them by author then series. The books listed aren't the only good ones by these authors, but are the ones I see truth in relating to Grimr. My he who has eyes see and she who has ears hear.
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Fantasy</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Anne Bishop</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Daughter of the Blood</li>
<li>Heir to the Shadows</li>
<li>Queen of Darkness</li>
<li>The Invisible Ring</li>
<li>Dreams Made Flesh</li>
<li>Tangled Webs</li>
<li>The Shadow Queen</li>
<li>Shalador's Lady</li>
<li>Twilight's Dawn</li>
<li>The Pillars of the World</li>
<li>Shadows and Light</li>
<li>The House of Gaian</li>
<li>Sebastian</li>
<li>Belladonna</li>
<li>The Voice: An Ephernera Novella</li>
<li>Bridge of Dreams</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Steven Brust</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Jhereg</li>
<li>Yendi</li>
<li>Teckla</li>
<li>Taltos</li>
<li>Phoenix</li>
<li>Athyra</li>
<li>Orca</li>
<li>Dragon</li>
<li>Issola</li>
<li>Dzur</li>
<li>Jhegaala</li>
<li>Iorich</li>
<li>Tiassa</li>
<li>Broken Down Palace</li>
<li>To Reign in Hell</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Lewis Carroll</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland</li>
<li>Through the Looking Glass</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>David Eddings</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Diamond Throne</li>
<li>The Ruby Knight</li>
<li>The Sapphire Rose</li>
<li>Domes of Fire</li>
<li>The Shining Ones</li>
<li>The Hidden City</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Lyndon Hardy</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Master of the Five Magics</li>
<li>Secret of the Sixth Magic</li>
<li>Riddle of the Seven Realms</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Robin Hobb</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Assassin's Apprentice</li>
<li>Royal Assassin</li>
<li>Assassin's Quest</li>
<li>Ship of Magic</li>
<li>The Mad Ship</li>
<li>Ship of Destiny</li>
<li>Fool's Errand</li>
<li>Golden Fool</li>
<li>Fool's Fate</li>
<li>Dragon Keeper</li>
<li>Dragon Haven</li>
<li>City of Dragons</li>
<li>Blood of Dragons</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Nancy Springer</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Book of Suns</li>
<li>The White Hart</li>
<li>The Silver Sun</li>
<li>The Sable Moon</li>
<li>The Black Beast</li>
<li>The Golden Swan</li>
<li>Chance and Other Gestures of the Hand of Fate</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>King Arthur, Grail, and Arthurian Legend</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Stephen R. Lawhead</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Taleisen</li>
<li>Merlin</li>
<li>Arthur</li>
<li>Pendragon</li>
<li>Grail</li>
<li>Avalon: the Return of King Arthur</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Nancy Springer</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>I am Mordred</li>
<li>I am Morgan le Fay</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Mary Stewart</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Crystal Cave</li>
<li>The Hollow Hills</li>
<li>The Last Enchantment</li>
<li>The Wicked Day</li>
<li>The Prince and the Pilgrim</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>T.H. White</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Once and Future King</li>
<li>The Book of Merlyn</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Celtic Myth and Legend</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Lloyd Alexander</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Book of Three</li>
<li>The Black Cauldron</li>
<li>The Castle of Llyr</li>
<li>Taran Wanderer</li>
<li>The High King</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Stephen R. Lawhead</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Paradise War</li>
<li>The Silver Hand</li>
<li>The Endless Knot</li>
<li>The Iron Lance</li>
<li>The Black Rood</li>
<li>The Mystic Rose</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Robin Hood Legend</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Stephen R. Lawhead</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Hood</li>
<li>Scarlet</li>
<li>Tuck</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Modern Day</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Hal Duncan</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>Vellum</li>
<li>Ink</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<b>Neil Gaiman</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>American Gods</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>John Twelve Hawks</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Traveler</li>
<li>The Dark River</li>
<li>The Golden City</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<b>Mythology, Faerie Tales, Folk Stories, and Inventive History</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Complete Brother Grimm Fairy Tales</li>
<li>One Thousand and One Arabian Nights</li>
<li>Aesop's Fables</li>
<li>Andersen's Fairy Tales</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<br />
<b>Graphic Novels</b></div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li><b>The Sandman - Neil Gaiman</b></li>
<li><b>Promethea - Alan Moore, J.H. Williams III, Mick Gray</b></li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Magazines and Periodicals</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Magazines and periodicals of course vary from books in that they are on going, not one time projects. Because of this on going nature, they can address more topics within the stated subject. The following are magazines or periodicals that have had presented articles in the past that were interesting or helpful in context of Grimr.</div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>The Cauldron [<a href="http://www.the-cauldron.org.uk/">http://www.the-cauldron.org.uk/</a>]</li>
<li>Witch Eye: A Journal of Feri Uprising [<a href="http://www.feritradition.org/witcheye/">http://www.feritradition.org/witcheye/</a>]</li>
<li>Circle Magazine [<a href="http://www.circlesanctuary.org/circle/">http://www.circlesanctuary.org/circle/</a>]</li>
<li>The White Dragon [<a href="http://whitedragon.org.uk/">http://whitedragon.org.uk/</a>]</li>
<li>The Witches' Almanac [<a href="http://thewitchesalmanac.com/">http://thewitchesalmanac.com/</a>]</li>
</ul>
<div style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Blogs and</b> <b>Website</b> <b>Articles</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
In this information age, many good books are available that would never have been published fifty years ago. But there are a lot of rotten books, books that are lapwings leading you away from the Truth. This is doubly true on the Internet where anyone with access to a computer can commit their thought or ideas where the whole world can read them. You have to be careful and separate the crap from the good stuff. Usually, the best thing is to use the Internet to point you in the direction of more verifiable sources, or go out and do the work yourself. However, there are articles and blogs on the Internet worth while reading, that can lead you to Truth. The following are a few. Some of these are my own, but most are other people's. Some are no longer updated, but include good information.
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Articles and Websites with Articles</b></div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>1734 Witchcraft: The Authentic Method of Robert Cochrane and Joseph Bearwalker Wilson [<a href="http://www.1734-witchcraft.org/">http://www.1734-witchcraft.org/</a>]</li>
<li>Atho: The Horned God of the Witches (WitchVox) [<a href="http://www.witchvox.com/va/dt_va.html?a=ussc&c=words&id=13989">http://www.witchvox.com/va/dt_va.html?a= ussc&c=words&id=13989</a>]</li>
<li>BlackHeart Feri Musings [<a href="http://blackheartferi.com/topics/musing/">http://blackheartferi.com/topics/musing/</a>]</li>
<li>BlueRose Feri Writings [<a href="http://www.blueroseferi.com/">http://www.blueroseferi.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Bran Mak Morn's Draconian Pictish-Elven Witchcraft [<a href="http://www.pictdom.org/">http://www.pictdom.org/</a>]</li>
<li>The Compost Coven Disk of Shadows [<a href="http://www.wiggage.com/witch/cnl/compost/contents.html">http://www.wiggage.com/witch/cnl/compost/</a><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>contents.html</u></span>]</li>
<li>The Coven of Atho [<a href="http://www.thewica.co.uk/coven_of_atho%20article.htm">http://www.thewica.co.uk/coven_of_ atho%</a><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u> 20article.htm</u></span>]</li>
<li>Dirty Magic: Seiðr, Science, and the Parturating Man in Medieval Norse and Welsh Literature [<a href="http://www.illinoismedieval.org/ems/VOL11/11ch10.html">http://www.illinoismedieval.org/ems/VOL11/</a><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>11ch10.html</u></span>]</li>
<li>The Erotic Trinity (Storm Faerywolf) [<a href="http://www.myspace.com/faerywolf/blog/72277674">http://www.myspace.com/faerywolf/blog/72277674</a>]</li>
<li>a faery tale by mike rock [<a href="http://www.mike-rock.com/faery/">http://www.mike-rock.com/faery/</a>]</li>
<li>The Feri Grimoire: a Faerie Book of Shadows [<a href="http://www.feritradition.org/grimoire/grim.htm">http://www.feritradition.org/grimoire/</a><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>grim.htm</u></span>]</li>
<li>George Pickingill and the Origins of Modern Witchcraft [<a href="http://bissekart.zoomshare.com/files/pickingill/contentnofrm.html">http://bissekart.zoomshare.com/files/pickingill/</a><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>contentnofrm.html</u></span>]</li>
<li>Jewitchery Essays and Articles [<a href="http://jewitchery.com/essays.html">http://jewitchery.com/</a><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>essays.html</u></span>]</li>
<li>feri tradition: articles, exercises, lore [<a href="http://www.wiggage.com/witch/fericontents.html">http://www.wiggage.com/witch/</a><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>fericontents.html</u></span>]</li>
<li>Lilith's Lantern articles [<a href="http://www.lilithslantern.com/links.htm">http://www.lilithslantern.com/</a><span style="color: #0000ee;"><u>links.htm</u></span>]</li>
<li>Mayim Nokbin & Mayim Dukhrin - </li>
<li style="display: inline !important;">Female and Male Waters (Kosher Torah) [<a href="http://koshertorah.com/PDF/man%20%26%20mad.pdf">http://koshertorah.com/PDF/man%20&%20mad.pdf</a>]</li>
<li style="display: inline !important;">The names of the Watchers [<a href="http://echoes.devin.com/watchers/names.html">http://echoes.devin.com/watchers/names.html</a>]</li>
<li style="display: inline !important;">Partzufim - The Sefirotic Faces (Kosher Torah) [<a href="http://koshertorah.com/PDF/Partzufim%20-%20the%20Sefirotic%20Faces.pdf">http://koshertorah.com/PDF/Partzufim%20-%20the%20Sefirotic%20Faces.pdf</a>]</li>
<li style="display: inline !important;">People of Goda, CLan of Tubal Cain Library [<a href="http://www.clanoftubalcain.org.uk/library_cat.html">http://www.clanoftubalcain.org.uk/library_cat.html</a>]</li>
<li>Traditional Cornish Witchcraft [<a href="http://www.cronnekdhu.co.uk/">http://www.cronnekdhu.co.uk/</a>]</li>
<li>Walking the Hedge Articles [<a href="http://walkingthehedge.net/wildgeekhang/index.php?option=com_phocadocumentation&view=sections&Itemid=433">http://walkingthehedge.net/wildgeekhang/index.php?option=com_phocadocumentation&view=sections&Itemid=433</a>]</li>
<li>The White Dragon: The Dragon's Hoard [<a href="http://whitedragon.org.uk/articles.html">http://whitedragon.org.uk/articles.html</a>]</li>
<li>The White Wand Lore [<a href="http://www.whitewand.com/lore.html">http://www.whitewand.com/lore.html</a>]</li>
<li>The Wiccan & Faerie Grimoire of Francesca De Grandis [<a href="http://jenyatbeachy.wordpress.com/">http://jenyatbeachy.wordpress.com/</a>]</li>
<li style="display: inline !important;">Witch Eye: A Journal of the Feri Uprising [<a href="http://www.feritradition.org/witcheye/webindex.html">http://www.feritradition.org/witcheye/webindex.html</a>]</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<b><br /></b></div>
<div>
<b>Blogs</b></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Across the Abyss [<a href="http://muninnskiss.grimr.org/">http://muninnskiss.grimr.org</a>]</li>
<li>Alchemist's Garden [<a href="http://herbalwitchcraft.com/blog/">http://herbalwitchcraft.com/blog/</a>]</li>
<li>Artes Magicae [<a href="http://artesmagicae.blogspot.com/">http://artesmagicae.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Awenydd [<a href="http://awenyd.blogspot.com/">http://awenyd.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Besom, Book, and Wand [<a href="http://besombookandwand.blogspot.com/">http://besombookandwand.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>callmeumeboshi [<a href="http://callmeumeboshi.livejournal.com/">http://callmeumeboshi.livejournal.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Chattering Magpie [<a href="http://chatteringmagpie-summonerofthehearth.blogspot.com/">http://chatteringmagpie-summonerofthehearth.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Black Birdy [<a href="http://zionmystic.livejournal.com/">http://zionmystic.livejournal.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Book of Stars [<a href="http://awenstormfool.blogspot.com/">http://awenstormfool.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Clan of the Tangled Thicket 1734 [<a href="http://clanoftheentangledthicket.blogspot.com/">http://clanoftheentangledthicket.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>The Crane Bag--Musings of a Modern Bard [<a href="http://aislingthebard.blogspot.com/">http://aislingthebard.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>DoreenValiente.org [<a href="http://doreenvaliente.org/">http://doreenvaliente.org/</a>]</li>
<li>Dreams of a Coyote [<a href="http://dreamsofacoyote.blogspot.com/">http://dreamsofacoyote.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>eldri [<a href="http://eldriwolf.livejournal.com/">http://eldriwolf.livejournal.com/</a>]</li>
<li>The Eye of the Storm [<a href="http://faerywolf.blogspot.com/">http://faerywolf.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Grimr [<a href="http://blog.grimr.org/">http://blog.grimr.org</a>]</li>
<li>Heart's Desire [<a href="http://heartssdesire.livejournal.com/">http://heartssdesire.livejournal.com/</a>}</li>
<li>Hoodoo Roots Traditional Spiritual Supply [<a href="http://hoodooroots.blogspot.com/">http://hoodooroots.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Jenya T. Beachy: Living in Accordance With My Own Divine Will [<a href="http://jenyatbeachy.wordpress.com/">http://jenyatbeachy.wordpress.com/</a>]</li>
<li>A Journey within Feri [<a href="http://journeywithinferi.blogspot.com/">http://journeywithinferi.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>T. Thorn Coyle: Know Thyself [<a href="http://www.thorncoyle.com/">http://www.thorncoyle.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Lore of the Lakes [<a href="http://loreofthelakes.blogspot.com/">http://loreofthelakes.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Meaderings of the Muse [<a href="http://meanderingsofthemuse.blogspot.com/">http://meanderingsofthemuse.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Memoirs of a Heather [<a href="http://red-oak-za.livejournal.com/">http://red-oak-za.livejournal.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Modern Conjure [<a href="http://modernconjure.blogspot.com/">http://modernconjure.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>moonroot: Paganism, Permaculture & Poultrykeeping on a Welsh Hillside [<a href="http://moonroot.blogspot.com/">http://moonroot.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Muninn's Laughter [<a href="http://muninnslaughter.grimr.org/">http://muninnslaughter.grimr.org</a>]</li>
<li>Our Musings [<a href="http://clanoftubalcain.org.uk/blog">http://clanoftubalcain.org.uk/blog</a>]</li>
<li>Outlaw Bunny [<a href="http://www.outlawbunny.com/">http://www.outlawbunny.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Peeling a Pomegranate: Juicy Bites of Embodied, Earth-based, Relevant Judaism [<a href="http://www.peelapom.com/">http://www.peelapom.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Petals of the BlueRose: Discussing the Great Unfolding [<a href="http://blueroseferi.blogspot.com/">http://blueroseferi.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>...pieces, threads, patterns... [<a href="http://madgypsy.blogspot.com/">http://madgypsy.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Soul Alignments [<a href="http://soulalignments.blogspot.com/">http://soulalignments.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>StarDrenched [<a href="http://stardrenched.com/">http://stardrenched.com/</a>]</li>
<li>The Starry Cave [<a href="http://www.starrycave.com/">http://www.starrycave.com/</a>]</li>
<li>TarotWitchery [<a href="http://tarotwitchery.blogspot.com/">http://tarotwitchery.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Temple Oracle [<a href="http://templeoracle.com/">http://templeoracle.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Therioshamanism [<a href="http://therioshamanism.com/">http://therioshamanism.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Thought of a Jewitch [<a href="http://gav-jewitch.blogspot.com/">http://gav-jewitch.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>till the wheels come off [<a href="http://veedub.livejournal.com/">http://veedub.livejournal.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Tomes of Lores, Grimoires of Wisdom [<a href="http://tomesoflore.grimr.org/">http://tomesoflore.grimr.org/</a>]</li>
<li>Trystn's Occult Journal [<a href="http://walkthroughtheforge.blogspot.com/">http://walkthroughtheforge.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Walking On Fire [<a href="http://walking-on-fire.blogspot.com/">http://walking-on-fire.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>The Witch of the Forest [<a href="http://witchofforestgrove.com/">http://witchofforestgrove.com/</a>]</li>
<li>The White Wand [<a href="http://whitewand.blogspot.com/">http://whitewand.blogspot.com/</a>]</li>
<li>The Wild Wood of Owls and Starlight [<a href="http://istari.livejournal.com/">http://istari.livejournal.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Wytch In-The-Woods (Wytchwood Witchcraft and Magick - J’té Argent) [<a href="http://www.wytchwood.com/WytchBlog.htm">http://www.wytchwood.com/WytchBlog.htm</a>]</li>
</ul>
<div>
<b>Forums and Online Communities</b></div>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Conjure Yahoo Group [<a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Conjure/">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Conjure/</a>]</li>
<li>Freeformcraft Feri Yahoo Group [<a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/freeformcraft/">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/freeformcraft/</a>]</li>
<li>Jewitchery Yahoo Group [<a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jewitchery/">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jewitchery/</a>]</li>
<li>Students of Feri Yahoo Group [<a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentsofFeri/">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StudentsofFeri/</a>]</li>
<li>Traditional Witchcraft Forums [<a href="http://www.traditionalwitchcraft.net/">http://www.traditionalwitchcraft.net/</a>]</li>
<li>Traditional Witchcraft Yahoo Group [<a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Traditional_Witchcraft/">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Traditional_Witchcraft/</a>]</li>
<li>Walking the Hedge [<a href="http://walkingthehedge.net/">http://walkingthehedge.net/</a>]</li>
<li>Witch Eye readers Yahoo Group [<a href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WitchEye/">http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WitchEye/</a>]</li>
<li>WitchVox [<a href="http://www.witchvox.com/">http://www.witchvox.com/</a>]</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<b>Online Texts</b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Aradia, Gospel of Witches by Charles G. Leland (Sacred Texts) [<a href="http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/aradia/ara02.htm">http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/aradia/ara02.htm</a>]</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Shops and Businesses</b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>The Briar Rose [<a href="http://thebriarrose.webs.com/">http://thebriarrose.webs.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Carnivalia [<a href="http://www.carnivalia.com/">http://www.carnivalia.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Harpy Books [<a href="http://www.harpybooks.com/">http://www.harpybooks.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Mandrake of Oxford: Specialist Independent Publisher [<a href="http://mandrake.uk.net/">http://mandrake.uk.net/</a>]</li>
<li>The Mystic Dream [<a href="http://www.themysticdream.com/">http://www.themysticdream.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Toad's Bone Apotheca: Craft & Conjure Goods [<a href="http://www.toadsbone.com/">http://www.toadsbone.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Trois Chats Noirs [<a href="http://www.troischatsnoirs.com/">http://www.troischatsnoirs.com/</a>]</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<b>Traditions and Paths</b></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>1734 Witchcraft: The Authentic Method of Robert COchrane and Joseph Bearwalker Wilson [<a href="http://www.1734-witchcraft.org/">http://www.1734-witchcraft.org/</a>]</li>
<li>BlackHeart Feri [<a href="http://blackheartferi.com/">http://blackheartferi.com/</a>]</li>
<li>BlueRose Feri [<a href="http://www.blueroseferi.com/">http://www.blueroseferi.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Bran Mak Morn's Draconian Pictish-Elven Witchcraft [<a href="http://www.pictdom.org/">http://www.pictdom.org/</a>]</li>
<li>The Compost Coven Disk of Shadows [<a href="http://www.wiggage.com/witch/cnl/compost/contents.html">http://www.wiggage.com/witch/cnl/compost/contents.html</a>]</li>
<li>The Coven of Atho [<a href="http://www.thewica.co.uk/coven_of_atho%20article.htm">http://www.thewica.co.uk/coven_of_atho%20article.htm</a>]</li>
<li>Covenant of Rhiannon Community: The Witches of Cape May: A Congregation of the Church of Ravenstar [<a href="http://covenantofrhiannon.org/">http://covenantofrhiannon.org/</a>]</li>
<li>Feri: American Traditional Witchcraft [<a href="http://www.feritradition.org/">http://www.feritradition.org/</a>]</li>
<li>Lilith's Lantern (Vicia line of Feri) [<a href="http://www.lilithslantern.com/">http://www.lilithslantern.com/</a>]</li>
<li>Morningstar Mystery School [<a href="http://www.thorncoyle.com/mystery-school/">http://www.thorncoyle.com/mystery-school/</a>]</li>
<li>People of Goda, Clan of Tubal Cain [<a href="http://www.clanoftubalcain.org.uk/">http://www.clanoftubalcain.org.uk/</a>]</li>
<li>Reclaiming: a Community of People, a Tradition of Witchcraft [<a href="http://www.reclaiming.org/">http://www.reclaiming.org/</a>]</li>
<li>Third Road [<a href="http://www.well.com/user/zthirdrd/index.html">http://www.well.com/user/zthirdrd/index.html</a>]</li>
<li>Traditional Cornish Witchcraft [<a href="http://www.cronnekdhu.co.uk/">http://www.cronnekdhu.co.uk/</a>]</li>
<li>The White Wand: an exploration into the intersection of feri and the arts [<a href="http://www.whitewand.com/">http://www.whitewand.com/</a>]</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<b>Movies, Videos, and Television</b><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Not only written media is valuable and helpful, but other mediums as well, including film. The following are movies, videos, television shows, and other types of films that contain truth, elements, or ideas relevant to Grimr, in alphabetical order.</div>
<ul style="font-family: Tahoma; text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<li>12 Monkeys (1995)</li>
<li>The 13th Floor (1999)</li>
<li>13th Warrior (1999)</li>
<li>Alice (Miniseries 2009)</li>
<li>Alice in Wonderland (Disney Animated 1951)</li>
<li>Alice in Wonderland (2010)</li>
<li>Brave (Disney Animated 2012)</li>
<li>The Brothers Grimm (2005)</li>
<li>Caroline(Animated 2009)</li>
<li>Chronicles of Riddick (2004)</li>
<li>Dark Crystal (1982)</li>
<li>Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (2010)</li>
<li>Kung Fu Panda (Animated 2008)</li>
<li>Labyrinth (1986)</li>
<li>Lady in the Water (2006)</li>
<li>Legend (1985)</li>
<li>The Order (2003)</li>
<li>Snow White and the Huntsman (2012)</li>
<li>Sword in the Stone (Disney Animated 1963)</li>
<li>Tangled (Disney Animated 2010)</li>
</ul>
</div>
Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-13966475002679723972012-08-29T00:23:00.001-06:002012-08-29T00:23:58.078-06:00Book Review: The Heart of the Initiate: Feri Lessons, Second Edition,by Victor and Cora Anderson<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>"How the heart of the initiate thrills when the antique mysteries are written of. She or he recognizes the same great truth expressing itself in many forms, yet as one thing." ~Victor Anderson in a letter to a student, The Heart of the Initiate, Pg. 42 </i></div>
<br />
I have desired to read the Heart of the Initiate for a long time, ever since Karina made reference to a quote from it on a list I'm on in response to a question I asked. But it was very limited print, I think 300 copies, just for the Feri community of the time, and while I know several people with copies, they all live far from me and I've never had an opportunity to visit and read it. I was very please a few months ago to see an announcement from Harpy Press that they were publishing a second edition of the book. I immediately pre-ordered it and waited in expectation for it to arrive. I was not disappointed.<br />
<br />
For those unfamiliar with Victor and Cora, they were amazing people, and co-founders along with Gwydion of what would become the Feri Tradition (by whatever spelling). The book is a gift from them to the Feri community. It is an amazing resource for seeker, student, and initiate alike, though it is very obviously aimed at students. It addresses many misconceptions and misunderstandings, and provides many insights I have not found elsewhere, whether from initiates in the tradition or books and writings produced by it. It is a blessing that a second edition has been published for a wider distribution.<br />
<br />
The book is a collection of essays and letters mostly previously written, collected into one volume. It is not a large volume, only 78 pages, but it contains more lore and insight than most books four times its size. The forward by Jim Schuette states that tge book is a Valentine from Victor and Cora to you (the reader). It contains two sections.<br />
<br />
These sections are prefaced by an essay by Victor entitled Some Pictish Views on the Old Religion. The essay discusses what is and what is not Craft, and specifically what is and isn't Feri.<br />
<br />
The first section is made up of essays, commentaries on the tradition and elements of it, some written by Victor, some by Cora. There are no dates on any of them, so they may have been written specifically for the book. There are ten commentaries in this section.<br />
<br />
The second section is a collection of letters to specific students, two from Cora and three from Victor. They touch on many different subjects.<br />
<br />
The letters are followed by a prayer by Victor, first published in Witchcraft Digest Magazine in 1972 entitled Prayer for Beginning the New Path, prefaced by a short essay entitled A Prayer for the Craft Neophyte explaining the prayer and Victor's purpose in publishing it. This prayer serves as a fitting conclusion to the book.<br />
<br />
FFF,<br />
~Muninn's KissMuninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-84853031192728364652012-08-28T23:36:00.001-06:002012-08-29T00:36:59.798-06:00Book Review: The Star Crossed Serpent II: The Clan of Tubal Cain: The
Legecy Continues: Shani Oates (1998-Present)I have been reading The Star Crossed Serpent II by Shani Oates over the last month or so and just finished it. I wasn't sure whet to expect as far as form or content, as I haven't yet gotten or read Volume I. If it's anything like this one, I need to order a copy soon.<br />
<br />
I received my copy of TSCSII on July 20th (2012) and opened it immediately, reading through the table of contents and reading the introduction and first essay during lunch that day. The book is a collection of ten essays, with an introduction by W Wagner and an epilogue by Robin the Dart. All ten essays relate to different subjects pertinant to the Clan of Tubal Cain, and relate Shani's understanding and view on the subjects. The essays are well written, and, while not forming a direct narrative or argument as a collection, inter relate and provide a very interesting and thought provoking tapestry of subjects and ideas. I started the book July 20th and finished it August 28th. Well worth the read, and not a book to read in one sitting. I recommend trying to read each essay in one sitting and allowing time to mill them over before moving to the next. There were things in the essays I swould stand up and shout amen to, and things I thought, well, I completely disagree with that, but, agree or disagree, relate to or not relate to, I was glad I read each essay and they gave me much to think about.<br />
<br />
The introduction is entitled The Ring Troth of Cain and is a dialogue by W Wagner between Odhin and Thor concerning Cain, Thor cursing him and Odhin blessing him in response.<br />
<br />
The ten essays follow it.<br />
<br />
1) The first essay about the Archer's Song, I had already read in the Cauldron previously, so nothing new there. It was a pleasure to reread, however.<br />
<br />
2) A lot of interesting tidbits in Brimstone and Treacle. The abject and advesarial distinctions, roles, and themes throughout essay were very thought provoking. The Sussux graveyard and church discussion with the North was very interesting, of what we call Potter's field, the north end, being the Devil's own, and of the Devil entering the church through the north door. The discussion of the Devil through time was bringing to mind Russell (he's a good friend of my Medeival History professor) and so was delighted to find a quote from him in the text. He's a favourite author of mine. The distinction between "witches" swearing allegiance to the Devil and cunningmen calling on the Trinity to force the Devil to serve, to do similar things was very interesting. And her closing paragraph leaves you thinking, how do I view things?<br />
<br />
One thing in particular stood out:<br />
<br />
"Valiente shares with us her local knowledge of eccentric customs, particularly of the speculatory aboriginal race of small dark forest dwellers frequently associated with Ashdown Forest and Romany activity until well into the 19th century and whose 'clanish' behaviour (in the sense of closed families) was treated with fear and suspicion." ~The Star Crossed Serpent II, pg. 30<br />
<br />
Reading that and the following sentences and paragraphs, I could not help but think of Victor Anderson, (Grand Master of Feri for anyone unfamiliar with the name), and his "small dark people", who he described as the original practicers of the Feri (or Faery or Fairy) faith and Pictish Witchcraft (which Victor used to describe what he practiced and taught, which became Feri), and said he was directly descended from. He, himself, was quite small and dark complected. These "small dark people" are a foundational "myth" of Feri that has been criticised along with Murray's work. Yet we find it here in local folklore.<br />
<br />
By far, I think this was my favourite essay, and I think the best in the book, though The Poisoned Chalice is the best written. <br />
<br />
3) A lot of interesting material in Faith of the Wise, some new to me, some familiar. It shows an evolution of belief and practice in Cochrane that isn't evident in just the letters and articles, while pulling all of those in, giving them context. Very good and thought provoking essay.<br />
<br />
4) The Stang was a very interesting essay investigating the Stanton and the World Tree, and trees and poles related to the feminine rather than phalic. I found how Shani related the God on the Tree with Shiva and his Shakti. Very interesting chapter, and the best after Treacle and Brimstone. The one part I did disagree with was Shani's assertion that Chokmah in the Tree of Life is feminine and Binah is masculine in relation to each other.<br />
<br />
5) The Fourth Nail was an interesting essay. I expected it to relate to the ever heated nail in Romani legend, but it was a different idea entirely, though I can relate it to that legend. The chapter discusses the three faces of Hecate, and of Fate, and the fourth hidden face, the three nails of space and the fourth nail, time. Much more focused on science than the previous essays, the essay makes parallels between science, myth, and Clan of Tubal Cain lore. Cert interesting chapter indeed.<br />
<br />
6) Dark Aegipan and Pale Leukothea investigates Pan as All, and as light and dark Twins, and the transition of Pan from All to a fool-like character in late folk lore. With my interest in Pan over the last year and my Feri background, it was a very enjoyable chapter to read, hitting on some points I've been looking at, and bringing my attention to others I hadn't previously seen. Very well written and very thought provoking. Definitely one of my favourites in the book.<br />
<br />
7) Cain and Craft Diversity discusses the constellations known as Bootes (the Ploughman) and the Plough (Ursa Minor) which Shani relates as Cain, connecting the Cain legends to the progress of the constellation through the sky, and how it relates to Clan of Tubal Cain lore. another interesting essay.<br />
<br />
8) Cain, Clanship and the Egregore digs much more deeply into the Clan of Tubal Cain, looking primarily at what clanship and suzerainty mean, both in history and in the Clan itself, and why the craft has been and is a threat to the established order based on sovereignty instead of suzerainty.<br />
<br />
9) Patterns of Transformation: the Alchemy of Being is a discussion of alchemy in relation to spiritual progression. I honestly don't know what to say about this essay. It feels more like notes and brainstorming to me than an essay, though that could just be how it feels to me. I couldn't follow it the way I did the others. Interesting information and connections in it, though. The one place I questioned it was Shani's placement of earth, air, water, fire connected to the four worlds in Kabbalah, whereas my teaching and exerience has all four in the first world, and water (mem), then air (aleph), then fire (shin).<br />
<br />
10) The Poison Chalice was a good ending essay for the book, I think. Not a summary or conclusion per se, but a good way to conclude a well crafted collection of essays. I'm not quite sure whet to say about the essay. While I like some of the other essays better because of content and where they took me, this was by far the best written and best crafted. It's a work of art honestly. It deals with the Graal, in progression to a chalise containing the sacrement, and on to a poisoned chalice, the cup that Fate presents. It discusses the mysteries both from the ascetic denial and the escatic indulgence side, showing the goal of both for the mystic, coming back around to the philosopher's stone of the alchemy chapter, and showing the poisoned chalice as the goal of all the proceeding essays. I think the beauty and power, the things that spoke the most to me, were in whet wasn't said, in where I was led beyond the words and beyond the pages. <br />
<br />
The book ended with an epilogue by Robin the Dart discussing the witch 'Law' Cochrane outlined. This epilogue forms a context for the essays in the book, an afterthought that creates a framework to look back at the essays.<br />
<br />
FFF,<br />
~Muninn's KissMuninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0Laramie Laramie41.30512 -105.618971tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-91698580643619127242012-07-01T03:19:00.001-06:002012-07-01T03:19:20.518-06:00Book Review: Mysticism: Initiation and Dream by Andrew D. Chumbley<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhImTIq91j-Q3qDvQWrfJ4Jl5h1pkf9giw2VarSO2kzGAb7ID0sM3QE_3J33vxjBD9nxXlGfh8t17cug2fk4x3O7_sIcvqiDo_UwV3ZFLqAGmynO7QsGmHOtihexKFt7dcfaJBLhw2IHFAt/s1600/photo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhImTIq91j-Q3qDvQWrfJ4Jl5h1pkf9giw2VarSO2kzGAb7ID0sM3QE_3J33vxjBD9nxXlGfh8t17cug2fk4x3O7_sIcvqiDo_UwV3ZFLqAGmynO7QsGmHOtihexKFt7dcfaJBLhw2IHFAt/s320/photo.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Dreams are journeys, explorations of the interior infinite, starry heavens within. Dark mysteries, exquisite and dreadful, await penetration. Going to sleep is a new awakening..." ~Siegel, 1980</blockquote>
<br />
Most of my experience with Chumbley's writing has been his more veiled works, the ritual poetry of Azoetia, and the mystic poetry of Qutub. When I first picked up these volumes, it was gibberish. I read them and read them and got nothing out of them I decided they were fine for Cultus Sabbati but meaningless to those not initiated in the tradition. I put them aside and went to other books. A few years later, with more experience with several streams and more knowledge, I picked them back up, and very little didn't make perfect sense to me. I had just been missing a few Keys the first time around. But, Keys or no Keys, understanding or no understanding, Azoetia and Qutub are completely different beasts from Chumbley's essays that are found in Mysticism: Initiation and Dream.<br />
<br />
For those unfamiliar with Chumbley, he was born in 1967 in England, and only lived to be 37. He was an initiate into a form of Essex and Welsh witchcraft, and was the Magister of Cultus Sabbati, a collection of several traditions that came together for mutual benefit, and was involved in several non-witchcraft traditions. He was pursuing a doctorate in religion focusing on dream incubation rituals at the time of his death. Only a small portion of his writings have been publicly published.<br />
<br />
This book, Mysticism: Initiation and Dream, is a set of some of his undergraduate essays that laid the foundation for his doctorate work, and reveals a fair amount about his practice that can be applied to any esoteric tradition regardless of origin. It is masterfully written, in scholastic language, not in the symbolic and veiled language of Azoetia and Qutub. While some words and terms might be difficult for some readers, the grammar and feel is very accessible to most readers. It was worth the money and the time to read it.<br />
<br />
The book is published by Three Hands Press in the UK, and is the first of three such volumes of Chumbley's essays on the subject(s). I purchased the book through J.D. Holmes, a North American distributer for Three Hands Press. He was a pleasure to order from, communicated personally with me about the order, and was quick to answer my questions. I purchased it for $56.95, plus shipping, which is very reasonable for books by Chumbley, though a bit expensive for a book only 51 pages long. But those 51 pages were packed with far more than you've get from most books five times its length and it was well worth the money.<br />
<br />
The book consists of five essays, the fifth being the conclusion based on the other four. These are, The Universality of the Dream, Preliminary Thoughts and Methodology, Dream Reification, Oneiric Rarefaction, and Conclusion. At the end is a bibliography of cited works, containing a four and a half page list of fifty-four books he cited in the essays. These books are from very diverse sources, in several languages, and about traditions and writings in many parts of the world. They would be a joy to collect and read themselves. This being a scholarly work written in a university setting, the large number of reputable sources isn't much of a surprise, but compared to many occult and witchcraft books, that many sources for 36 pages of text is impressive.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"We all dream; it is a mystery in which all humankind participates. I realize this is an assumption, but it is one that I have no qualms in asserting as fact: the dream is an experiential universal for humanity." ~Andrew D. Chumbley, Mysticism: Initiation and Dream, Pg. 11</blockquote>
<br />
In the first essay, The Universality of the Dream, the Particularity of Interpretation, Chumbley looks at exactly that, that dreams are common to all people, so the mysteries they impart aren't limited to a group or tradition, they are available to all people. He proposes that dreams possess secrets that spawn all religions and traditions. This short essay is an introduction to the subject of the book.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"We might say that the dream tranforms the dreamer; that it possesses the ability to 'initiate', to bestow new meaning, to motivate new beginnings (Latin: initium - beginning), to permit our entrance (literally 'en-trance'; Latin: inire init - to go in) to new orders of relation between ourselves and the 'other'." ~Andrew D. Chumbley, Mysticism: Initiation and Dream, Pg. 13</blockquote>
<br />
In the second essay, Considerations: Preliminary Thoughts and Methodology, Chumbley discusses what mysticism and initiation are, and how they relate to various ancient dream accounts. The essay is basically defining terms and creating a framework for discussion in the later chapters.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"'Dream-books' are collations of dreams and their interpretations. It has been asserted by Peter Lambourn Wilson (in his seminal study of Sufic and Taoist initiatic dreaming entitled 'Shower of Stars", 1996) that 'the dream-book may be the most ancient unbroken continuous literary genre on Earth'. Indeed, Wilson goes on to say that certain dream interpretations are common to interpreters as historically distinct as Artemidorus (second century AD.), Ibn Sirin (33 A.H.), and Marie Laveau (a nineteenth-century New Orleans Voodooist)." ~Andrew D. Chumbley, Mysticism: Initiation and Dream, Pg. 23-24</blockquote>
<br />
In the third essay, Dream-reification: The Initiatic Dream as Author, Symbologist, Composer and Prophet, Chumbley looks at eight dream-books from the last 3000 years several continents and compares and discusses them. Basically, a dream-book is where dreams are recorded, then compared with events following them to find patterns and meanings. The heart of the discussion in my opinion is dream informs belief, practice, and ritual, not the other way around, that religions and traditions are born out of dreams and dream analysis and interpretation.<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"In a sense we might symbolize the process of oneriric spiritualisation as a 'siderealisation' - a translation of the flesh to the stars - back to the domain of the Gudean goddess, back to the domain of the primordial smaragdine book. Such a symbolism seems apt indeed if we consider briefly the role of 'stars' in esoteric dream praxis." ~Andrew D. Chumbley, Mysticism: Initiation and Dream, Pg. 40</blockquote>
<br />
In the fourth essay, Oneiric Rarefaction: The Way of Ascent, Chumbley discusses the use of star meditations, and dream rooms for initiating a common dream or type of dream. He discusses dream-incubation, the process of encouraging those common dreams to form, but within traditions and for the traditionless, dreams as teachers and initiators. Basically, from passive dreaming, letting the dream inform, and the formation of religion, belief, and practice, this chapter discusses active dreaming, what some call lucid dreaming, the tradition or practitioner calling forth the dream.<br />
<br />
In the Conclusion, Chumbley apologizes for the shortcomings in the essays, then summarizes them with a brief discussion of reification (descent, the bringing into existence from a dream), and rarefaction (ascent, the taking of the physical and translating it into dream) as the dual action of the dreamer.<br />
<br />
My summaries above are very brief and don't give any of the meat or conclusions, just a taste of the subject matter. This book is one I'd recommend above most others and is well worth the expense and time. May those needing it be able to obtain a copy. I highly recommend it.<br />
<br />
FFF,<br />
~Muninn's Kiss<br />
<br />Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-22659146374287851562012-06-27T18:04:00.000-06:002012-06-27T18:04:13.870-06:00Tomes of Lore, Grimoires of WisdomOff and on over the last few years, I've posted book reviews and book related posts on various blogs. They have always been mixed in with my other posts, just as my poetry often was. A little over a year ago, I moved my poetry posting to <a href="http://muninnslaughter.grimr.org/">Muninn's Laughter</a>, to have it all in one place. I've now done so with my esoteric book related posts as well. I have imported the posts I have of that nature from both <a href="http://muninnskiss.grimr.org/">Blogger</a> and <a href="http://muninnskiss.livejournal.com/">LiveJournal</a>, and plan to post more reviews and book related posts in the future. The new blog is <a href="http://tomesoflore.grimr.org/">Tomes of Lore, Grimoires of Wisdom</a>.<br />
<br />
For reference, here are my blogs and webpages:<br />
<br />
Across the Abyss (General):<br />
<a href="http://muninnskiss.grimr.org/">http://muninnskiss.grimr.org</a> (Blogger)<br />
<a href="http://muninnskiss.wordpress.com/">http://muninnskiss.wordpress.com</a> (WordPress - Mirror of Blogger)<br />
<a href="http://muninnskiss.livejournal.com/">http://muninnskiss.livejournal.com</a> (LiveJournal - Try to post everything here)<br />
<a href="http://muninnskiss.tumblr.com/">http://muninnskiss.tumblr.com</a> (Tumblr - Miscellaneous)<br />
<a href="http://tradwitch.com/component/option,com_myblog/blogger,muninnskiss/Itemid,38/">http://tradwitch.com/component/option,com_myblog/blogger,muninnskiss/Itemid,38/</a> (Blog on The Traditionalist Witches Companion)<br />
<br />
Muninns's Laughter ( Esoteric Poetry):<br />
<a href="http://muninnslaughter.grimr.org/">http://muninnslaughter.grimr.org</a> (Blogger)<br />
<a href="http://muninnslaughter.wordpress.com/">http://muninnslaughter.wordpress.com</a> (WordPress - Mirror of Blogger)<br />
<a href="http://muninnslaughter.tumblr.com/">http://muninnslaughter.tumblr.com</a> (Tumblr - Mirror of Blogger)<br />
<a href="http://hellopoetry.com/-muninns-kiss/">http://hellopoetry.com/-muninns-kiss/</a> (Hello Poetry - Mirror of Blogger)<br />
<br />
Tomes of Lore, Grimoires of Wisdom (Esoteric Books):<br />
<a href="http://tomesoflore.grimr.org/">http://tomesoflore.grimr.org</a> (Blogger)<br />
<a href="http://grimoiresofwisdom.wordpress.com/">http://grimoiresofwisdom.wordpress.com</a> (WordPress - Mirror of Blogger)<br />
<br />
Social:<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/muninnskiss">http://www.facebook.com/muninnskiss</a> (Facebook)<br />
<a href="http://twitter.com/muninnskiss">http://twitter.com/muninnskiss</a> (Twitter)<br />
<br />
Grimr:<br />
<a href="http://www.grimr.org/">http://www.grimr.org</a> (Homepage)<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/Grimr.org">http://www.facebook.com/Grimr.org</a> (Facebook)<br />
<a href="http://www.despoena.org/">http://www.despoena.org</a> (Home of Arcadian Mysteries)<br />
<br />
FFF,<br />
~Muninn's Kiss<br />
<br />Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-74802069479976619642011-12-16T17:02:00.000-07:002012-06-27T18:16:26.131-06:00Grimr's Grimoire: a Book of Myths from the Spider's Web?<br />I'm contemplating writing a book called Grimr's Grimoire: a Book of Myths from the Spider's Web. If I do, it will contain poetry, lore, myths, praxis, theory, and other things in it. Writing it, I'm not concerned with. I can do that easily, as I have time. My big concern is the cost to get it published and if I could sell enough copies to offset that cost. I figure I need to sell about 500 copies to break even. Here's my tentative list of chapters:<br /><br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1. Introduction<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2. The Prophet and the Mirror<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>3. The Priest and the Bridge<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>4. The Poet and the Cauldron<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>5. The King and the Wasteland<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>6. The Wanderer and the Mask<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>7. The Mistress and the Blade<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>8. The Heidr and the Ten Thousand Things<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>9. The Vordr and the Compass<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>10. The Grimr and the Spider's Web<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>11. The Tvennr and the Eternal Dance<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>12. The Nagara and Everything<br /><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>13. Ex nihilo<br /><div><br /></div><div>FFF,</div><div>~Muninn's Kiss</div><div><br /></div>Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-17858326437550855892011-12-02T04:06:00.000-07:002012-06-27T12:53:37.147-06:00Grimr Reading List<br />The following is an incomplete reading list. I put this together randomly over the last two hours. There is no particular order to it, and it is missing the authors currently. Additionally, to make it a complete list, I would want to provide a summary of each book, my opinion of them, and a link either to a place it is available to read online in the case of older books, or a place to purchase them for the newer books, if either of these exist. Some of these are easily obtained. Others are out of print but not out of copyright and very hard to find, especially at a reasonable price. The first section is a list of books. The second is a list of magazines and periodicals. Anything on either of these list, I recommend or it wouldn't be on here. Some, however, I have not read and/or do not currently have access to. I have included some that are highly recommended by people I respect. I have included some that I know the author and the author's work, and hence know the book listed will be good. I have included some that I haven't finished reading but recommend it based on what I've read so far. I have included fiction and non-fiction, history and myth, religious texts and magic texts, esoteric and exoteric texts. Some people will like some things on this list, others will not, but will like other things. Some of these are based on years of research, some completely intuitive. Some are very intellectual, some are very mystical. Some are very practical, some are purely theoretical. But all are related to my path, my walk, my stream, and I recommend all of them, just not to everyone. Take it for what it is. Your mileage may very.<br /><br /><br /><b>Book List</b><br /><br /><br /><ul><li>The White Goddess</li><li>The Golden Bough</li><li>Tubelo's Green Fire</li><li>Riding Windhorses</li><li>Drawing Down the Spirits: The Traditions and Techniques of Spirit Possession</li><li>Share My Insanity</li><li>Goddess Initiation</li><li>Fifty Years in the Feri Tradition</li><li>Etheric Anatomy</li><li>The White Wand</li><li>Evolutionary Witchcraft</li><li>Kissing the Limitless</li><li>Spiral Dance</li><li>Magic and Witchcraft</li><li>The Zohar</li><li>Practical Chinese Medicine</li><li>The Web That Has No Weaver</li><li>Tao Te Ching</li><li>I Ching</li><li>The Herb Book</li><li>A History of Medieval Christianity: Prophecy and Order</li><li>Religious Dissent in the Middle Ages</li><li>Witchcraft in the Middle Ages</li><li>A History of Witchcraft: Sorcerers, Heretics, Pagans</li><li>Satan: The Early Christian Tradition</li><li>Dissent and Reform in the Early Middle Ages</li><li>Lucifer: The Devil in the Middle Ages</li><li>Mephistopheles: The Devil in the Modern World</li><li>The Prince of Darkness: Evil and the Power of Good of History</li><li>Dissent and Order in the Middle Ages: The Search for Legitimate Authority</li><li>A History of Heaven: The Singing Silence</li><li>Paradise Mislaid</li><li>Inquisition</li><li>I Asked For Wonder</li><li>Plants of Life, Plants of Death</li><li>Primal Myths</li><li>Goddess of the North</li><li>The God of the Witches</li><li>The Elements of the Grail Tradition</li><li>The Jewish Book of Days</li><li>The Kabbalah: The Essential Texts From the Zohar</li><li>The Book of Qualities</li><li>Witches, Werewolves, and Fairies</li><li>Stillness Speaks</li><li>Spirits, Fairies, Leprechauns, and Goblins: An Encyclopedia</li><li>Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy</li><li>The Elements of the Runes</li><li>The Art of War</li><li>Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai</li><li>A Field Guide to Irish Fairies</li><li>The Encyclopaedia of Celtic Myth and Legend: A Definitive Sourcebook of Magic, Vision, and Lore</li><li>The Return of the Dead: Ghosts, Ancestors, and the Transparent Veil of the Pagan Mind</li><li>Magic that Works</li><li>Aradia: Gospel of the Witches</li><li>Roles of the Northern Goddess</li><li>Pillars of Tubal Cain</li><li>Thorns of the Blood Rose</li><li>The Formation Of A Persecuting Society: Power And Deviance In Western Europe, 950-1250</li><li>Sefer Yetzirah: The Book of Creation</li><li>The Origins of European Dissent</li><li>Diodorus Siculus: Library of History</li><li>Lilith's Garden</li><li>Azoetia</li><li>Qutub</li><li>The Roebuck in the Thicket</li><li>The Robert Cochrane Letters</li><li>The Complete Brother Grimm Fairy Tales</li><li>The Book of Fallen Angels</li><li>Masks of Misrule</li><li>The Lesser Key of Solomon</li><li>The Greater Key of Solomon</li><li>Witchcraft: A Tradition Renewed</li><li>History of the Kings of Britain</li><li>Book of Invasions</li><li>Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism</li><li>The Middle Pillar</li><li>Chicken Qabalah</li><li>The DustBunnies/MarchHares Big Damn Handout Volume I</li><li>Black Book of the Yezidi</li><li>Drawing Down the Moon</li><li>The Religion of the Teutons</li><li>The Guide for the Perplexed</li><li>The Book of Lies</li><li>The Book of Thoth</li><li>The Book of the Law</li><li>231 Gates of Initiation</li><li>The Cloud of Unknowing</li><li>Little Flowers of St. Francis</li><li>Miracles and Pilgrims: Popular Beliefs in Medieval England</li><li>Sir Gawain and the Green Knight</li><li>Le Morte D'Arthur</li><li>Living with Contradiction</li><li>The White Hart</li><li>Taleisen</li><li>Merlin</li><li>Arthur</li><li>Pendragon</li><li>Grail</li><li>Avalon: the Return of King Arthur</li><li>The Crystal Cave</li><li>The Hollow Hills</li><li>The Last Enchantment</li><li>The Wicked Day</li><li>The Prince and the Pilgrim</li><li>One Thousand and One Arabian Nights</li><li>Aesop's Fables</li><li>Andersen's Fairy Tales</li><li>The Traveler</li><li>The Dark River</li><li>The Golden City</li><li>Vellum</li><li>Ink</li><li>The Interior Castle</li></ul><br /><br /><br /><b>Magazines and Periodicals</b><br /><br /><br /><ul><li>The Cauldron</li><li>Witch Eye: A Journal of Feri Uprising </li><li>Circle Magazine</li><li>Witch's Almanac</li></ul><div>FFF,</div><div>~Muninn's Kiss</div><div><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div>Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-16584972918117935452011-10-01T20:45:00.000-06:002012-06-27T12:53:37.143-06:00Six New Books, From Inanna to the Grail, From Mongolia to the Modern WorldYesterday, I bought three new books from Night Heron, the local used bookstore, and ordered three from Amazon, which will be here in a couple weeks.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=grimr-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=0062508164" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>Starhawk is the author of the famous book Spiral Dance. She is a Feri initiate who went out and did her own thing. This book, Truth or Dare, is a look at the nature of Power and how to find us in our lives to create change in our lives and communities. It uses the myth of the descent of Inanna, in several different retellings, to present this idea. It uses the descent to show how we need to identify and shed off the things that hold us back.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=grimr-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1852300779" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>This book, Elements of the Grail Tradition by John Matthews, looks at the test, trials, and initiations found in the Arthurian and Grail legends in the pursuit of the Grail, from the most ancient known Celtic legends up through the Middle Ages, to identify what the Grail truly is.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=grimr-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=0062517155" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>This book is by my friend Francesca De Grandis. I've been wanting to get Goddess Initiation since I picked it up in the Tattered Cover down in Denver a year or so ago, before I knew Francesca and didn't notice who the author was. I was very excited to find it here in town. The book is basically a year long lesson plan on how to find your inner goddess and your priesthood.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=grimr-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=0060962526" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>This book, The Book of Qualities by J. Ruth Gendler, is basically a book of personifications of common human qualities. A friend of mine from of mine from high school posted a piece about Beauty from it on Facebook and it really touched me, so I found it and ordered it. It looks amazing.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=grimr-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=0892818085" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>This book is a guide to Mongolian and Siberian shamanism. The author, Sarangerel, is actually trained in Mongolia. She was born in the US but of a Mongol bloodline, and traveled to Mongolia and did the work and study and research to truly know the tradition and the people of her ancestors, then share it with world. This book is her introduction to the tradition, including rituals and techniques. It is one of the major sources for one of the books I'm reading, Calling Down the Spirits.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=technolog0fcb-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1935052535" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table>This is Francesca De Grandis's newest book, just recently released. It looks amazing. It is about finding and realizing your dreams, seeing your own beauty, and finding your freedom. I'm really looking forward to it arriving.<br /><br /><br />FFF,<br />~Muninn's Kiss<br /><br />Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0Laramie, WY, USA41.3113669 -105.591100741.2636589 -105.6700647 41.3590749 -105.5121367tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-45735546629611662032011-09-30T23:12:00.000-06:002012-06-27T12:53:37.155-06:00Ylim: Weaver, Seeress, Mask of the Grimr<br />I first met the Grimr in a book called the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003XRERC4/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=grimr-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399373&creativeASIN=B003XRERC4">White Hart</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=grimr-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B003XRERC4&camp=217145&creative=399373" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> by Nancy Springer. In it, she appears as an old weaver and seeress named Ylim. She captivated my imagination when I read the following passage. The imagery and feel was forever burned into my memory, my imagination, my soul. I have encountered them in many guises since, but never with the power of that first encounter. It will forever be what I think of, what I feel, what I know, when i think of them.<br /><br />FFF,<br />~Muninn's Kiss<br /><br /><br /><a name='more'></a><br /><br /><blockquote>"It will take more than the Stone, also," Bevan mumbled. The plan weighted him with reluctance, though he could not say why. Other problems burdened him, perplexities of mortality and longing and the lady that he and Cuin did not name. "Cuin," he said abruptly at last, "there is one who is ancient even in the memory of my mother's people, and full of wisdom. Let us go to her and see what she has to say to us."<br /><br />"Where?" Cuin asked, startled.<br /><br />"Not far. A few days hence."<br /><br />It was a day's ride from the Wildering Way, and only two days' ride from Caer Eitha; it seemed odd to Cuin that he had never noted the place before. It was only a valley with a cottage and a little stream, a few chickens and a garden plot; but there was a strange radiance about it all. Inside the cottage sat the old woman working at a loom. She was ancient indeed, but there was no infirmity in her movements or her placid glance.<br /><br />"Welcome, Bevan of Eburacon. Welcome, Cuin Kellarth," she greeted them.<br /><br />Cuin glanced inquiringly, and Bevan gave him a rare smile. "It means Cuin of the Steadfast Heart."<br /><br />"So he has been called since Time began," the old woman said matter-of-factly.<br /><br />Bevan sank onto a stool by her side. "What is that web, Ylim?"<br /><br />"I weave the threads of days and dreams," she said. "The days are troubled of late, but the dreams are good. Look."<br /><br />Cuin came closer to see. The cloth glowed with colors that were more alive than dye could make them. It was midnight-blue for the most part, or so Cuin was to remember it, but it was also hues of moonlight and storm clouds, Pit-blackness and the gleam of distant armies. Through it all leaped the form of a great white hart crowned in silver; it seemed to move before the eyes. Cuin blinked; he thought he saw blood on the stag, but then all went to confusion for him. He turned away his head.<br /><br />"What have you seen for us, Ylim?" Bevan asked.<br /><br />"You should be the greatest of the High Kings," the old woman replied, "and Ellid Ciasifhon should be your Queen."<br /><br />Bevan flinched and glanced sidelong at Cuin, who met his eyes with painful reassurance.<br /><br />"But that is a dream, Bevan," Ylim continued gently, "and you know the pattern is ever changing. You do not need me to tell you these things. What troubles you, son of Byve?"<br /><br />Bevan was silent; they all waited for his reply. "Pryce Dacaerin," he burst out at last, to Cuin's surprise. "What of him?"<br /><br />Ylim stared for long moments. "He has not yet resolved the bent of his mind," she said at last. "He is the father of your sweetheart, and for that reason alone he should cleave to you. But he is a proud and ambitious man, and the love of his child does not always constrain him. I believe you must strive to make him your friend, Bevan, but yet you do well to be wary of him."<br /><br />"I have not known Pryce Dacaerin to do dishonor!" Cuin exclaimed.<br /><br />"Nor have I," Bevan soothed him. "And in times to come, likely he shall set my worries all to naught."<br /><br />"Declare yourself from Caer Eitha," the seeress told Bevan, "and scruple not to call on the power of Pryce of the Strongholds and on the saying of the Stone." Ylim shifted her gaze. "But what thought is in you, son of Clarric?"<br /><br />"That Bevan of Eburacon is much man," Cuin told her. "Deep and subtle are his own powers, and mighty is my uncle's power to aid him. But if he is to win his throne, he will need power to dazzle the eyes of men of shallow sight. Above all, it seems to me, he will need a kingly sword."<br /><br />"You are well named, Cuin." The ancient seeress studied them both, gauging their strength. "There is such a sword to be had in Lyrdion," she said presently.<br /><br />"I do not know that place," Bevan said.<br /><br />"I have heard of it," Cuin remarked, "but I do not understand what happened there."<br /><br />"That memory had faded in men when Byve was a boy," Ylim mused. "An age before the High Kings of Eburacon ruled Isle, the Royal House of Lyrdion came to woe. But great was its power before pride overtook it, and great power yet resides in its chiefest treasure: the sword. Hau Ferddas is its name, 'Mighty Protector,' and he who wields it cannot be vanquished by force. Yours is the birthright, Cuin, for you are of that lineage, through your mother's folk."<br /><br />Cuin gaped in astonishment. "Where now is this sword?" Bevan asked.<br /><br />"It lies in the treasure barrow at Lyrdion, along the Western Sea. Dragons guard the place."<br /><br />"Dragons I can deal with," Bevan sighed, "but there is a destiny laid on me that I may not behold the sea."<br /><br />"I know it well, Bevan of Eburacon. Therefore, behold it not! Cuin must get the sword for you."<br /><br />"Is it to be Cuin's lot," Bevan asked ruefully, "ever to give up his birthright for my sake?"<br /><br />"I cannot answer that," Ylim replied, "unless Cuin asks it for himself."<br /><br />"I ask it not," said Cuin quietly. "Great is your gift of love, Cuin Kellarth," the seeress told him, "and great will be your pain in it. May the Mothers comfort and guide you well." But Cuin hung his head in unease at her words.<br /><br />They ate with the ancient woman, and they could never afterward remember what had been that meal. Then they went on their way with the enchantment of deep time upon them and the threads of Ylim's web before their eyes. "Who is she?" Cuin demanded at last. "She is no goddess that I have ever heard of, Bevan. Is she one of the Mothers?"<br /><br />"Nay," he replied dreamily. "The ages wash over her like tides. Before the Mothers brought man to Isle there were the Gods, and before the Gods there were the Old Ones, and before either there was Ylim. She is a part of none of it; she is here still, and no one does her reverence. She weaves."<br /><br />"Then she is the master of us all," Cuin whispered.<br /><br />"Is it the dancer or the piper who is master of the dance, or yet the one who made the tune? But Ylim is one who sits aside. She catches the dance in the web of her loom, but I think—she makes it not."<br /><br />Bevan paused; his dark eyes had grown as deep as distant skies. It was moments before he spoke again.<br /><br />"It may be that there is One in whose sight she is younger than the dawn."</blockquote>Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-56974441742576244712011-08-02T21:17:00.000-06:002012-06-27T12:53:37.160-06:00The Return of the DeadYesterday, I received a new book in the mail. A few years ago, I read a book called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Witches-Werewolves-Fairies-Shapeshifters-Doubles/dp/0892810963?ie=UTF8&tag=widgetsamazon-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Witches, Werewolves, and Fairies: Shapeshifters and Astral Doubles in the Middle Ages</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=widgetsamazon-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0892810963" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /> by Claude Lecouteux. I checked it out of the library and liked it so much that even though I had read the entire book, I bought a copy. This new book is also by him and I am looking forward to reading it.<br /><br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=widgetsamazon-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=1594773181&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Return-Dead-Ghosts-Ancestors-Transparent/dp/1594773181?ie=UTF8&tag=widgetsamazon-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Return of the Dead: Ghosts, Ancestors, and the Transparent Veil of the Pagan Mind</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=widgetsamazon-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1594773181" style="border-bottom-style: none !important; border-color: initial !important; border-left-style: none !important; border-right-style: none !important; border-top-style: none !important; border-width: initial !important; margin-bottom: 0px !important; margin-left: 0px !important; margin-right: 0px !important; margin-top: 0px !important; padding-bottom: 0px !important; padding-left: 0px !important; padding-right: 0px !important; padding-top: 0px !important;" width="1" /> looks like a very interesting book to me. Here's what the Amazon Product Description says:<br /><br /><blockquote>"How the ghost stories of pagan times reveal the seamless union existing between the world of the living and the afterlife<br /><br />• "Demonstrates how Medieval Christianity transformed the more corporeal ghost encountered in pagan cultures with the disembodied form known today<br /><br />• "Explains how the returning dead were once viewed as either troublemakers or guarantors of the social order<br /><br />"The impermeable border the modern world sees existing between the world of the living and the afterlife was not visible to our ancestors. The dead could--and did--cross back and forth at will. The pagan mind had no fear of death, but some of the dead were definitely to be dreaded: those who failed to go peacefully into the afterlife but remained on this side in order to right a wrong that had befallen them personally or to ensure that the law promoted by the ancestors was being respected. But these dead individuals were a far cry from the amorphous ectoplasm that is featured in modern ghost stories. These earlier visitors from beyond the grave--known as revenants--slept, ate, and fought like men, even when, like Klaufi of the Svarfdaela Saga, they carried their heads in their arms.<br /><br />"Revenants were part of the ancestor worship prevalent in the pagan world and still practiced in indigenous cultures such as the Fang and Kota of equatorial Africa, among others. The Church, eager to supplant this familial faith with its own, engineered the transformation of the corporeal revenant into the disembodied ghost of modern times, which could then be easily discounted as a figment of the imagination or the work of the devil. The sanctified grounds of the church cemetery replaced the burial mounds on the family farm, where the ancestors remained as an integral part of the living community. This exile to the formal graveyard, ironically enough, has contributed to the great loss of the sacred that characterizes the modern world."</blockquote>Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-4389478202986388752011-05-14T09:10:00.000-06:002012-06-27T12:53:37.151-06:00Plants and Creation: Two New BooksI just ordered two books from Amazon that should be interesting.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Plants-Life-Death-Frederick-Simoons/dp/0299159043?ie=UTF8&tag=technolog0fcb-20&link_code=bil&camp=213689&creative=392969" imageanchor="1" target="_blank"><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=technolog0fcb-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0299159043&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe></a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=technolog0fcb-20&l=bil&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0299159043" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Plants-Life-Death-Frederick-Simoons/dp/0299159043?ie=UTF8&tag=technolog0fcb-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Plants of Life, Plants of Death</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=technolog0fcb-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0299159043" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /> by Frederick J. Simoons was recommended to me by a friend on one of the Yahoo! lists I'm on. It's basically a social history about plants. Here's what the product description on Amazon says:<br /><blockquote>Pythagoras, the ancient Greek mathematician, did not himself eat fava beans in any form; in fact, he banned his followers from eating them. Cultural geographer Frederick Simoons disputes the contention that Pythagoras established that ban because he recognized the danger of favism, a disease that afflicts genetically-predisposed individuals who consume fava beans. Contradicting more deterministic explanations of history, Simoons argues that ritual considerations led to the Pythagorean ban.<br /><br />In his fascinating and thorough new study, Simoons examines plants associated with ritual purity, fertility, prosperity, and life, on the one hand, or with ritual impurity, sickness, ill fate, and death, on the other. Plants of Life, Plants of Death offers a wealth of detail from not only history, ethnography, religious studies, classics, and folklore, but also from ethnobotany and medicine. Simoons surveys a vast geographical region extending from Europe through the Near East to India and China. He tells the story of India's giant sacred fig trees, the pipal and the banyan, and their changing role in ritual, religion, and as objects of pilgrimage from antiquity to the present day; the history of mandrake and ginseng, "man roots" whose uses from Europe to China have been shaped by the perception that they are human in form; and the story of garlic and onions as impure foods of bad odor in that same broad region.<br /><br />Simoons also identifies and discusses physical characteristics of plants that have contributed to their contrasting ritual roles, and he emphasizes the point that the ritual roles of plants are also shaped by basic human concerns-desire for good health and prosperity, hopes for fertility and offspring, fear of violence, evil and death-that were as important in antiquity as they are today.</blockquote><br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=technolog0fcb-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0060675012&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Primal-Myths-Creation-Around-World/dp/0060675012?ie=UTF8&tag=technolog0fcb-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">Primal Myths: Creation Myths Around the World</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=technolog0fcb-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0060675012" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; padding: 0px !important;" width="1" /> by Barbara C. Sprout is a collection of creation myths from cultures and religions in every part of the world. The myth I'm most interested in is the Mongolian myth about a Lama coming down from heaven and stirring the waters to bring about the world. There's a brief summary of it on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mythology_of_the_Turkic_and_Mongolian_peoples">Wikipedia</a> and I wanted to read more. I think it would be interesting to write a post relating it and the Cauldron in Robert Cochrane's writings. The other myths sound interesting as well.<br /><br />FFF,<br />~Muninn's KissMuninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0Laramie, WY, USA41.3113669 -105.5911006999999741.2820264 -105.67576019999997 41.340707400000007 -105.50644119999997tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-10750492176221430122010-07-26T04:24:00.000-06:002012-06-27T18:16:26.112-06:00Book Review - Fifty Years in the Feri Tradition...Last week I read Fifty Years in the Feri Tradition by Cora Anderson. It contain both more and less information than I expected. It covered some subjects that I was surprised it covered, and left out some things that I thought would be there. It was very well written, and I recommend it to anyone interested in Feri Witchcraft. It's now available on the Kindle (that's how I read it). I found the part about fairy creatures very interesting, and the part about the spheres. Some of the book was the same material in Etheric Anatomy: The Three Selves and Astral Travel, but most of it was new to me. Overall, the book gave me a better perspective on the Feri Tradition, explaining some things that I didn't understand or didn't know. Her rants were amusing. She writes in a very down to earth manner that's easy to connect to. You can almost hear her speaking through her writing. I greatly enjoyed the book.<br/><br/>FFF,<br/>~Muninn's KissMuninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-10215708724604338152010-07-01T10:58:00.000-06:002012-06-27T18:16:26.108-06:00Book Reviews - Evolutionary Witchcraft, Kissing the Limitless, the
Chicken Qabalah...A while ago, I finished reading both Evolutionary Witchcraft and Kissing the Limitless by T. Thorne Coyle. Until recently Thorn taught Feri Witchcraft.<br/><br/>Evolutionary Witchcraft is basically a primer on Feri Witchcraft with a bunch of things specific to Thorne thrown in. None of the material was new to me (except the parts specific to Thorn), but it gave me a new perspective, because Thorne comes at the Feri material from a different angle than the other sources and teachers I've had interaction with. The book is well written and would be a good book for anyone interested in Feri but not having access to a Teacher. It is written to let the solo practitioner have access to the non-initiarary Feri teachings.<br/><br/>Kissing the Limitless is more of a guide to mysticism (primarily pagan mysticism) in general. Thorne makes an effort to make the book accessible to people of many traditions, though much of it is coloured by a Feri perspective (I don't consider this a bad thing). Though it needs better editing, this book is also well written. I enjoyed it more than Evolutionary Witchcraft, mostly because it was more imagery and lore than a howto. It has three sections, represented by the Star Goddess, the Divine Twins, and the Peacock God, thesis, antithesis, and synthesis. The first section talks about the Nothingness of the creator, the Great Zero, and coming to know this Limitless. The second section talks about the duality of the Divine Twins, and the duality in our lives. The third section talks about the Twins coming back together to form the Peacock God, creature of Self and Beauty, and about us bringing our dualities back into oneness within us. It was a great book.<br/><br/>Yesterday, I finished reading the Chicken Qabalah by Lon Milo Duquette. It is a good summary of Qabalah (Kabbalah) from a Ceremonial Magic and pagan point of view. It covers the basics, but leaves out a lot of things that I find important. I'll name a few, and some personal preferences of mine. The talk of the souls leaves out the Yechidah (this lack is mentioned in the introduction), which is the highest part of the soul, the Divine Spark, the piece of the Divine within us, the upper part of the Yod (he includes the Chiah and relates it to the whole of the Yod instead of the lower part of the Yod). I rather like the discussion of the Yechidah. :-) In the discussion of the Sepher Yetzirah, I thought he simplified it a little too much. I liked the Ten Command-Rants. In the discussion of the Hebrew alphabet (Aleph-Beth) he used the Western layout of the Hebrew letters on the Tree (of course! This is from a Ceremonial Magic point of view, and they use that layout.); I prefer the Hebrew layout. I like having the three Mothers be the three horizontal paths, laid out so fire is at the top, the air, then water. I like Heh being the first path, connecting Kether and Cohkmah, breath from breath, and Vev (And) connecting Kether to Binah, creating the duality with the And. I like Daleth and Gimel, the poor man and the rich man chasing after the poor man to give to him, being opposite one another. Over all, it was a good book and worth the read. There were some very humorous parts, and some very enlightening parts. I'm glad I read it.<br/><br/>FFF,<br/>~Muninn's KissMuninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-22636395553950797412009-07-15T14:00:00.000-06:002012-06-27T17:17:08.725-06:00The DustBunnies/MarchHares Big Damn Handout Volume I, Third Revision...
(Feri Book)This is a book of handouts about the Feri Tradition. It's in its third revision. I read most of the second revision back a while back and was improved. It contains a lot more information. It had some parts that I couldn't relate to, especially the parts about Hestia, but over all, it's a useful book for anyone interested in Feri.<br/><br/><a href="http://www.lulu.com/content/hardcover-book/the-dustbunnies-big-damn-handout-book/3023755%22">http://www.lulu.com/content/hardcover-book/the-dustbunnies-big-damn-handout-book/3023755</a><br/><br/>FFF<br/>~Muninn's KissMuninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-5071584454356439512009-05-29T14:39:00.000-06:002012-06-27T17:17:08.727-06:00Etheric Anatomy...I just finished reading Etheric Anatomy: the Three Selves and Astral Travel by Victor and Cora Anderson. Victor and Cora were the founders of Feri Witchcraft. It's a very good book, if a little strange. I'm glad I read it.<br/><br/>The first section is Victor's description of the three souls. The second section is Cora's description of the three souls, the Ha Prayer and Kala, and of out-of-body experiences. The final section is Victor's description of Astral sex. That is the strange part.<br/><br/>The book gives the most detailed description of the three souls that I've ever read, whether in Feri or in Kabbalah. It's a great description and one everyone should read.<br/><br/>FFF<br/>~Muninn's KissMuninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-74283360750481399172008-07-14T01:34:00.000-06:002012-06-27T17:17:08.729-06:00The Jewish Book of Days...This weekend, I bought a book called "The Jewish Book of Days" by Jill Hammer. It sets up a wheel of the year based on how she sees the Jewish year and uses the metaphor of a growing tree, giving evidence and explanations on why, and provides a Midrash for each day. I think I like it.<br/><br/>~Muninn's KissMuninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3203793076017549951.post-78061612398792999602008-06-24T01:53:00.000-06:002012-06-27T17:17:08.730-06:00Books Sean had Joe Wilson Read...<a href="http://www.cyberwitch.com/1734/sean.htm">Flags, Flax, and Fodder</a>:<blockquote><br/>The White Goddess by Robert Graves<br/>The Golden Bough by Sir James George Frazier<br/>The Witch Cult in Western Europe by Margaret Murray<br/>The Magic Arts in Celtic Britain by Lewis Spence+<br/>Gypsy Sorcery and Fortune Telling by Charles Godfrey Leland<br/>Etruscan Magic and Occult Remedies by Charles Godfrey Leland<br/>Amulets and Talismans by Wallis Budge<br/>A Treasurey of Witchcraft by Harry E Wedeck<br/>The Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses<br/>The Eight Ninth and Tenth Books of Moses<br/>Albertus Magnus' Egyptian Secrets<br/>Legends of Incense, Herbs & Oil Magic by Lewis de Claremont<br/>The 7 Keys to Power by Lewis de Claremont<br/>7 Steps to Power by Lewis de Claremont<br/>The Magic of Herbs by Henri Gamache<br/>The Master Book of Candle Burning by Henri Gamache<br/>Pow-Wows or The Long Lost Friend by John George Hohman</blockquote>Muninn's Kisshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12950767190932974289noreply@blogger.com0