Spirituality

Q: What do you believe?
A: I personally practice a spiritual craft that respects the energies of the world around me, the ancestors before me, all the Gods & Goddesses and the spirits that exist in all worlds. I engage in regular inter-relations with specific entities, spirits, ancestors, Gods, Goddesses and forces within nature and the cosmos.

Further, I believe that everyone’s spiritual path that makes them feel connected to the divine is right for them, no matter how dogmatic / mainstream or how outrageous / random. Also, no-one has any right to enforce their spiritual path upon anyone else who is not interested in learning or practicing it.

Q: So if I get close to you, you would not expect me to learn or follow what you believe?
A: No, certainly not. Everyone is entitled to their own spiritual path, I would never attempt to enforce mine upon anyone I knew, lover, family or acquaintance.

Q: Wait? So are you a Witch / Pagan / NeoPagan?
A: I often self describe as Witch for I do practice Witchcraft, as well as Pagan (or more properly NeoPagan) as I practice NeoPagan traditions. Read on to better understand what these terms do and do not mean.

Q: Are you Wiccan?
A: No.

Q: But don’t you have to be Wiccan to be a Witch / practice Witchcraft?
A: No. Wicca is a specific set of theories and religious practices, whereas the term Witch is used by many who are not Wiccan. Witchcraft is merely a larger set of beliefs and practices.

Q: Isn’t Wicca ancient?
A: Wicca was created in the 1940s / 1950s and was not, in any way, based off any ancient traditions or covens that survived the “burning times.”

Q: What is Witchcraft?
A: This term is widely controversial so I will say what I personally believe. Witchcraft is a set of practices, thoughts and theories for looking at the world. It’s a paradigm for interacting with nature, the land, spirits, and specific tools.

Q: What is Traditional Witchcraft / Traditional Craft?
A: A particular set of practices from pre-christian europe. I currently am interested, but not initiated, into traditional craft. Traditional Craft is not, in any way, Wicca.

Q: Are you a Satanist?
A: No. Nor do I worship Satan in any way.

Q: Do you believe in Jesus?
A: Absolutely, however, I do not worship him as I do not feel a personal tie to either him nor the faith that he is worshiped through.

Q: Do you sacrifice babies / animals?
A: Dear me, No! I respect the energies and spirits of all beings and believe that any offerings I make to my personal spirits that I may work with can be done using plants, foods, or energy. Sacrificing of animals / babies is not part of my personal practice

Q: What Gods / Goddess / Spirits do you work with?
A: I personally feel a strong tie to: Hekate (Greek) – Goddess of Crossroads, she helps guide lost souls into the next world when they pass; StarGod (Pawnee) – a God of Healing that brought the energies of the Star Bundle to the people of the Planes and taught them to Heal one another; Ma’at (Egyptian) – a Goddess of Balance, holding the scales at the end of the Underworld, she makes sure a soul is pure and truthful in order for it’s existence to continue on within the afterlife. I also have worked with Eris (Greek) – Goddess of Humor from Chaos and teaching us to have fun with ourselves spiritually; Dionysus (Greek) – God of ecstasy and lust (not Bacchus); and Arawn (Welsh) – God and Lord of the Underworld, hard to please but a loyal friend once proven worthy; the Fates (cross-cultural) – they are the 3 Goddesses who rule even the fate of the other Gods, controlling Birth, Life and Death of all things. I also have a strong kinship with Dragons, as well as a fellowship with the Fae Folk & the Sidhe.

Q: What are the Fae Folk / Sidhe?
A: The Fae Folk / Sidhe are the “fairies” of ancient myths. Not the tiny flittering things with wings (diminutive fae), but rather the spirits of nature and the land.

Q: What is Magick?
A: In the broadest sense, Magick (for me) is defined as imposing your will upon the universe. This can be as simple, however, as turning a channel on the TV. The term is often used with a “k” to denote it from Stage Magic (rabbits in hats, that sort of thing). Magick usually is then distilled to mean acts with involve esoteric practice such as spell work, contact with deities, ancestors, prayer, trance states, dancing,

Q: But isn’t Magick dangerous?
A: Yes, it is. However, so is having sex, eating, and driving to work. In our lives we take risks and push boundaries doing everything from just stepping out the door. How dangerous you live your life is up to you, and how safe you live it is also.

I practice magick which could be dangerous at times, but like anything else dangerous, I take proper precautions and always have multiple safety measures in place to make sure it’s always is, and always remains, a non-issue.

Q: Isn’t magick evil?
A: To some people being Gay is evil, to others, eating fish on Friday is Evil. There is no big-giant-rule-book saying what truly is Evil over anything else. Personally I say you should judge your world for yourself, not based on what anyone or anything tells you, and then create your own morals and dogma to follow.

I personally practice a craft that honors nature, empowers my personal life, helps me banish the hindrances within and around of myself, respects and protects my family, and honors those who honor me.

Q: Doesn’t this whole Magick / Pagan thing involve ritual orgies!?
A: Some people do indeed choose to incorporate sexual practices into their spiritual life, including participating in ritual orgies. However, said orgies are amazingly infrequent event within the Pagan Community.

While I am not opposed to the idea of using sexual energy in my craft, I would never do it with a partner who was not informed before hand, and completely comfortable & open to the idea. I would never take advantage of a sexual partner in any manner, including the aforementioned.

Q: Will you cast a spell for me?
A: Highly unlikely, though I may help teach you how to do it yourself

Q: What types of Magick do you practice?
A: I personally use a wide array of practices in my spiritual path. I utilize everything from shamanic / ecstatic techniques, totemic / shapeshifting work, ancestor work, ceremonial magicks, hoodoo, chaos magicks, kabalah, reiki / energy healing, divination & herbalism.

Q: Shamanic Techniques? So, are you a Shaman?
A: By my definition, no. I believe a Shaman is someone who is taught by a specific tribe and linage (ie: Lakota Shaman or Maori Shaman). However, I do utilize ecstatic / shamanic techniques and follow a shamanic path. Many techniques I utilize are from the African, Pawnee and Lakota people.

Q: What is Shamanism / Shamanic Path / Ecstatic Techniques?
A: Shamanic techniques (aka ecstatic techniques) are techniques that are often used to bring about trance states to enact your will upon the universe. Further, they are often not bound by the laws of stricter religious dogma like Ceremonial Magick.

Q: What is Totemic / Shapeshifting?
A: A person’s totem is their personal spiritual animalistic self – this is one life-long pre-destined non-fantastical earth based animal. Often Totem is used in place of Spirit Ally / Guide (to which someone could have many). Connecting and learning about your totem can provide great insight into your personal behaviors, and potential gifts to nurture and pitfalls to avoid.

Shapeshifting is a shamanic / ecstatic practice where a person alters their spiritual, emotional, etheric and (eventually) physical self temporally to take on the energies, powers, and abilities of

Q: What do you do with your Ancestors?
A: I honor and respect them by acknowledging them and their position in the universe as well as sending them energy and love through offerings, food, water, songs, and talking. In return they often will voluntarily help me in my personal life with the matters at hand such as finding a job or learning to bake a cake.

Q: What is Ceremonial Magick?
A: Ceremonial Magick is merely a set of specific set formula for enacting your will upon the universe.

Q: What is Hoodoo?
A: The beliefs and customs of Folk Magick brought to America by African slaves mingled here with the beliefs, customs, and botanical knowledge of Native Americans and with the Christian, Jewish, and pagan folklore of European immigrants. The result was hoodoo. Hoodoo is merely a set of folk traditions to engage in magickal practices – and does not have any specific dogma or theology (so it can be adapted to fit into almost any religious system). Most Hoodoo practitioners are Christian.

Hoodoo is not Voodoo (which is a religion), and has no relation.

Q: What is Chaos Magick?
A: Chaos Magick is often misconstrued as “chaotic” or “dark” or “evil” – it being neither of these things. Chaos Magick is a set of theory that recommends you take risks and try new things in one’s magickal practice! Chaos magic utilizes paradigm shifting and inhibitory or excitatory states of consciousness, called “gnosis,” not limited to but including meditation, chanting, spinning, dancing, etc. It’s an invigorating set of magicks that holds the core tenants that there are no rules and that anything is possible if it works for you.

Q: What is the Kabalah?
A: The Kabalah (or Quabalah, Qabalah, Kabala, Kabbalah, etc) is a form of Jewish mysticism that is a paradigm for looking at the Universe, largely through the concept of the Tree of Life – a model for the Universe based on 10 spheres of emanation from divine whole to material existence.

Q: What is Reiki / Energy Healing?
A: Reiki is a specific from of Energy Healing from Japan. Energy Healing is found in multiple cultures across the world as is a way of healing the body, mind, emotions and spirits through powers such as laying-on-of-hands and light-work.

Q: What is Divination?
A: Divination is the act of predicting the future via the use of outside information usually gathered from tools such as a crystal ball, tarot cards, scrying mirror, bones, stones, or other such items.

Q: What Divination tools do you utilize?
A: I utilize everything from scrying mirrors, to the tarot, a bone oracle, a egyptian tile oracle, and simple nature gazing.

Q: Will you read my future?
A: Perhaps.

Q: What is herbalism?
A: Herbalism in my spiritual practice involves working with the energies and physical forms of specific herbs to make incense, oils, and brews in order to empower magickal techniques.

Q: Can you show off / make stuff disappear / make stuff explode?
A: Don’t I WISH?! Most Pagans I know also wish they could! Sadly, Paganism and Witchcraft is not like on Charmed or Buffy – which is made exciting for Hollywood. So, short answer, no.

Q: What about cursing / hexing?
A: While you might often hear me joke about such things, these are very very serious magickal practices to me that I would never ever employ lightly. Further, I would only employ them after all other means of solution were void to assistance of the cause. The likely use of these would be the protection of either myself or another that I loved and cared for deeply. These would not be acts I would perform upon random strangers or people of little importance to my / my family’s existence.

Q: Will you curse someone for me?
A: Highly unlikely.

Q: Are you an ordained minister?
A: Yes, through the Universal Life Church – this helps me to perform marriages, and other ceremonies, in various states, if necessary.