Month: February 2018

Whispers in the Depths of Home (September 2017)

 

“Atavistic resurgence, a primal urge toward union with the Divine by returning to the common source of all, is indicated by the backward symbolism peculiar to all Sabbatic ceremonies, as also of many ideas connected with witchcraft, sorcery and magic. Whether it be the symbol of the Moon presiding over nocturnal ecstasies; the words of power chanted backwards; the back-to-back dance performed in opposition to the Sun’s course; the devil’s tail – all are instances of reversal and symbolic of Will and Desire turning within and down to subconscious regions, to the remote past, there to surprise the required atavism or energy for purposes of transformation, healing, initiation, construction or destruction. This is the inner meaning of symbolic reversal, of depth instead of height, of the left (subconsciousness), instead of the right (empirical or waking consciousness), of female instead of male, lunar instead of solar. The cat, as a denizen of night, and associated with the Moon, became a type which – in medieval times – was confused with the actual animal itself. Likewise the vampire bat, because of its highly specialized mechanism for absorbing blood, and its obvious affinity with the night, became an important type in the Sabbatic mysteries. But the priests of ancient times, in Egypt and elsewhere, did not wear animal masks because they were pretending to be these animals, or because they were playing some ludicrous charade that some later epoch could deride and denigrate; they assumed thereby the powers which these beasts concentrated within themselves and which their outer forms merely betrayed, for all form bears direct relation to the energy which it limits and defines.”
-Kenneth Grant

 

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Algiz Rune by GAR

 

Odal Rune by GAR

 

Whispers in the Depths (redux) by GAR

 

Exchanges (September 2017)

 

Social media is nuts. People tend to ignore or forget everything they have ever learned about interacting with other people whether it be friends or strangers. Because it is the internet and people can’t see your face, there is a feeling that we can get away with noxious interactions and then we get surprised (and perhaps part of us delights in it) when it blows up in our faces. People will do what they do but this has become somewhat tedious to watch. I also find myself, all too often either being pulled into these conflicts myself or occasionally forgetting these things myself so I post this as a reminder to myself as much as to others. If you want to have productive conversations on FB (and other social media), it tends to work just as it does offline.
On Facebook, someone’s wall would be equivalent to their living room or house. When you friend someone you are inviting them into public conversations that you would have at home. If you blast someone for something they post on their wall, it is the equivalent of sitting in their living room with them and a bunch of either their friends or mutual friends and sharply criticizing what they say. It’s pretty fucking rude! In real life, this would be met by either a bunch of people rushing to defend and there would probably be an ensuing argument or donnybrook or you would be issued a sharp invitation (perhaps forcibly) to leave. If there is a need to call a friend out on something (and this does arise) in the offline world, you would pull them aside or wait until there is some privacy and talk to them. In FB, this could be done in real time using PM. Easy enough to do and at worst you lose one friend rather than marking yourself out as a public douche.
Chat rooms, groups and public forums are a different matter. Those are more like meetings in a lodge or clubhouse. Would you call out a friend in a club you both belong to? You might challenge something they are saying. Most of us (at least the more mature) know the difference between attacking someone’s statements and attacking someone personally. If not there are lots of guides online to logical fallacies (https://thebestschools.org/magazine/15-logical-fallacies-know/ is a good one) and I would suggest checking them out.
Basically, productive communication is productive communication whether it be online or off. I know that some people get off on being trolls and there is even entertainment value there but if you’re going to be that kind of asshole, its better in my opinion to do it intentionally.

 

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Berkano Rune by GAR

 

Gebo Rune by GAR

 

Breaking From the Shell (redux) by GAR

 

Dark Totems and Essence of Spider (September 2017)

 

“Spider venom comes in many forms. It can often take a long while to discover the full effects of the bite. Naturalists have pondered this for years: there are spiders whose bite can cause the place bitten to rot and to die, sometimes more than a year after it was bitten. As to why spiders do this, the answer is simple. It’s because spiders think this is funny, and they don’t want you ever to forget them.”
Neil Gaiman, Anansi Boys
 
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Kennaz Rune by GAR

 

Spider Essence by GAR

 

Dark Totem (redux) by GAR

 

Joy of the Ravens (September 2017)

 

Wow something in the air the last couple of days. I have seen more people in conflict with each other and more molehills being mountanized than ever. I wish this didn’t feel quite so much like an escalation of an ongoing trend but it does. People seem to be in either shitstirring or hyper vigilant attack mode and at least for me its losing its entertainment value.
Here are a few suggestions if you feel yourself getting angry at something another person has said, done or posted:
a) ask yourself does it matter? Does it matter in the moment and will it matter an hour from now? Is this worth annoying myself with? Chances are unless you are really really bored the answer is no.
b) Other good questions. Is anything I say going to fix this? Will my response or showing my annoyance cause any change in the situation? Do I have anything to add? Remember, if what the other person is saying is stupid, you can’t fix stupid. You can enjoy watching it expose itself.
c) Take a pause before you respond. Go for a walk, make some coffee or whatever beverage, just wait. Still feel like responding? Go for it.
This has been a public service announcement. Sans guitars.

 

 
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Dagaz Rune by GAR

 

The Return of the Ravens by GAR

 

Wunjo Rune by GAR

 

Chaos and Order (September 2017)

 

By Year, by Day, and by each Moment:
The Abyss Cross’d, the Pathway stray’d.
Each Sacrifice doth mark the Road,
Each Slough: Old Flesh from New Flesh —flay’d!
Great Instants mark this Lightning-birth,
And far beyond both Womb and Grave —
From Dead Stars wast Mine Image made.
— Andrew D. Chumbley

 

 
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Porthole View Onto a New Universe (redux) by GAR

 

Notes From the Laboratory by GAR

 

The Mind Seeks to Make Sense Out of Chaos (redux) by GAR

 

Dancing and Dreaming Through the Labyrinth (September 2017)

 

We have not even to risk the adventure alone
for the heroes of all time have gone before us.
The labyrinth is thoroughly known …
we have only to follow the thread of the hero path.
And where we had thought to find an abomination
we shall find a God.

And where we had thought to slay another
we shall slay ourselves.
Where we had thought to travel outwards
we shall come to the center of our own existence.
And where we had thought to be alone
we shall be with all the world.”
― Joseph Campbell

 
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Finding a New Labyrinth (redux) by GAR

 

Shamanic Dream by GAR

 

And Kali Danced Through the Storm by GAR

 

Portals to Self-Knowledge (September 2017)

 

Every person’s life is a journey toward himself, the attempt at a journey, the intimation of a path. No person has ever been completely himself; but each one strives to become so, some gropingly, others more lucidly, according to his abilities. Each one carries with him to the end traces of his birth, the slime and eggshells of a primordial world. Many a one never becomes a human being, but remains a frog, lizard, or ant. Many a one is a human being above and a fish below. But each one is a gamble of Nature, a hopeful attempt at forming a human being. We all come out of the same abyss; but each of us, a trial throw of the dice from the depths, strives toward his own goal. We can understand one another, but each of us can only interpret himself.
— Hermann Hesse
 
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Guide to Self Knowledge by GAR

 

A Portal in the Living Forest by GAR

 

Arachne at the Centre (Redux) by GAR