Sometimes the universe can be funny in how one subject will suddenly seem to come up everywhere. Within the past week several incidents have occurred that have had me reflecting on the nature of owning information; what should belong to everyone, for free, to be shared(…)
Author Archives: Lairbhan
New Moon Prayer 2
The new moon was actually last week, but this seems like a good way to start the new (secular) year out. This is my own personal practice whenever I see the new moon for the first time each month, something I have doen for a long time, although the prayer changes; sometimes it(…)
New year’s eve; looking back
So it’s new year’s eve and as usual I find myself reflecting on the past year. Every year offers it’s own challenges and lessons but this year has seemed unusually hard in many ways with it’s over-riding theme of transition. I lost several friendships, one of which was(…)
Mistletoe and the Druids
One of the most well known plants associated with the Druids is the Mistletoe (Viscum Album), yet what do we really know about this plant and it’s connection to the Celts and their priests?
Well, the main source of our knowledge connecting the two is Pliny the Elder(…)
Yule rolls on…
So this past Monday, December 26th, was my kindred’s 5 year anniversary. It amazes me that so much time has gone by and that somehow Stormlight is still kicking around, when it seems like many groups don’t last. Certainly none of the other real world groups I have been(…)
New Year’s incense
I was at a public Yule ritual last night which was a lot of fun. One of my contributions was an incense blend desinged for cleansing, based on traditional ideas related to this time of year. It worked out pretty well so I decided to share the recipe here.
In a mortar(…)
The Lebor Feasa Runda Should Go Through a Woodchipper: a book review
Too often we simply avoid bad books without ever knowing why they are bad and to be avoided, but relying on friend’s opinions or word of mouth reviews. I have read other reviews of this book, Akins’ Lebor Feasa Runda, which took a highly scholastic approach and were very valuable, but I think that by arguing semantics of language and nuances of source material many readers may get lost in the details. So here I offer my simplified book review, an Idiot’s Guide to Why This Book is Awful, if you will.
My Gaelic Heathen Yule
So Yule is fast approaching, and this Yule will represent my first attempt at incorporating some Celtic elements and traditions into what has so far been a Germanic and Norse festival period for me. Prior to becoming heathen in 2006 I didn’t celebrate the winter(…)
Faerie Lore – Brownies
Brownies, also called Bwcas <pronounced “Boo-kuhs”>, Bodachs, or Fendorees, and, in specific cases malicious Bogarts. Brownies are native to the British Isles and most stories of them will be found in Ireland, Wales, England, and Scotland. They(…)
Nine Virtues
In heathenry you will hear people talk about the 9 noble virtues (often abbreviated to NNV), a modern list of positive character traits devised by the Odinic Rite in the 70’s based on ideas from Norse mythology. Some of these 9 are more historically accurate than others,(…)