How to B the next letter in the alphabet

So after A were gonna have B........naturally haha. I was thinking about the letters in the alphabet and what each one would be about, actually forgot to think about B. I was far too concerned with the hard ones like Q and X haha. But anyway here it is, the second letter of the A-Z pagan journey. 

B is for Blessings.

In Druidry we mention it a fair bit and the same in Wicca too. Blessings are a big part of performing Magick. During a circle casting we bless and cleanse the area we are in, we ask for the gods to bless us during our rite's and we bestowed blessings on others in the form of charms spells or kind gestures. 

Blessings, I think are really important to a magickal practice as it gives you the chance to receive and give what I think of as a magickal gift or dose of good luck hahaha. 

Probably the most common and frequent blessings used are those involved in creating sacred space, for me at least the act of creating sacred space is great fun and full of Magick. The very best bit for me being when the circle is blessed with the elements of fire and or water. This is the act of giving the space you have created the relevant reverence to be sacred on this occasion (also done when asking for the blessings of the divine to watch over that sacred space). It is such a simple gesture that has such a big effect on the space it is enacted in and really speaks to emphasise the fact that you are creating something magickal within and out of the world of the mundane. 

Besides using a blessing on space you can ask for them from sources of Magick or divinity, you hear of people being blessed all the time and we even do it without thinking (the response to a sneeze comes to mind haha). But simply asking for a blessing can be enough to turn what seems like a very uncontrollable day in to one that becomes easier to manage. When we ask the gods to bestow us with blessings we are asking for help from a source of power, Magick, divinity or whatever you like to aid us in our struggles. It never hurts to ask right??

In my magickal practice I have also given blessings to people. For example, In a handfasting you are the mediator between the couple and the divine and acting as the high priest you bestow a blessing upon the couple with the aid of the gods, in order that their union may be one that is happy and peaceful. With the addition of the gods, some gestures and some words. A simple act of well wishing is given power to remain a reminding force of good in a couples life. A force that is remembered so as to aid with fights and keep the couple true to the meaning of the event where they were blessed.

Blessings can be simple acts or they can elaborate rituals that stay with you for a lifetime but at the end of the day a blessing to me is the truest form of Magick as it needs no jewels or fancy props to be performed. It is a simple act of lasting love that stays with a person or place for as long as it is needed.

A-Z A pagan journey.

It has been a long time since my last post and I have missed writing on here. It's been a long time because, well, I have been busy haha. 

Lots going on and little time to sit and think. But today I got the chance and while I was thinking I noticed something online that caught my eye, so here it is. 

MY PAGAN A-Z. :D

So the first letter is A obviously and of course the first word that comes to mind with me concerning the craft is the word Altar.

An altar is a place set aside for worship, somewhere that you decide to make sacred while you work on prayer, worship, spells or simple meditation. It is a place of your choosing or somewhere that is selected for the reason of spiritual expression. 

I love Altars and have 3 in my room :D, one to Apollo another to Aphrodite and a third one is for Magick of any kind. They are pretty much just places to put things. Apollo's altar is on a shelf Aphrodite's is on top of a piece of furniture and my Magick altar is on top of my chest of drawers haha. Nothing special to anyone else but to me they are focus points for worship, prayer and spells. 

When I do Magick I go to an altar that I have set up in my room, but what about when I am in a hotel for the night or if I am out in the woods, then what? The best thing about altars is that they can be anywhere and made of anything. I have made an altar out of a tree stump, stone and pine cone before.

All I needed was a focus for my Magick and the altar that I made was just perfect for that. When creating an altar I have always tried to think of a couple of things. How do I feel when I place my hands on it? Do I feel connected to my self and the Magick around me and am I picking fault with how I have arranged things. In other words Do I need all this stuff? Does it serve a purpose?

At the end of the day altars are anywhere you want them to be and if you need one it can be everywhere you find yourself. Be open to the world and just look for a place that suits you and your magickal needs and above all, keep it as simple as you need it to be.

One last thing I will say about making an altar is don't be worried about shifting it all round from time to time and try something different, some of us try and use seasonal colours to match the festivals but it's all up to you. Just have fun with your little place of Magick. The more you use it the more power it will generate. 

Have fun people and blessed be :D

Yule.....to understand each other we must share.

I am still dealing with an interfaith issue with my family and have come to a point where my beliefs are being pitted against another's. I'm kinda proud that I haven't retaliated the way I would like too hahaha but still, life is always a work in progress aye.

Any who this is my video about how I am feeling about it and how it is making me evaluate how it means to me to celebrate Alban Arthuan (Yule) I am so proud to be me and part of this tribe.

Blessed Be guys

Kai

I am me and who are you??

Just to clarify some thing and make a point I think. We need to be compassionate and let love transcend ignorance. I have done loads of magick lately, I have been working on doing my Druid training since I came back from Glastonbury and then after spending a few days in the real world haha. I got drained from all the mundane an bit and now it has left me reeling so to speak. Anyway here is video about how my embracing my faith to regain my strength has been labelled as wrong.

Hope you like guys :D

PS sorry for the rustling haha I must remember not to move the screen while I am recording haha

The mash up

After an adventure I wanted to talk to you guys. :D

I have been to Glastonbury for a meeting of the Order of Bards Ovates and Druids. They all made me feel so welcome and although I didn't agree with some of the things said and at times the information went a bit over my head, the points to the talks didn't. We need to embrace what we have around us, our lives or our hearts and we need to love it.

I hope you understood what I was meant to say haha. I did kinda deviate a bit before I actually made my point. I hope that with the experience I get from doing these videos I can actually get in to talking about some good ole magickal practise with you guys.

Lots of love always
Kai (Clinton)

Expanding the dirt.

Expanding on what I have said in my past post about cleansing.

There ya go guys enjoy xxx

What do we do when were drity??

I was with my beautiful man for the weekend and we had the most amazing time together. We did lots of things and spent a lot of time talking to each other while we lay in each others arms. The both of us dealt with some big issues that we hadn't resolved all together (me mostly).  Before he left mine, after dropping me off at my house with all my things. We decided, to make our letting go of the old final, that we would do a smudging ceremony so that we could begin a new. Our first little bit of magic together.

It was lovely and I really felt a change in how I was now. However it led me to thinking about how often I really cleanse and what I am actually cleansing. Do we actually do it properly? Do we clean behind our magickal ears? Personally I don't think we do a very good job at the moment, I know I don't. Last night led me to think about all the magick I do on a daily basis and then all the magick I know that other people do. As a rule I don't do magick on others unless it's asked for but I know that there are people out there that do (not a bad thing, just not my cup of tea).

So what about all that magick? It's starting to sound a bit like were being smothered and after thinking long and hard I was like " Ahhhhhhhh I'm drowning in other peoples magick.". Well that's what it felt like at the time haha. All those protection spells, grounding spells, happiness spells, prayers, chants and incantations being fired at us by us and by other people are all going to mount up and cover us from head to toe. The thing is about most of this stuff is that unless you tell it to stop it probably wont.

This was where my thoughts took a eureka moment so to speak. I thought:
"Ok then If all this magick is still happening and I'm under all this mess of magick and protection and whatever. Then I need to lift the crust that is hovering over my head and see the world as it is without the rose tinted magickal blanket."
"I need to get rid of the protection that isn't protecting me from anything any more and the prayers that are out of date, the love that has moved from my life and the healing that has healed my wounds. I need to be clean and start again."

Just because I like this picture :P

So here is the idea.................
1.Cast my circle of protection so that when all the mess is gone I am still safe and sound.
2. I need to speak to my gods and goddesses.
Finally. I will cast a protection spell to seal in the me that is free from tampering and free to express its self to the world.
This I hope is going to get rid of the bog that is surrounding me, not just the magick but all the rest of it too. With the out of date magick gone then maybe those things that they are protecting me from will be forgotten and forgiven for good this time and not just until I get a reminder. When all the mist has cleared and I can see again I will be able to find my weaknesses and make them stronger instead of just covering them up with spells or prayers. I can take Apollo and Aphrodite in to my heart and move forward with them beside me, instead of at arms length.

I cant wait to get clean so that I can start having adventures and begin to get dirty again haha.