603

{file "Divination (RMPJ)" "bos137.htm"}

DIVINATION
This seems like a fairly good time of year to be
talking
about divination. What is it, why do we do it, and what's
in it
for us? Lots of people think it's a way of avoiding
responsibility - if the future is preordained, we might as
well
go back to bed.
Of course, that's not it at all. Divination is
the use of
any one of several methods to obtain information which is
not
directly accessible to the conscious mind of the person
asking
the question. Whether you use cards, crystals, a
pendulum, ink,
lead, dice, the flight of birds or anything else, what you
are
really doing is opening your end of a channel to higher
wisdom.
I consider the "actual" source of that wisdom irrelevant
and
immaterial; it could be one's own subconscious, the
collective
unconscious, the Gods' will, telepathic insight, or a big
computer buried in the Balkans. It's still additional
information which is not as tainted by ego and intellect's
limitations as most.
So what do
with any
other information;
develop a
synthesis that can
easiest
way to analyze the
jello)
example:

we do with it?

The same things we do

add it to what we already know and

help us do our decision-making.

The

process is with a concrete (well, maybe

A young man has been between relationships for

some time.
He wants very much to link up with the great love of his
life,
but is not aware of anyone on the horizon. He is putting
himself
in a position to meet new people, presenting himself as
attractively as he can, and generally taking care of
business,
but no results. He has to decide whether to take a workrelated
course at night or not. It will take a lot of time and
there are

not likely to be any women attending. His progressed

horoscope
is neutral. He gets his cards read. They say:
[PAUSE]
1.Nothing at all about love, but a lot about skilled
craftsmanship and satisfaction through work. He decides to relax
and wait
for a better time, takes the course, and is rewarded with
a
modest promotion which enhances his satisfaction with his
job.
2.A lot about increasing social activities, leading to the

start

of a new romance, leading to great happiness and

satisfaction
after some difficulties are resolved. He does not take
the
course, and meets a really nice interesting lady at a
party given
by a friend (which he couldn't have attended had he taken
the
course).

604
3.That he is overlooking sources of emotional
gratification in
his current situation. Given the information, he starts
looking
around and discovers that one of his quieter friends is a
really
thoughtful and insightful person who helps him learn to
know
himself better, and that a young cousin needs a mentor and
this
relationship gives him a lot of pleasure and fulfillment.
He
begins to feel much more ready for a good relationship,
and much
less impatient to have one start.
These examples illustrate the point made above;
divination
provides you with choices, and you take the consequences,
no
matter what the oracles say. Treat them with respect, not
adoration or blind compliance, and may they always show
you the
truth.
Blessed Be,
The Spinster Aunt

605

...from RMPJ 12/86

{file "Divination (Bibliography)" "bos138.htm"}

Divination Bibliography
TAROT
Butler, Bill.
1975).

Dictionary of the Tarot.

Campbell, Joseph and Richard Roberts.

(Vernal
Equinox Press, 1979).
Case, Paul Foster.

The Tarot.

Cavendish, Richard.

Tarot Revelations.

(Maccy Publishing, 1947).

The Tarot.

(Harper & Row, 1975).

Connelly, Eileen.
Tarot Apprentice.
(Newcastle Publishing, 1979).
Crowley, Aleister.
Inc. 1984).

(Schocken Books,

New

Handbook

The Book of Thoth.

for

the

(Samuel Weiser,

TheEgyptian(GoldenDawn)TarotbyTheMaster
Therion.
Douglas, Alfred.
1972).

The Tarot.

Gettings, Fred.
Gray, Eden.
Books, 1970).
Gray, Eden.

(Taplinger Publishing,

The Book of Tarot.

(Triune Books, 1973).

A Complete Guide to the Tarot.

The Tarot Revealed.

Greer, Mary K.
Publishing, 1984).

(Signet Books, 1960).

Tarot for Yourself.

Hargrave, Catherine Perry.

(Dover
Publishing, 1966).
Hutton, Alice.
1983).

Konraad, Sandor.
1985).

(Newcastle

A History of Playing Cards.

The Cards Can't Lie.

Kaplan, Stuart R.
Systems,
1978).

(Bantam

(Hippocrene Books,

The Encyclopedia of Tarot.

Classic Tarot Spreads.

(U.S.Games

(Para Research,

Leland, Charles Godfrey. Gypsy Sorcery and Fortune

Telling.
(University Books, 1962).
*
1980).

Nichols, Sallie.
Good

Jung and Tarot.

(Samuel Weiser Inc.

but lengthy examination of the Jungian aspects of the

Tarot.
Noble, Vicki.

Motherpeace.

(Harper & Row, 1983).

* Pollack, Rachel. Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom. Part

I: The Major
Arcana. (Aquarian Press, 1980). Excellent
explanation of the
Tarot, using the Rider Waite deck. Highly
recommended.
* Pollack, Rachel. Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom. Part
II: The
Minor Arcana and Readings. (Aquarian Press, 1980). Good
explanations of various reading methods and extensions.
Roberts, Richard.
1975).

Tarot and You.

(Morgan and Morgan,

606
* Walker, Barbara G. The Secrets of the Tarot. (Harper &
Row, 1984).
Examination of the origins and symbolism of the
Tarot.
Beautifully done.
* Wang, Robert. The Qabalistic Tarot. (Samuel Weiser,
Inc. 1983).
Good reference for the Golden Dawn system of
Tarot.
THE I CHING
Chu, W.K. and W.E. Sherril.
(Routledge
& Kegan Paul, 1976.)
Chu, W.K. and W.E.
(Routledge &
Kegan Paul, 1977.)
Legge, James.
Books, 1964).

Sherril.

The Astrology of the I Ching.

An

Anthology of I

I Ching, Book of Changes.

Ching.

(University

Ni, Hua-Ching. Tao, The Subtle Universal Law and the

Integral Way of
Life. (Shrine of Eternal Breath of Tao, 1979).
Ni, Hua-Ching. The Book of Changes and the Unchanging
Truth. (Shrine
of Eternal Breath of Tao, 1983).
Pattee, Rowena. Moving With Change. (Arkana, 1986).
Interesting
approach to oriental divination. Cards also
available.

Ponce, Charles. The Nature of the I Ching, Its Usage and

Interpretation. (Award Books, 1970).
Trosper, Barry R. and Gin-Hua Leu.
Illustrated Primer.
(KGI Publications, 1986).
Walker, Barbara G.
Row, 1986).

I Ching: The

The I Ching of the Goddess.

Waltham, Clae. I Ching.

of the work
by James Legge.

(Ace Books, 1969).

(Harper &

Adaptation

Wilhelm, R. and C.G. Jung. The Secret of the Golden

Flower.
(Harcourt, Brace and World, 1931).
RUNES
Blum, Ralph. The Book of Runes.
1982). Set
comes with a set of runestones.

(St. Martin's Press,

Osborn, Marijane and Stella Longland.

(Routledge & Kegan
Paul, Ltd. 1982).

Rune Games.

CARTOUCHE
Hope, Murray. The Way of Cartouche.
1985).
Set comes with cards.

(St. Martin's Press,

607

{file "Exorcism" "bos142.htm"}

OLD MAGIC EXORCISM

Power
Power
Power
Power
Power
Power
Power
Power
Power
Power

of
of
of
of
of
of
of
of
of
of

wind have I over thee.

wrath have I over thee.
fire have I over thee.
thunder have I over thee.
lightning have I over thee.
storm have I over thee.
moon have I over thee.
sun have I over thee.
stars have I over thee.
the heaven's and the worlds have I over thee.

(lift sword over head with both hands and chop down.)
Eson! Eson! Emaris!

Garner, Alan;

"The Moon of Gomrath"; Ballantine

614

{file "EcoMagick" "bos143.htm"}

E C O M A G I C
--------------The following is excerpted from an article,
Making Magic For
Planet Earth, written by Selena Fox for Circle Network
News (Box 219,
Mt. Horeb, WI 53572 ) and presented here as being of
public interest to
the pagan community at large. Selena, I didn't have time
to ask your
permission, I presume that by the very nature of your
writings you want
them to be shared with as many people as possible, and
so they are
presented here. This is submitted with this statement
and not to be
edited, by Shadowstar of Boston MA.
"There are many things thatcan be done in spiritual
realmsto help
bring about solutions to the world's problems:
* We can kindle spiritualfriendships with other
lifeforms through
communication with Nature Spirits, who can be
teachers for us and
allies in bringing about planetary healing.
* We can do daily meditations in whichwe creatively
visualize the
spiritual body of the planet glowing with radiant healing
light.
* We can organize and/or take part in ecumenical
planetary prayer
services and rituals with practitioners of other
spiritual paths and
cultures.
* We canhonor Mother Earth as an aspect of the
divine in our solo
and group rituals.
* We can send Mother Earth our love and pray for
planetary health
each time we visit a stone circle, sacred grove,
place of power,
temple, shrine or other sacred site.
* We can do spiritual healing magic for the planet in
our circles.

It is important to reinforce whatever spiritual

work we do with
physical action. There are a variety of ways to do this
and you should
decide on at least one approach and then carry it out.
Here are a few
examples:
* Recycle trash from your household, take paper,
plastics, glass,
aluminum cans, and other recyclables to recycling centers.
*Recycle clothes and no longer needed household
items by donating
them to charities to distribute to the needy.
groups.

* Join and actively participate in environmental action

* Write government officialsand urge them to

takespecific actions
on specific environmental issues, such as stopping all
ocean dumping.
* Write letters and articles for publications about
the need for
environmental preservation.
* Plant trees as part of reforestation efforts.
* Compost food scraps.
* Stop buying and using non-bio-degradable detergents.

615
* Boycott products from companies
destroying the Amazon
rainforest.

that are

* Pick up cigarette butts and other nonbiodegradable litter from

parks and other wilderness areas.
* Donate money to nature preserves.
* Give talks atschools, civic groups, churches andin
other places
in your area about ecological issues.
* Read publications, view films, and attend
presentations inorder
to keep informed about ecological conditions and
learn about
additional ways you can work for planetary healing.

to

* Conserve electricity, water and other resources on a

daily basis.
* Network with others.

616

{file "Fundamentals of Human Ecology" "bos144.htm"}

The Fundamental Laws of Human Ecology

1. We're all in it together. Everything is connected
to everything
else. You can't do just one thing. <Law of
Interrelatedness>
2. The Earth and its resources are finite. or You can't
get something
for nothing. <Law of Conservation of Energy>
3. As energy and other resources
are used, there is
overall
decrease in the amount of usefulness. (Second Law of
Thermodynamics>
an

4. Everything must go somewhere-there is now away. <Law of

Conservation
of Matter>
5. Up to a point, the bigger
point, the bigger
the worse. or To everything
<Brontosaurus
Principle>

the better; beyond that

there is an

optimum size.

6. Everything is becoming something else. <Law of

Continuous Creation>
7. In most cases, the greater the diversity of a
system, the greater
its stability. <The Diversity Principle>
8. Nature frequently but not always "knows" best. Note:
People use
antibiotics to counter nature. <Nature knows best>
9. We shape our buildings <environment> and afterwards our
buildings
<environment> shape us. - Winston Churchhill <Your
Environment is You>
10. As human beings, one of our inalienable rights is the
right to live
in a clean environment. <The Environmental Bill of Rights>
11. Our environment does not belong to us alone. It was
used by our

forefathers, passed on
to us,
and we are
charged with
the
responsibility of passing it undamaged to all future
generations. <the
Rights of the Unborn>
12. All persons must be held responsible for their own
pollution. <the
Responsibility of the Born>
13. All persons are created with an equal right to live in
dignity and
peace and to work out a meaningful existence. Everyone is
entitled to a
fair share of the world's resources-provided one is
carrying one's own
share of the responsibilities for maintaining an orderly
world. <The
Law of Equity>
14. Comfortable living, in harmony
should be each
society's goal. <the Goal of Society>

with

nature,

15. Our dependence on technology is, today, so strong

and widespread,
that we are compelled to use technology as a means for
getting out of
our environmental dilemma. <Technology-Part of the
Problem, Part of the
Solution>
16. No national purpose however urgent, no political
economic
necessity however pressing can possibly justify the risk
of bringing
all human history to an end. <Give Earth a Chance>
or

617

{file "The Postures of Ecstasy" "bos145.htm"}

The Posture of Ecstasy

The nature of ecstatic states of consciousness may be

encoded in their
postures. The types of visions, prophecies or healing
abilities that
accompany ecstatic states may have less to do with
the religious
content surrounding the ceremonies of ecstasy than with
the posture
assumed by the people undergoing the ecstatic experience.
This unusual
psychological
anthropologist
observation of

hypothesis
Felicitas

is

being

D. Goodman,

proposed
PhD,

based

by
on

people in ecstatic states and her experiments training

people to enter
such states of consciousness. In some of her earlier
re- search, Dr.
Goodman learned that she could induce an ecstatic state
in a subject
through the use of a gourd rattle similar to that
used in many
primitive shamanistic ceremonies. While a subject, alone,
or in a
group, walked in a circle, or simply sat, Dr. Goodman
would shake this
rattle in a steady manner for 15 minutes. The use of
the rattle was
based on the hypothesis that "acoustic driving" affects
the functioning
of the brain, blocking the verbal left hemisphere and
opening access
the intuitive right hemisphere.
Within five minutes,
most subjects
were giving indications of being in an altered state of
consciousness.
At the end of the experiment, their verbal reports
confirmed that they
had been experiencing something resembling an ecstatic
state, including
visions and variations in body image.
Noting that the content of these visions seemed to vary
as a function
of which subjects had remained standing and which had
become seated,
Dr. Goodman ran a series of experiments to specifically
test the effect
of posture.
To obtain experimental postures, she went to ethnographic
resources to
locate either photographs of shamans in ecstasy, or
artistic renditions
of this state. She found five different postural
positions.
In her
subsequent experiments, she would ask her subjects
to assume a
particular posture, commence the rattle playing for 15
minutes, then
obtain their reports. She found that these
reports were highly consistent for a given posture,
but differed
between various postures.
For example, one posture was similar to sitting in
meditation, except
that the legs are both tucked under the body and
turned toward the
right.
Subjects experienced color sensations,
spinning and strong
alterations in mood.
This posture was that assumed by
Nupe Mallam
diviners.
According to the literature, the
divination experience
begins by alterations in moods.

618
In

another posture, subjects stood erect with their

back and
their hands clasped at the abdomen. Subjects reported
warmth, a flow
of energy rising, and a channel opening at the top
of the head.
According to the ethnographic literature, this
posture had been
associated with healing, involving the flow of energy.
In a similar
manner, the other postures tested produced experiences
resembling the
reports of native shamans who assume the posture in their
trance
work.
heads

The author can only speculate concerning the mechanism by

which posture
affects the content of ritualized trances. We know that
posture affect
mood states.
It is perhaps by their effect upon a
wide variety of
psychophysiological variables that posture affects
the course of
ecstasy.
(Source:
"Body
posture and
the
religious
altered state
of
consciousness: An experimental investigation," Journal
of Humanistic
Psychology, Summer, 1986, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 81118.
Author's
address: Cuyamungue Institute, 114 East Duncan St.,
Columbus, OH
43202.)

619

{file "Creation Story" "bos146.htm"}

The Men's Circle

Copyright 1987 by R.M.P.J.
Those of you who attended the "Opening the
ritual at
Dragonfest this year probably realized that a large part
of it was a
Creation Myth. At the Manhood Ritual on Friday night,
Thomas's Circle
Sky"

Invocation was also a Creation Myth, although a

very brief one.
Perhaps it is in the stars, but I have been
thinking about a Pagan Creation Myth for several months
now and perhaps
this is as good a time as any to publish it.
The basic idea
originally came when some people complained that
science didn't have
any mystery or poetic power in its formulations. That
is not really
true, it is just that not enough scientists are trained
to write well,
or encouraged to present new knowledge in a form that
will appeal to
all levels of our minds. Well, I decided to have a go
at it, and the
following myth is based pretty closely on modern
cosmology and
evolutionary theory.
..................................
In the beginning therewas neither matter nor
energy,neither was
there space nor time, force and form were not.
Yet there was
Something.
Poised between Spirit and Void, without form
or qualities,
pure potentiality, the first physical manifestation
had existence.
Scientists call it the Primordial Singularity, occultists
call it the
Cosmic Egg.
It changed, and the first moment of time came to
It
expanded, and space was born.
Not the space we know, but
one of many
dimensions, and that space was filled with the first
Force. So intense
was that Force that space itself altered. Dimensions
folded back on
themselves, while others expanded mightily. The first
Form came to be.
As the infant universe expanded it changed subtly, and as
naturally as
snowflakes forming in the air, the first material
manifestation
precipitated out of nothingness. Neither matter nor
energy as we know them, but yet both. The Element Fire
was born. The
universe continued to expand, and the one Force became two
forces, then
three and finally four. Matter and energy became
distinguishable, and
the Element Earth was born from Fire. A hundred
thousand years went
by, and the universe continued to expand and cool
until, quite
suddenly, the fire died, space became transparent to
light, and there
be.

were great clouds of cool gas, moving freely.

The Element Air was born.
The clouds began to draw
together, then
break apart into smaller clouds, and smaller still, until
a limit was
reached, and
a hundred
thousand clouds collapsed
inward upon
themselves, swirling and twisting, flattening and
smoothing, rippling,
and organizing themselves. The Element Water was born.

620
One cloud, like many of its siblings, took on
astructure like a
great pinwheel, with spiral arms stretching out from its
center.
It
was Galaxias, our Milky Way.
Within its turbulent
swirling, smaller
eddies formed and contracted, tighter and tighter.
At
the center of
one a spark grew bright then another and another. The
first stars were
lighted, and shown in a universe grown dark.
Many of
them burned
prodigally for a time and then exploded, hurling the
ashes of their
burning outward, ashes such as oxygen and carbon and
nitrogen; star stuff, life stuff. Generations of stars
came and went
over the billions of years, and out in one of the spiral
arms a cloud
of gas and dust began to collapse like so many others
before.
It
contracted, and a new star lighted, with a disc of
dust and gas
circling it. The disc became lumpy as grains of dust and
crystals of
ice collided and stuck together.
The lumps touched and
merged, ever
growing in the light of the young star. Finally, nine
bodies circled
the new star, which would one day be called Sol, or
simply, the Sun.
Third out from the sun a rare event had happened. Two
young planets
had collided and merged violently, forming a single
planet.
In the
violence of that collision, part of the surfaces of
both had been
ripped off and hurled out to form a ring of molten rock
which quickly
drew together to form a giant satellite.
The Earth and
the Moon had
been born in a passionate joining.
Asthe young Earth cooled,great volcanos
belchedforth gases from

its still hot interior.

An atmosphere of steam and
carbon dioxide
formed and then clouds appeared. The first rains began,
pouring down
on the rocks and washing down into the low places.
The
oceans were
born.
Water evaporated from the oceans and fell
again as rain,
dissolving minerals from the rocks and carrying them into
the sea. The
early ocean became richer and richer in dissolved
minerals and gases.
Lightning in the young atmosphere formed new substances
which added to the complexity of the mix. The dissolved
substances in
the oceans became more and more complex, until one
day a complex
molecule attracted simpler compounds to itself, and
then there were
two, then four. Life was born.
From its simple origins, Life grew in complexity, until
one day a patch
of green appeared, drawing energy from the Sun, and
exuding oxygen.
Within a short time the atmosphere changed radically.
The sky became
blue, the air clear and rich in oxygen. As the Earth had
shaped Life,
so Life began to shape the Earth.
Delicately
balancing and ever
re-balancing between the furnace heat of her sister Venus,
and the icy
cold of her brother Mars, Gaia, the Living Earth, had come
to be.
The first animals appeared and swam in the
oceans.
Then
venturesome ones crawled onto the land.
The forms
taken by life
changed.
Fish appeared, and dragons walked the land.
Tiny furred
creatures supplanted the great dragons, whose
descendants now flew
through the skies, clothed in feathers. By and by some
of the furred
creatures came down from the trees and began to walk
about on their
hind legs, and then they started picking things up. Soon
they were
using the things they picked up.
Then they started
talking to each
other. After they had been talking for a while, they
started thinking.
Some of them even started thinking about where they had
come from and
where they were going. And they began to wonder how
everything had
come to be - and why.
..................................

621
Well, there it is. Now thatit's written
I'mwondering what itall
means. You who read this have as much right to
interpret it as the
author, who after all is mostly gathering the thoughts
and conclusions
of other men and women and putting them into a
hopefully attractive
package.
Creation myths are supposed to tell us
something about the
world we live in and our relationship with that world,
and perhaps
about ourselves. This one seems to be telling us that the
world in which we live was not made, like a clock, it
grew, like an
embryo in an egg. We humans are as much a part of our
world as the eye
of an embryo is part of the embryo. We are the part of
the world that
"sees".
And what about the Gods?
Where do they fit
into all this?
Well, eggs generally have a mother and a father, and
newborn chicks
aren't aware of either until they open their eyes. We
are the eyes of
our world, and one of our functions is to see the Mother
and Father.
___Robin

622

{file "Comparison of Wicca and Christianity" "bos147.htm"}

From: ROWAN MOONSTONE

To: ALL
Subj: CHRISTIANITY AND WICCA
The following is the comparison listing of Christianity
and Wicca that
I mentioned in a previous message. It was prepared by
Kerr Cuchulain,
who is the Canadian Chapter Head for the Witches
League for Public
Awareness, in response to a request from a Christian
minister who
contacted the League.
Christianity
Patriarchal/Paternalistic
(Goddess/God)*

Wicca
Duotheistic

Dualistic: divinity separate

inseparable
from everyday world
world
Resurrection
Heaven: destination of Christian
place
between souls incarnations
Hell
Satan
Original Sin
Redemption/Atonement/Confession
Law(evil returns
perpetratorthree-fold)
Hierarchy/Authoritarian
Autonomy
Bible( scripture)
Sabbats based upon Biblical
Sabbats
and Christian historical events
Prophets/Saints/Messiahs
Generally daylight worship
nocturnal(lunar
esbats)
Churches/temples
convenient
usually
no
formal
temple
no
size

restrictions
on
small
groups

(covens)

Monistic: Divinity
from everyday
Reincarnation
Summerland: resting
No equivalent
No equivalent
No equivalent
Karma/Threefold
uponthe
No hierarchy/
No equivalent **
Seasonal and Lunar
no equivalent
Some worship

Circles case where

3-13
people
usual

though congregations may be

larger.
Wiccan Rede Harm

10 Commandments
none

Psychic phenomena generally

Psychic abilities
encouraged
discouraged except for
(magick)
"miracles"
* Names vary from tradition to tradition. lDifferent
aspects of the
Goddess/God have different names creating the impression
that Wicca may
be pantheistic.
** Wiccans use a book called the "Book of Shadows". This
is a working
notebook rather than a scriptural text.

623