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— All Workshops From Both The Sacred Space & Between The Worlds Conferences —
(Alphabetical Order By Presenter & Panels Listed First)
Panels:
Plenary Panel: Alliances with the Spirit World
Aeptha, Dorothy Morrison, Diana Paxson, Michael G. Smith, Kirk Thomas – Moderator, Ivo Dominguez Jr.
Plenary Panel: Nurturing Spiritual Communities
Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki, Byron Ballard, T. Thorn Coyle, Ivo Dominguez Jr., Katrina Messenger, Christopher Penczak – Moderator, Michael G. Smith
Sounding the Deeps: A Cherry Hill Seminary Panel on Pagan Ministry
It’s not about getting paid, it’s not about the title, so what does Pagan ministry really mean and why is our community so conflicted about it? If we are truly interconnected, then what are our responsibilities to each other? What about the growing numbers of solitaries, returning war veterans, next generations, individuals struggling with addictions, those suffering mental illness, victims of abuse, incarcerated Pagans, and our aging Pagan population? Spiritual support can greatly differ from magic. What do you want from your coven priestess, grove leader, or other leaders when a health, family or spiritual crisis arises in your life? When times are tough most people find themselves looking for someone with training and experience, not just an initiatory degree. And yet few issues divide the public Pagan discussion as much as this one. Concerns that Pagans will simply emulate patterns established by other religions, or aversion to language which “sounds Christian” often distract us from the real need for competent, compassionate Pagan ministries.
Spiritual care is an art, and pastoral identity comes from years of life experience and self-reflection, together with a solid education. One panelist remarks: “It's not just a skill set or what you know. It is a practice that shapes who the minister is. Practice is more than having set phrases to say in certain circumstances (skills). Practice is, for example, when the minister chooses within him/herself to listen a little longer and deeply before saying anything. That is hard, and the practice is wrought with many failures from which the art and practice evolve. You rarely get this from reading a book.”
Four Pagans who are actually engaged in active ministry tackle the tough questions:
Holli Emore, Executive Director, Cherry Hill Seminary
Kirk Thomas, Archdruid ADF and former Board Chair, Cherry Hill Seminary
Maggie Beaumont, former Dean of Students, Cherry Hill Seminary
Ivo Dominguez, founding member of Assembly of the Sacred Wheel (the New Alexandrian Library will serve as the CHS library of record when completed)
Elmdea Adams (SS)
Guidance from a Past Life
If you answer “yes” to any one of the following statements, this workshop can be useful in helping you move more clearly and cleanly along your path.
You have unexplained patterns and strong attractions that run through your life: relationships, thoughts, experiences, etc. that just keep happening.
You are strongly drawn to a language, a time in history, a craft, a science, a country that you just know, in your bones. You don’t even know how you know this — you just do. You’ve looked and looked and you just can’t see where it could have come from in this lifetime. It isn’t explained by your education and experiences in your current life.
You have a deep-seated fear, even phobia, that doesn’t seem to come from any current life experience.
You have an innate, in-your-bones gift and you would like to access past life knowledge of the gift to enrich and expand it now.
There will be a brief overview of reincarnation and past life regression. You’ll then be guided into your own, private past life regression. You will discover where current life patterns began and heal past lives with compassion and forgiveness. You will release previously repressed energy to live more joyfully and fully. You will then have an opportunity to write down your experiences and, if you choose, share them. You will begin the process of integrating the information. Workshop requirements: an intention or question and an open heart. Our meeting room will have plenty of chairs. If you prefer to lie down during your regression, you will need to bring a pillow (or 2) and a light blanket. Please plan to attend the entire workshop.
Aeptha (BTW)
When Two Worlds Touch
There are moments in life and ritual, when time and space are transcended. We stand in the threshold between the sacred and the profane as insight, inspiration, cosmic love, and guidance are sparked. A bubble is created on the sea of unconsciousness and within it, pure consciousness resides. All too soon the bubble bursts and dissolves back into our unconscious content, leaving us with the nagging feeling that something precious has been lost or forgotten. The mind may be opened creatively to these new possibilities and catalyzed by the deeper levels of inner landscape held within the bubble. This class will explore ways to foster consciousness to allow that bubble to rise up intact and create a noticeable change in our awareness.
A Ritual of Healing and Reconciliation with the Nagas
In ritual we will call upon the power of celestial and terrestrial Naga energy to create the opportunity for reconciliation and healing. As communities and individuals we are being faced with uncertainty and fear as our earthly systems evolve. The time is uniquely ripe as the forces of collective unconsciousness are urging radical personal change and emancipation. Utilizing the voice of the drum and the power of mantra we will draw upon the great mystery and magick of these powerful beings. Come prepared for ritual in a style unique to Light Haven, but feel free to wear ritual garb in accordance with your tradition.
Tuatha Dea (BTW)
Basics of the Drum Circle Workshop
Interactive rhythm event. The central purpose is to enhance individual creativity and foster community through the interlacing of rhythm and non-verbal communication methods. This workshop will include introduction to African drums, basic rhythm techniques and drum circle etiquette. Its aim is to culminate in a symphonic and unifying rhythm event. This event encourages the participation of both novice and experienced drummers alike. This is a NON-TRADITIONAL workshop and is intended to elicit self expression and integration, as opposed to teaching traditional African rhythms. Heartbeats are the foundations of rhythm and know no gender, race or creed. All heartbeats are welcome, and no experience of any level is required. Portions of this workshop will relate to the relationship between drummers and dancers, dancers are encouraged to participate as well. All percussion instruments are provided, but please feel free to bring your own instruments if desired.
Dolores Ashcroft Nowicki (SS)
Astral Doorways
Doors, Gates, Tunnels and Openings offer the opportunity to explore and learn. There are few places that have not felt the tread of a human foot. So what is left for us to discover? The obvious answer is Space. But some of us want to explore a different kind of space. This Space the Mind knows and wants to share with us. But to enter them we need Doors and the keys to unlock them. Years ago Herbie Brennan wrote a book called Astral Doorways, and with his permission I have used his title for this Lecture. There are few people today who know of The Second Road and even fewer willing to show you how to get on to that hidden, and often dangerous road.We have no map of The Second Road. It changes constantly, new vistas are added, or disappear. The inhabitants are charming, beautiful, helpful, or not.There is no set way to approach them, you must make your own advances and accept the result. It is a world where Faerie and Nightmares exist side by side. Where your idea of such things is what you will see. An Astral Doorway is a wonderful thing. Approach with the wonder of a child and it will be a delight, approach it with scepticism and it will respond in kind. But if there is a darkness within you, you will meet it on The Second Road.
The Four Faces of the Pyramid
For an occultist a symbol is a magical language that enables them to understand ideas and concepts that others regard as unbelievable. This lecture looks at the combined symbology of the Pyramid and the Four Children of Geb and Nuit. The Bright Twins Isis and Osiris, and their Dark counterparts Nephthys and Set. Each is placed at one of the four faces of the pyramid and their powers discussed in relation to the Symbols of Sunrise, Noon, Sunset and Midnight.
Sunrise and Noon = East and South. The symbolism of the two brothers as The Slayer and the Slain. The Balance of Power, and the need to understand the task of the Royal Born Sem Priest. Osiris as The Corn King, becomes the Sacrificed God and connects with the worldwide belief in the power of the Willing Death.
Sunset and Midnight = West and North. The Goddess of Magic and the Goddess of the Hearth Fire. The power of Female Sacrifice. The Offering of the Son. Paralells with Moses and the legend of the Twins born to Mary.
The Sun at Midnight.The Ritual Conception of the Half Brothers, Horus & Anubis as the Forerunner and the Sun Hawk. Anubis can be seen as the blood link between the Four. The fulcrum of the Four Powers, Atum Ra ,is the Apex of the pyramid. Where Osiris becomes the Intermediary between Heaven and Earth.
The semi quarters where the faces join , become the supporters of the Holy Four, the Parents and Grand parents..The Four deliberately conceived for a spiritual purpose that still holds power in our time.
The Five Gates of Power
THE GATE OF THE SPIRIT
THE GATE OF THE OF PRIESTHOOD
THE GATE OF THE INITIATE
THE GATE OF THE SEEKER
THE GATE OF THE NEOPHYTE
Byron Ballard (SS)
Hillfolks Hoodoo
Appalachia’s Living Folk Magic Tradition: With its gnarly roots in the British Isles, the German Palatinate and in indigenous American tribal practice, Appalachian folk magic is characterized by its hands-on and practical approach, as well as its use of available materials. Though it has come down to us through a Protestant Christians filter, this system is easily adapted to modern Pagan sensibilities.
Cheryl Costa (BTW)
Film: “When Witchcraft Came Out of the Broom Closet: The Story of Kestryl and Company”
The film “When Witchcraft Came Out of the Broom Closet: The Story of Kestryl and Company” was created to document the groundbreaking 1990’s television series created by and for witches. Designed to be an educational media product marketed to academic libraries, the film provides historical background on the persecution of witches, then covers the making of the TV series, its impact in the worldwide news media, and the aftermath portrayed through recent interviews with original casts, guests, and crew.
T. Thorn Coyle (BTW)
Practical Magic: To Manifest
Whether you call yourself a Witch, Magician, Magic Worker or Priest…claiming the power to manifest unlocks many doorways. Too many people give away their power, allowing systems, large tides, or even individuals to manifest the world around them. By invoking Desire and moving with it through the Four Powers –To Know, To Will, To Dare, To Keep Silence– we bring the sacred idea, the holy longing, into action and the material. We claim our power and responsibility, enabling us to be of greater service to this planet, the cosmos, and our Gods.
Take a risk. Invoke desire. Manifest your will.
Bring a journal, or pen and paper.
Between Space and Time: a Healing of Memories
Merge the Great Above with the Great Below… When we walk between ancestors and future, the fey realms and the Gods, when we travel the lemniscate shape between Space and Time, a portal opens. Here, we have all our tools at our disposal. Here, we have all the support we need. We can instigate healing and open imagination.
This is a continuation of Thorn’s Merkabah practice as presented in Kissing the Limitless. She’s been working with her students on opening this healing process for others. If there is something in your past that needs attention, join us.
Monika Lonely Coyote (SS)
Psychopomp: Techniques of Healing the Dead
A presentation that discusses historical records of Psychopomp work, including the different deities from each pantheon that have this role (Hermes, Manannan Mac Lir, Coyote, Odin, Freya, Heimdall (to some extent, etc.). Techniques will be discussed during the reading of my own Journeywork into this realm, as well as the very real dangers and taboos. Finally, participants will discuss their own work with the Dead, and how incredibly healing and necessary the role of Psychopomp is in our current culture.
Differentiating between Mental Illness and Spiritual Experience (c) 2013
A presentation that gives a short background of psychological illnesses, focusing on Axis I & II, and compares symptoms with the symptoms of Visionary Spiritual Experiences. Video examples are used to help participants discuss different symptomology, and I give options to friends, clergy, and family for referring people to appropriate service providers.
Helena Domenic (BTW)
Celtic Seership
Many of us work with Celtic pantheons in our personal and coven work. How many of us really know the cosmologies and belief systems that go along with these deities? The ancient Celts were a fascinating people with a great world view, societal structure, and legal system. Studying Celtic mysticism brings all of these things together with greater clarity and provides insight into this great ancient people. In this class, we will explore the ways in which the Celts sought information from the Otherworld.
It’s All in the Cards
The term “Cartomancy” refers to the art of divination through reading cards. Most people are aware of the Tarot, but there have been other kinds of divination decks available for centuries – some more popular in the US, some more popular in Europe. In this class, we will explore some of these different kinds of decks, their uses, and how they may be used together in combination for both divination and magickal workings.
Ivo Domínguez Jr (BTW)
Managing Psychic Sensitivity
Many pagan and spiritual people work to increase their psychic sensitivity and their empathy. There are many benefits to having increased sensitivity, but there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Becoming inundated and overwhelmed by other people's emotions and highly charged atmosphere is can be problematic. This workshop will offer straightforward techniques to manage your sensitivity so that it remains a benefit rather than becoming a detriment. Moreover a technique will be shared to harness the excess energy so that it can be used, not just abated.
Greater Form of the Witches’ Pyramid
The Witches’ Pyramid is more than a variation on the Four Powers of the Magus, and more than a tool for spell work and magick. In its greater form, the Witches’ Pyramid is rooted in the Tree of Life and works on multiple planes of being. It’s uses for general ritual work, protection, and manifestation will be explored. This is a remarkable construct that merits broader usage. Even if this is you first in-depth experience with the Witches’ Pyramid or the Qabala, you will walk away with useful ideas and methods.
Taylor Ellwood (BTW)
The Alchemy of Breath: How to use Breath to Raise Energy and Dissolve Dysfunctional issues
Your breath is the gate to inner alchemy, which is the cultivation of your internal energy for spiritual work and practical magic. In this class we will explore the magic of breathing and how you can use breath to tap into and cultivate internal energy for physical wellness, spiritual well-being, and for practical magic. Your breath is a tool that can help you improve the quality of your life and access reservoirs of power within you, if you know how to work with it. You will learn:
▪ Why your breath can be a spiritual tool, and what you can use it for.
▪ How to use your breath to cultivate and work with internal energy.
▪ What the different types of breathing exercises are.
▪ When to use specific breathing practices.
▪ How breath techniques can be applied to different types of magical work.
▪ How breathing techniques can be applied to working with your voice.
▪ How breath work can be used to cultivate the spiritual embryo and connect with underworld and overworld energies.
The Esoteric Secrets of Fantasy
Within Fiction and Fantasy books are contained many esoteric secrets and practices, seeded in the text for readers who are curious enough or know enough about magic to discover them. In this workshop, we'll explore how the Fiction and Fantasy works of Rudyard Kipling, William S. Burroughs, Michael Moorcock, Alan Moore, S. M. Stirling and many other authors contain esoteric secrets as well as what we can learn from those secrets and how we can even use those practices in our own spiritual work, if we're willing to do some experimentation.
Robin Fennelly (BTW)
Down the Rabbit Hole
Just as Alice found her true strength and courage in her journey through Wonderland, we often find ourselves scrambling down the rabbit hole full of questions and feeling at the mercy of time for answers. This class will explore the process of that journey and the many forms it takes. More than shadow work or self-analysis, this is the descent into the magick of the subconscious that forms the archetypes we become and the supports the rationale behind those archetypes that we allow to guide us. One size does not fit all in the process and once the journey is begun everything that we encounter along the way leads us towards a deeper understanding of the transformative labyrinth that lay within.
The Elemental Pentagrams
This workshop will explore the practical use of the Pentagram in its expanded form for magickal and spiritual development. The subsets of the Alchemical Elements offer a deeper way of engaging in the multiple layers of that element’s expression and when approached as a tool of expanding self-awareness can produce palpable results that replicate throughout all levels of your being. We will begin with the Pentagram of Earth as anchor and continue moving through Air, Fire and Water. Experiential exercises will open the gates to each of the singular elements and their unique gifts. We will conclude the class with an imprinting of each of the elemental Pentagrams within as keys to opening the depths of Body, Mind, Will and Heart.
Orion Foxwood (BTW)
The Witch and the Faery: Alliance of the Unseen
The connection between witchcraft and the Faery spirits is deep and powerful. Though Faery tradition has too often been minimized as mere fanciful folk belief in capricious nature spirits; it is a powerful, primal and transformational tradition of lore and practices for engaging the invisible and threshold aspects of nature and the underworld of life in its wildest and most visionary state. The alliance of witch and Faery is an aspect of an age-old practice in witchcraft and other folk practices where the witch has a familiar spirit (faery, ancestral, deific, angelic etc.) which teaches them the arts of magical practice including curing, cursing and cunning. In this workshop, Orion will provide lore, techniques and sound advice for approaching this ancient and powerful alliance and lead a visionary process to encounter “the Witch’s Sabbat”.
Literata Hurley (SS)
Visions of Future Past: Examples from the history of magic
How did people in the past envision the future they were trying to create? Come learn about five different examples of how magicians from 1880 to 1980 envisioned the future and their role in bringing it about. The Golden Dawn, Aleister Crowley, Dion Fortune, Gerald Gardner, and Starhawk all had distinct ideas about how the world should or could change and how their work would help create the future they desired. The revival of magic and Paganism are interrelated with the undoing of modernity and the quest for a different future. These historical examples of envisioning the future can inform and shape our continuation of that quest.
Judika Illes (SS)
Ladies in White, not Green: The Fairies of Central and Eastern Europe
What most people understand as “fairies” is actually a merger of two distinct species: Ireland’s “Good Folk” the Sidhe (Shee) and petite, winged flower fairies (devas). This is not surprising, as one word “fairy” has for so long been used to translate the names of numerous disparate spiritual entities from all over Earth. Thus, one reads of ‘Russian fairies’ or ‘Persian fairies’ or ‘Chinese fairies’ and so forth. Although some of these sacred beings do have commonalities, there are also some extremely profound distinctions: in their natures, in their interests, and their behavior. In this class, we shine a spotlight on some of the most primordial and vital, yet least known fairy traditions: those of Central and Eastern Europe. Among the spirits we will discuss are the Bereginy, ancient Slavic water spirits, and their fierce relatives, the Rusalka, mischievous friends of Baba Yaga. The Vila, beautiful, charming, dancing forest spirits, are at home throughout a vast range of territory and are widely considered southern relatives of the Valkyries. Vilas and Valkyries are believed to be descendants of ancient Swan Goddesses, as are Hungary’s Tündér. Their queen, Tündér Ilona, may be the Swan Goddess herself. She lives in a beautiful, magical palace, as does Ana, Queen of the Keshalyi, who are the ‘fairies’ of the Transylvanian Roma (Gypsies). Ana’s saga is a tragic one and the basis for a system of shamanic healing. Join author Judika Illes as we familiarize ourselves with these potent spirits and learn traditional methods of honoring, venerating, and, not least, placating them.
Evolution of the Curse
In the beginning, justice was required. But justice was not forthcoming and so practitioners took matters into their own hands. Thus was born the curse. The roots of cursing derive from their historical use as the only tools of justice frequently available to the persecuted, marginalized, and disenfranchised. Focused negative energy is effectively directed toward oppressors and perpetrators of evil. Sometimes this energy is focused unconsciously. However, a true curse involves conscious direction of this energy: it is a form of magic spell. Although the most famous curses are verbal and thus ephemeral, documented curses in physical form do exist for our analysis: from the lead curse tablets distributed throughout the ancient Greco-Roman world to the proto-Hoodoo workings of those enslaved in North America. Once a magic spell is proved successful, it tends to spread rapidly and may be adapted for other purposes and motivations. Thus what began as justice spells can quickly evolve into malicious spells intended to harm for selfish purposes. Join author Judika Illes for a discussion of the evolution of cursing. Misfortune may have many causes, spiritual, magical, or mundane: learn to distinguish between them. Ethical issues are covered, as well. Topics include:
Are curses real?
Is cursing and hexing ever justified?
Can a curse, even a multi-generational one, be removed?
The Swan Goddess
Among the most primeval of known deities, swan goddesses first emerged in northern climates, among the Finns, Magyars, and Saami, as well as among various indigenous peoples of Siberia. Swans fly and migrate and so did these goddesses, who evolved and transformed to play prominent roles throughout Eurasia. Their descendants may include the goddesses Brigid and Tündér Ilona, as well as the Valkyries, Vila, and White Ladies. Swan goddesses have left their mark on folklore, religion, fairy tales, and fashion. Mistresses of Transformation, they are spirits of life and death, who serve as psychopomps shepherding souls between the realms of the living and the dead. They control the migration of birds and provide good fortune to their human devotees. Join author Judika Illes in a workshop that lifts the veil from these mysterious and profound goddesses, who linger in our consciousness, most famously as the seed of the beloved ballet, Swan Lake, which is rooted in their mythology. We will learn how to recognize the Swan Goddess and how to invoke her blessings and assistance.
Caroline Kenner (SS)
New Orleans Conjure Dance Ritual – Caroline Kenner with the musical talents of Firesong
The New Orleans Voodoo Conjure Dance is a ritual dance of spirit possession and manifestation. It is inspired by the dances performed by Marie Laveau on Sundays in Congo Square, New Orleans, before the Civil War. All of our tutelary deities and compassionate spirit allies are invited to attend the Conjure Dance, in any of the myriad forms that Their divinity manifests……as long as They can play nicely with the other deities and spirits, and conform with our Sacred Space Hospitality Laws. During the Conjure Dance, those who wish may offer themselves as vehicles for our spirit allies while we move in rhythm toward ecstasy. We will be dancing to manifest Compassion, Love, Honor, Prosperity, Peace, and Joy within our community of spiritual seekers.
Special Note: The Conjure Dance comes from the African diaspora traditions of New Orleans. In the African diaspora traditions, initiates wear white clothing, with headscarves for women. If you would like to wear pale clothing and a scarf, please do so. However, there are no wardrobe requirements for the Conjure Dance.
A Ceremony of Curse Unbinding
Please join us for a ceremony of curse unbinding and soul retrieval. With the help of a large grid of healing crystals, by the power of our spirits, we will sing, dance and drum as we unbind any curses we find operative on the attendees of this ceremony. Many of us have been magical workers for lifetimes, and many of us have been involved in various contentious community issues within the magical community this time around. Join us to free yourself from any magical burdens you may unwittingly carry. Psychic attack and cursing are normal human behaviors, both now and in the past. Many of the curses I’ve broken date from previous lifetimes, but were still effectively harming the client. Like most shamanic healers, I learned to break the curses affecting me first. Then, I learned to disentangle curses for others. Now I teach all of my students to find their own methods of curse-breaking. We are especially powerful when we work as a team. Organized by Caroline Kenner
With help from Monika Lonely Coyote, Dragon Dave, Diana Cascioli, Literata, Alida, Kayt and Doug Jenkins, of Gryphons Grove School of Shamanism, and with Niall Sheehan
Diotima Mantineia (SS)
Moving Right Along: Strategies for Navigating Changing Times
We’ve been living under the shadow of the ongoing Uranus Pluto square for many years now, and its final pass happens on March 17th. So now what? The square has illuminated the pressing issues and problems of the day, but it certainly hasn’t solved them. What’s in store over the next 5 years or so? Diotima will look at the upcoming astrological “weather”, and suggest various magical and spiritual techniques and practices to help us work with the prevailing winds to enrich and enhance our own lives as well as work for change in our world.
Katrina Messenger (BTW)
From the Holy Mountain to the Sacred Cave: Journey of Descent
Throughout human history, a sacred timeless path has called to women over and over again, the path of descent. And unlike the hero's journey where at each juncture the hero attains gifts, tools, or allies, the descent journey asks us to relinquish our hard won trophies, shatter our deeply held convictions, dissolve our ego-supporting illusions, and surrender our very innocence. In this workshop, we will review the three models of descent via myth, folktale and film.
From the Personal to the Universal: The Hero's Journey
Throughout human history, a sacred timeless path has called to seekers over and over again, the Hero’s Journey. The hero faces many challenges and attains gifts, tools, and allies along the way. Percival and the Quest for the Holy Grail is often used to represent the essence of this Journey. In this workshop, we will review Percival’s journey, plus several other examples, such as Harry Potter, Bilbo/Frodo Baggins, and Sarah from the movie, “Labyrinth”.
Jason Miller (BTW)
Inner Heat And Sexual Alchemy
The sexual act is possibly the most potent--and pleasurable--gateway to the primordial and the divine. From the Tantric mysteries of Hinduism and Buddhism and the inner alchemy of Taoism, to the sacrament of the bridal chamber in Christianity--and, of course, the traditions of Western Magic and Witchcraft--sex pervades the highest and most secret teachings all over the world.
In this class, Jason Miller draws upon his training in Eastern and Western mystery schools to explore the role of inner heat in sexual alchemy. This act of alchemical sublimation, literally making something more sublime, is they key missing from much of the modern western literature on sex magic. This daring and tantalizing practice throws open the doors into the realms of sexual magic that have been hidden behind secret orders and arcane terminology for far too long—until now.
The Secret of the Tulpa: Creating Designer Entities
If you have ever read anything about Servitors, thought forms, or artificial elementals chances are you have heard the term "Tulpa" thrown around - the Tibetan word for mental projection. Tulpas were first brought to the attention of the west in 1931 by Alexandria David Neel. Since then they have not only been mentioned by occult authors ranging from Franz Bardon to Peter Carroll but have been featured on shows like the X-Files and Supernatural. They even have their own sub-reddit. Now, for the first time since Neel, someone who has been trained in Tibetan Buddhism and has asked numerous Lamas and translators about the practice is speaking on them, as well as discussing methods drawn from maha-yoga practices of the Nying-ma Order that are suitable for anyone to use in creating designer entities.
Dorothy Morrison (BTW)
Money Magic
Tired of scratching for pennies? Never seem to have enough money to go around? Maybe just want to find that bit of extra cash that you deserve? If the answer to even one of these questions is "yes," then you won't want to miss this seminar! Join Dorothy Morrison for a prosperous adventure as she offers magical tips, and instructional information for creating the washes, powders, charms, and potions that will not only bring money into your life, but keep it there to stay.
Swifting Energy
Plagued with negative energy? Tired of it invading your happy space? Do you find yourself spending more than five minutes a month in the process of cleansing and clearing just to keep it at bay? If the answer to even one of these question is yes, then this is the class for you!
Discover the real difference between positive energy and negative energy. Learn why returning any sort of energy to its sender is a magical no-no. Best of all, find out how to turn even the nastiest sort into something that not only works for you, but works in ways you hadn't thought possible. Once you've heard this lecture, cleansing your space will become a thing of the past. In fact, you'll never see energy in the same way again!
Diana Paxson (SS)
Divine Relationships
One of the attractions of paganism is the opportunity to experience a relationship with one (or more) goddesses and gods. We can relate to them as children or lovers, worshipers or friends. But how do we make the connection, and how do we make sure the relationship will be positive? In this workshop we’ll explore what makes a healthy spiritual relationship and work with ways to make a solid contact.
Preparing for Possession
Trance Possession, in which a medium allows his or her body to be occupied by a god or spirit, is an ancient religious practice. It is found in cultures worldwide and is becoming increasingly apparent in pagan circles today. We’ll consider questions such as:
What is trance-possession? Who does it, where and why?
What are its benefits and dangers?
What are the requirements for safe, sane and consensual possessory work?
How does one train as a medium?
Oracular Seidh with Laurel Mendes
Now, as in the time of the Vikings, seers and seeresses journey to the spirit world to find answers to your questions. This practice comes from the heathen tradition, but all are welcome as we support each other with our energy and learn what wyrd has woven. This session is limited to 60 people. Diana is the author of /The Way of the Oracle/ by Diana L. Paxson.) Laurel was one of the first seers in the original group with whom Diana developed this practice in 1990.)
Christopher Penczak (BTW)
Empowering the Sorcerer’s Tongue
The power of the word is both the blessing and curse of the Witch, for when empowered, what we say comes true. At its highest levels, we endeavor to use the Tongue that Never Lies, merging prophecy and intention through our true will, wisdom and love. Before we do, we must awaken the sorcerer's tongue to the secret languages, and clean our speech of all that doesn't serve. An initiation of right speech to use our words truly as a magickal tool for manifestation, evolution and enlightenment. Please bring a chalice or cup to this ritual, or a small cup will be provided.
Journey to the Phosphorous Grove
The Mighty Dead, the enlightened ancestors in the traditions of Witchcraft gather at the eternal sabbat between the worlds in the realm of Witchdom. Today we can peel back the layers of meaning around the Medieval Sabbat and join in the timeless celebration. Learn the formulas of the sabbat, including the rituals of procession, pact, dance, feast, sex, battle, and return. Through vision work, seek the Lord of Three Faces for deeper understanding of your path through the mysteries and receive the blessings of the Lady of the Deep. Experience a meditative ritual of the sabbat. Enter into the Phosphorous Grove of the Hidden Company and be aflame with love.
Angela Raincatcher (SS)
The Aesthetics of Sacred Space
What makes an altar, shrine, or temple beautiful and satisfactory to the devotee and to the spirits or deities honored? What is beauty and how are our standards of what is beautiful shaped by the values of our culture, religion, and spiritual practice? What are the principals that guide the creation of sacred places? In this facilitated discussion, we will explore a variety of sacred places and reflect upon the aesthetics of their culture of origin. We will also grapple with why we may judge them beautiful or not. Come to this session willing to feast your eyes, mind, and soul in images from around the world and fully engage in thoughtful conversation about them.
Gwendolyn Reece (SS)
Karma Clean-up: Breaking Curses Cast in Past Incarnations
This session is a workshop and a ritual. Most people who are intermediate to advanced magickal practitioners are not new to this path. Many of us have been around for a long time. One of the most malleable concepts that varies across time and space is that of “Justice.” There are many things that were considered to be appropriate and just actions in the past that would horrify our 21st century ethical sensibilities. Similarly, magick was and is often used by oppressed people who have no other recourse. But magickal actions set in motion patterns that can persist for hundreds and thousands of years and one thing that many practitioners have discovered is that most of our lines are suffering from curses, which, by definition, were cast by another practitioner. This ritual is designed to allow practitioners to break any active causes that they would now consider baneful that they have put in motion in the past that are still working themselves out. It does not erase past karma, but it does put a new cause in motion to counter continued effects. That is what forgiveness really is; it is denying a future causal role to actions from the past. The effects of this work will be highly individual and, therefore, unpredictable. They may not be pleasant, but the working is intended for those who have a real desire to break cycles of vengeance. If we undertake this work more broadly, it should allow for ripple effects that will ultimately strengthen the magickal lines.
Theosophy and Theosophical Lines
Gwendolyn Reece began practicing as a Witch and a Pagan in the mid-1980’s. By the early 1990’s she found herself in a spiritual crisis because she needed to understand the broader context and lines of the work she believed she was being called to do. She found answers in the teachings concerning cosmic evolution as portrayed in Theosophical literature. She began reading Blavatsky and Annie Besant in the early 1990’s and has been an active teacher in the Theosophical Society since 1999. The Theosophical Society is an esoteric organization and line of thought that was founded in 1875. The three objects of the society are to form the nucleus of the universal brotherhood of humanity without distinction of race, sex, caste, creed, or color; to encourage the comparative study of religion, philosophy and science; and to investigate the unexplained laws of nature and the powers latent in humanity. Theosophy has endowed the world with an impressive set of philosophical teachings and has given rise to numerous other occult groups that emerged from this stream, including Anthroposophy, Alice Bailey and the Arcane School, Krishnamurti, and Gurdjieff and Ouspensky. This workshop provides an overview of the fundamental teaching of Theosophy and what it has to offer Contemporary Paganism.
Michael G. Smith (BTW)
Osiris, Horus and Set
An exploration of the Osiris/Set/Horus relationship, its mythical underpinnings, symbolism, and usefulness in understanding and comparing the Ancient Egyptian and modern ideas concerning life, death, struggle, and sacrifice.
The Realms of the Fae
Forest glades, mushroom circles, ancient mounds, and waterfall pools. These places are some of the doors between the Human World and the Faery World. Where do we go when we cross that threshold? What is the nature of the Fae Realms and the denizens we find therein? We explore the folklore, mythology, and personal gnosis which helps to explain their World.
Kirk Thomas (BTW)
Circles of Concentration
When we perform public ritual, we need to focus on many different levels at the same time - on a personal level, on the level of working with the other celebrants, on the level of the congregation, and in the Otherworlds. This workshop will give attendees the opportunity to learn and practice a set of techniques to enable them to work on all four levels simultaneously, as well as promote charisma in ritual leaders.
Sacred Gifts
Unlike the Abrahamic faiths, ancient Indo-European religion was based on reciprocity - do ut des, I give so that you may give. This workshop will examine the concept of reciprocity as well as the evidence for reciprocal relationships between the Gods and the people in ancient writings from Ireland to India and many places in between. We will also explore how these ancient practices may apply to us in the modern day as we re-imagine and recreate our Paganisms today.
A’alyvyne Weaverwood (SS)
Seeking the Light Within: A Ritual Journey
We are incarnated in darkness, and it is in this darkness that the lessons of each incarnation arise. Bathed in a watery womb of possibility, we pass through halls of memory to the bright light of birth into this physical world. Similarly, the spirit of the Seeker must journey through a Hall of Mirrors, where Memory and Purpose inform the journey of inner revelation. It is here we connect with the Dark Lady, so that we emerge into a greater Light of awareness of purpose and the means to accomplish the tasks She sets us. In the Darkness arises the Light. Our time together will be spent in inner journey, connecting with the Dark Lady who hearkens, heals and hallows us to move deeper in communion with Her, as well as our own divine purpose. If possible, attendees should bring a scarf or cloth to aid the inner Sight, and a mirror to consecrate for on-going work. It is also advised to eat lightly before meeting; we will share refreshment after the Journey to incorporate our lessons and messages.