The Fey folk love your beautiful witchy heart.
After having the above thought, I painted a border for it. To add Faerie magic, I paint everything I can: memes I write, the newsletter button below, my clothes—including my shoes …
(The art work blurred a bit and what-not, when I made the file smaller so the webpage would appear quickly for you.)
Santa Magic
A Four-Week Teleseminar
About Pagan Santa and His Yule Elves
Santa is in my pantheon. … Yup, you read that right. It started years back, when a friend told me she prayed to Santa.
But there was no information anywhere about Santa as a God.
So I developed the material myself.
Mind you, I found academic stuff about Santa’s roots as a ferocious ancient deity, but what about Jolly Santa who delights children? I had to develop that material myself.
I commenced to created a working relationship with a God who is jolly Santa wearing red—including his aspect as a ferocious God—by developing a theology, rituals, prayers, liturgy, and talismans. You learn pivotal parts of this in the class.
Convinced that Jolly Santa has important traits beyond those of the aforementioned ferocious God, I channeled a theology about that, with congruent ritual, etc. Now I enjoy a lusciously fun, yet complex and deep, connection with God Santa, and I’d like to share some of it with you in this four week teleseminar (class via group phone call) that is both class and ritual.
To give you a sense of my Santa God: He is a thoroughly Pagan Divinity—he gives material gifts all year long and chuckles at my mistakes instead of being judgmental. Santa bestows wonder, hope, and belief in goodness, while keeping me safe from harm. Santa is part of my year wheel; he sparkles until dark winter months are imbued with light.
Enrollment limited to 16 people so we can really connect during ritual. This event is experiential learning, so you’re guided into actually feeling the Yuletide joy and inspiration this God bestows.
As I channeled, one fun idea that came to me was Yule elves: kind of like the regular Santa’s elves but with a whole Pagan and magical twist.
We’ll look at what can you do as a Yule elf to help Pagan Santa with his work—spreading magic and wonder throughout the world, at Yule season and all year long.
People kept asking for more information, after reading my blogs about Pagan Santa and his elves. The readers would tell me things like “Oh my God, I relate to this so much, and I think I’m one of his elves!” Their questions motivate me to teach this class. I don’t know if I’ll teach it again, but feel strongly about teaching it once.
The sacred foolishness of this playful class opens the door to depth and magic. There are playful ways to get profound, e.g., clearing inner blocks to self-care during the holiday season and experiencing mystical states. My jolly Santa is deep, empowering, and healing. Expect to experience both healing and joy, laughter and power. Fun is important to my Santa—after all, he’s Pagan.
We meet in the year’s darkest weeks—Santa’s domain—continuing a bit after Yule to explore receiving Santa’s gifts all year long.
Nuts and bolts:
* These are group meetings by phone. To participate, just dial the phone from anywhere.
* Class meets four consecutive Tuesdays, from 6 to 7 PM EST, starting Tuesday December 15.
* Reserve Tuesday Jan 12, same time, for a makeup class in case I’m unavailable for one of the planned sessions.
* Tuition: $160. Your usual long-distance charges apply and appear on your phone bill. The event’s area code is a U.S. #.
* Upon receipt of payment, I email you event phone number, etc.
* Call me—814-337-2490—for more info or to discuss scholarship, trade, or payment plan. Do not email me. Refunds unavailable.
* Scroll down to enroll: enter your phone number and pay securely with PayPal.
Be filled with child like wonder. All year long. Enroll now.
Science and magic meet. I won’t choose between mysticism and science. They can feed each other.
My ancestors are spiritually important to me. So I’m combining science and spirit in a deeply personal way: I ordered an AncestryDNA test kit.
A mystic, I travel through the blood in my veins, back through time, to discover the ancient ways my family once practiced. Today, the logical rational side of me does the same by spitting into a vial. This test tube becomes a chalice that arrived by mail, enclosed in plastic. Two supposedly disparate halves of me come together to feed my spirit.
I mailed my saliva, part of my sacred body, to scientists, who will analyze it to reveal my ethnic background. They’ll go back through many generations, the same way my meditations have. Their work will expand my otherworldly travels.
The lab analysis will determine where my ancestors hail from, based on a science my layperson’s mind can’t understand, no matter how much experts explain it.
Many scientists would be equally puzzled by my ability to uncover historical information by meditating on my blood. I have my expertise, they have theirs. I get to draw on both.
A relationship with my ancestors, in ritual and daily life, is pivotal to me. They lovingly support me. And I tend them. Trance journeys give me a strong intuitive sense of my ancestors. The DNA results can help me know whether my intuitions are correct.
It would be fine to trust my intuition without the DNA results. (Check out my blog about that: Mysticism and Non-Academic Scholarship.) But corroboration is useful.
Science can support my spirituality in other ways, too.
For one, I come from a European shamanic family tradition. Some of my family history has been lost. I’m hoping DNA will fill in gaps.
For example, I might see how major societal events impacted my family’s past generations to shape the family’s spirituality. That familial story could provide context to better understand my own path.
Luck allowed me to gather a staggering amount of anecdotal evidence about my ancestors. Information from relatives, and from strangers I don’t know but who have my last name, and from other sources, provided enormously convincing material, when looked at as a whole. I believe anecdotal evidence is part of folk culture and one source of the old wise ways. This fecund anecdotal evidence can be augmented with DNA science.
For example, the DNA test might help me gather more anecdotal evidence, if it leads to relatives I hadn’t learned about previously. They might know family history I don’t.
DNA results could also be a jumping off point for more ancestral rituals. I love the wisdom of ancient cultures, and appreciate reenactment whether based in textbooks’ history or intuited history. I revere native and ancestral spiritual practices. These leanings feed my desire for DNA info about my ancestral roots.
I can best explain another reason for wanting a test by telling you a personal story.
A friend of mine was part of a DNA study. Before continuing the story, let me be clear: I’m not part of any study. My test kit is from AncestryDNA. They’re not experimenting on me, and their tests results do not show an ancestral timeline such as you’ll read about in my friend’s tale. I checked out some companies, and AncestryDNA seems to give the most comprehensive results. If you’re interested, their kit is also easy to use.
Back to my story:
My friend phoned me one day, and exclaimed rapturously, “I got the DNA results. My family originated in Egypt!”
Then she added, “My later ancestors migrated to Greece. Guess where else my ancestors migrated to?”
I responded, “Mongolia?”
There was a long pause. Then she said, in a stunned voice, “That’s right! How did you know?”
“It was obvious. Your immense love for Egyptian religions motivated you to become an Egyptian scholar, devoted to reviving ancient Egyptian spiritual practices, which became part of your personal devotions. Later, you seriously worked with Greek Gods. Then, you channeled material that had no geographical basis, as far you knew, but later found out that the material resonated with documented Mongolian traditions.”
I continued, “Your family only told you about your Caucasian Irish lineage. But your earlier ancestors influenced your mystical life. Your spiritual quest this lifetime follows the migration of your ancestors, step by step!”
The point of my story: I want to know if my DNA matches my various spiritual leanings.
There can be valid reasons we’re drawn spiritually to cultures we were not raised in. Our DNA might be one of those reasons. I don’t hold with the idea that you should only use the spiritual tools of your obvious ancestors.
Mind you, I am not okaying co-option. I’m saying legitimate cross cultural shamanism exists.
That legitimacy is hard to come by. It would take a whole book to explain how to pull it off ethically and otherwise, so I won’t get into it here, except to say:
By “cross-cultural shamanism,” I don’t mean “core shamanism,” AKA the idea that shamanism is primarily the same in all cultures. I disagree with the modern standardization of shamanism.
My experience is that shamans individualize according to cultural differences, and way past that, individualizing family by family and person by person.
My personal definition of legitimate cross-cultural shamanism is an ethical, thoughtful blend of earth based mysticism as it manifests in various cultures.
Moving on:
I am a little worried. With adventure, comes fear of the unknown: am I going to like the DNA test results?
But mostly I’m excited about the DNA adventure I am embarking on.
And I feel gratitude for science and magic.
When the DNA results arrive, I’ll post them here, and share how it impacts my mystical journey.
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Note: I first posted this blog May 2015 at http://witchesandpagans.com/sagewoman-blogs/a-faerie-haven.html and post it again here for those of you who tend to read me here.
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Update: The day and time of this event has been changed, so you can enroll if the new schedule suits you better. New schedule: we meet seven Sundays, from 4 to 5 PM EST, starting Sunday November 8. Classes are consecutive weeks except we skip November 29, for Thanksgiving weekend. Reserve Sunday Jan 10, same time, for a makeup class in case I’m unavailable for one of the planned sessions. Rest of class info is below:
Come Home to the Faerie Queen
A Seven-Week Faerie Shamanism Training
The Faerie Queen tells us, “I’m Mother of the Faerie Nation. And more of you are awake to your magic now—lovers, warriors, children and elders, changelings, cats in disguise, bards, wolves, gardeners, corporate executives, tricksters, star-children, and many others. Come to me, come home, I will protect you and tutor you until our starlit cells flow back and forth between us like the milky way in all its immense luminosity. You’re awake now, my Faerie children. The new global Fey village has begun.”
This class responds to the Faerie Queen’s call. You’ll create previously impossible possibilities for you, Gaia, and all beings. Honest. The curriculum is the culmination of decades’ work. Rewrite your DNA and break through to the stars.
Faerie Ancestor who is a guardian to this site. Silk Painting, Outlaw Bunny
The Fey-spark in humans re-ignited. Ancient starlit blood came forward till it finally hit critical mass; Faerie magic’s thoroughly awake in many people. This leaves us with new questions and new approaches needed to answer them:
* Have you sensed shifts in the human/plant/mineral psyche?
* Can you have self-healing, prosperity, and great sex during present times?
* Do you feel the mystic part of you desperately needed by everyone, including you, right now?
* How can we better use our new/old/undiscovered/shifted powers, both magical and mundane?
* Do you find Paganism too dogmatic, not pagan enough? Do you long for fellowship that supports your unique vision?
* How can mystics—ranging from activists to quiet magicians—come together to love, celebrate, and protect Gaia? Can Gaia—and ourselves—be happy, or even survive, without such a tribe happening globally?
This class addresses these issues with innovative magic and fresh ideas.
You also receive lessons to be your style Faerie shaman. There are different places in Faerie, each special. One is your home. This class helps you go home. If you’re already home, you’ll learn (more) about its unique magic and spirituality, and use them practically to empower your mundane life.
This teleseminar is multi-leveled, suitable to entry-level beginners and adepts.
Come Home to the Faerie Queen qualifies as one of the two electives needed before advanced Third Road training.
Nuts and bolts:
* These are group meetings by phone. To participate, just dial the phone from anywhere.
* Class meets seven Sundays, from 4 to 5 PM EST, starting Sunday November 8. Classes are consecutive weeks except we skip November 29, for Thanksgiving weekend.
* Reserve Sunday Jan 10, same time, for a makeup class in case I’m unavailable for one of the planned sessions.
* Tuition: $250. If you’ve taken it before, repeat it at half-price. Your usual long-distance charges apply and appear on your phone bill. The event’s area code is a U.S. #.
* Enroll here.
* Or pay by check or money order here.
* Upon receipt of payment, I email you event phone number, etc.
* Call me—814-337-2490—for more info or to discuss scholarship, trade, or payment plan. Do not email me. Refunds unavailable.
If you want to be part of this experience, enroll now, because I don’t know when I’ll be able to teach it again. It’s maybe been six years since the last time.
If you see someone else’s class that sounds the same, this class is original material. No one teaches it but me.
Faerie holds daily miracles. I trust that.
Enroll here.
A mystical event is no substitute for medical care by a trained physician, psychiatric counseling, or other therapeutic treatments. Participants are personally responsible for the consequences of their voluntary participation.
The society that murdered thousands of witches also hid the nature of oral tradition, burying even a hint of its immense power to remove our shackles.
I’m a dinosaur, but will not give up teaching oral tradition. Its power is needed.
The trend is online classes. There is also some good money to be made there for teachers. But I’m committed to oral tradition, so teaching online isn’t an option. It’s not oral tradition, at least not as I know it.
Mind you, I leave each person to their own definition, and I support each Pagan’s choice of teaching methods. I’m not here to debate what is or isn’t oral tradition, or what teaching method is best.
Instead, here I’m discussing my commitment to the indescribable experience of glory and power conveyed only through a certain style of teaching, whether you call it oral tradition or Francesca’s style or George. 🙂
It’s interesting I used the words “indescribable experience.” The term oral tradition was originally used (in part) because there was no point in writing it down. No record could possibly convey it—it was indescribable.
The indescribable beauty and freedom of a lifestyle informed by oral tradition keeps me committed to it.
Beyond my students’ note-taking during classes, any record distorts—and might even corrupt—the original transmission. I don’t allow recordings of my oral transmissions. Nor do I provide transcriptions of them. Sometimes I ask people to refrain from taking notes.
Oral tradition can happen by phone (known as teleseminars). That is the medium I mostly use to teach. We transcend time and space to walk between the worlds together.
Past life memories tell me a communal knowledge of oral tradition was exterminated centuries ago: A society driven to murder thousands of witches also hid the nature of oral tradition, to bury even a hint of its immense power to free us from external and internal shackles. Thus, oral tradition is tangential to how our society as a whole represents it. It is not a discussion group, therapy group, or support group.
You know what? I don’t think I’ll call myself a dinosaur. I’m actually a gorgeous, powerful dragon. The gems in my dragon hoard are the treasures of oral tradition. I’ll keep sharing them, while my dragon tail encircles them and my students from those who would rob us of this heritage.
I don’t expect anyone to believe oral tradition provides benefits and beauty that cannot be received elsewhere, until they experience it firsthand. Something happens I can’t describe here—there’s that word “description” again—because it cannot be explained in writing, it must be experienced.
Technology’s seamless integration into our lives makes tech an extension of a person to some degree, but that does not turn online exchanges into legitimate oral tradition. I do not know a way to transmit oral teachings via vid chat, even if no record of it is kept. Once again, explaining that is beyond the limits of the written word.
No one can understand my underlying reasoning for my position unless they talk with me … talk, as in oral tradition.
Many people have been shocked or puzzled because I’m a best-selling author whose phone number is on her webpage. As hard as I am work writing books that transform lives—I’ll spend a decade writing a single book, because my standard is sky high—I work even harder on oral tradition, because my Gods told me to center there. As powerful as my books are—there are few better—my oral teachings are even more powerful. I love living in oral tradition.
So I put my phone number out there. 814.337.2490. For one thing, some people need a taste of oral tradition to know whether they want to work with me.
To enter oral tradition with you represents a willingness on both our parts to show up—take responsibly for the moment and be present in it. Then unparalleled magic fills us.
I’m blessed by students who take responsibility for their lives. Some live in the now so fully that they make a long-term commitment to learning my oral teachings, so we can moment after moment after moment create mind-boggling changes in our lives.
It’s hard to make that commitment. But even if they have insane schedules, relentless financial pressure, or other enormous, daily demands, they make time. Lo, their schedules become less crazy, the demands get fewer, the pressure relents, and they move into their dream lives. Oral tradition is about living life to the max.
Traditional Purification Spell Adapted for Modern Pagans
This time-honored ritual cleanses you of negative energy that you have accumulated. Even if outright evil’s touched you, this spell can help take care of it.
It is simple: rub a raw egg over your whole body. Do not break the egg; you’re rubbing the unbroken egg, still in the shell, all over yourself.
A modern twist: If you’re concerned about salmonella, hard boil the egg first. Do you have an opinion about whether a hard-boiled egg would be as effective? Let me know. Here’s my opinion:
I prefer the traditional spell. I’d also prefer a world in which salmonella was not even an issue. And I’m not going to give up eggs for breakfast or for magic, just because we live in an imperfect world. That would be letting the negativity of the world get to me.
Magic is a tool to deal with an imperfect world and make it better. This spell helps rid me of the negative influences of this imperfect world. So I adapt the spell.
Also, I think the effort of hard-boiling somewhat compensates for the loss of the vibrance in a raw egg. Your effort is a form of energy, a vibrancy unto itself, which adds to the spell. I don’t mean you have to have any intention of that when you boil the egg. Your effort is simply energy, without you even trying to make it so.
If you feel the need to further compensate, I wrote liturgy for that purpose. Say it right before you rub the egg on yourself: “This egg is part of the circle of life. By this and by the ancient Mysteries which have long empowered this spell for witches, I shall be cleansed.”
Traditionally, you then throw the egg into running water, such as a river or stream. If that’s an insane option—e.g., you can’t reach running water without traveling an unreasonable distance, or winter has frozen the nearby river, here are modern alternatives:
Wherever you dispose of it, be sure it’s far away, where negative energy the egg has taken on does not come into contact with anyone, and where the elements can purify the negativity away.
When I had really good plumbing and lived urban, I’d smash the egg into my toilet bowl and flush it. I figure that constituted running water, LOL. Then clean your toilet, so no egg remains.
But if you have poor plumbing, or a group does this ritual so there is more than one egg to get rid of, you might clog your toilet.
You can bury the eggs, unless e.g., winter has frozen the ground stone hard.
If I was going to do it here, in winter weather, I’d walk to the woods on my property. They’re a fair distance from my house. Then I’d hurl the egg even further away, into the woods.
I wouldn’t compost it usually, because compost tends to be kind of close to the house.
This is a simple but powerful rite. I only use it for big problems. In other words, this imperfect life keeps throwing garbage at us, so we need to keep cleansing it off, instead of letting it get to us. That sort of cleansing is comparable to the usual ongoing cleaning a house gets: You wash the dishes, vacuum the rug, and so on. But occasionally, you shampoo the rug, because a lot of crud accumulated or there was a big spill. It is deep cleaning time! In the same vein as the rug shampooing, the egg rite is really more for bigger problems.
And it is not beneath the most spiritual people. I have two clients who inspire and uplift me with their integrity, beauty, and sheer radiance, but I taught them this ritual recently. No matter how attuned we are, we occasionally let the major yuckiness we meet get under our skin.
I love channeling new spells, but sometimes the oldies are perfect. I’m grateful they’ve been in my repertoire for many years. I’m also grateful the Muse sent me adaptations. Blessed be.
Fellow elves, unicorns, goddesses, gods, and other wondrous beings,
Join me in a winter Solstice ritual, Thursday December 18, 2014, from 6 to 7:00 PM EST.
Let’s celebrate the winter Solstice together—operative word “celebrate.” We are magic. We’ll transform our lives and ourselves through pure fun.
The event is a group phone call. Free and open to all. (Your usual long-distance charges apply, and appear on your phone bill). No experience needed.
To participate, call 1-712-775-7000. When prompted, enter 1095248#. Dial a few minutes before 6:00; it can take a bit to connect, and latecomers are not allowed.
Celebrate your Pagan heart!
Love, Francesca De Grandis
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Seen the Faerie Ritual Set? For Spells, Divination, Soul Journeying, and More. Check it out here: http://www.outlawbunny.com/2014/06/11/frs/
Being a Yule elf is part of my personal mythology. Do you have a personal myth this time of year? Please share it. When we share our imaginative lives, we make an even larger mythology spontaneously emerge, to enlarge all our joy, power, and creativity.
Besides, being one of Santa’s elves makes me so happy that I’m bursting at the seams! I have to share about it, or I’ll pop, like a balloon. Here goes:
Santa put me in a managerial position this year. I wasn’t sure what to think about that, at first. I mean, I was honored, but it’s not what I expected, and I did not like totally the idea.
But I’ve learned that, when Santa wants me to do something, there’s no point in resisting, because he always knows what I want, better than I might know it myself. So I knew the job would be good for me, in the long run.
Besides, I’ve worked as middle-management for chaos gods for years. I have the perfect skill set for managing wild elves and the crazy goings-on at the North Pole. Plus, I am not the only manager, the jobs are divvied up.
My particular job involves a lot of organization. I’ve been organizing the elf games (but not the reindeer games). This requires coming up with fun activities.
My elf friend Kathi Somers helped out. Her Yule gift to me this year was the Ravensberger game Funny Bunny. Yeah, it’s for ages four and up, but I’m not too proud to enjoy a silly preschoolers’ game. As the song says, “It’s a gift to be simple.” Simple things in life can be the best. And foolishness wakes up life’s magic.
My work is not just managerial, but also creative. I like that. Part of organizing the festivities has been coming up with holiday menus. Last year, I created a chocolate recipe I really liked. So I used it again this year. My personal formula for keeping spirits up during the Yule season: Chocolate lumps, not lumps of coal. Gluten and sugar-free.
I’ve also been responsible for decorating the Elfin communal spaces, to ensure the areas are cheerful, peaceful, and conducive to a happy winter. For example, the photo below:
And I painted one of my brother elves, then made the painting into a Yule ornament:
Oh, another thing: I get to be in charge of the Make-A-Wish-to-Pagan-Santa page again this year! I experience such joy doing it, because the wishes people make to Santa are beautiful! I am so lucky to convey them to Santa! Click here to make your wishes.
Share your imaginary life. Quite honestly, imaginary doesn’t mean that it’s not true. Happy holidays!
Faerie Geometry is a Jungle Gym
There is fun and a beauty in our cells and past earth’s atmosphere. There is fun and a beauty situated between the two.
Outer space is a Fey playground. Mine. Yours.
Emptiness is a jungle gym.
We can sow our magic in the rich loam
of stardrenched darkness.
Travel past the sky
to revel with stellar ancestors.
That same infinite amusement park resides in
every atom of my being
—and of your being.
Exact same infinite landscape.
I love Disneyland.
It is advertised as “the happiest place on earth.”
I suspect that’s because it was built to reflect
the other happiest place on earth: each atom of ourselves.
Go inside, play!
There is fun and a beauty in our days.
There is fun and a beauty in our cells and past earth’s atmosphere.
There is fun and a beauty situated between the two:
it is in our immediate environment, if we only look for it.
Walk through your home; look for stuff to do and enjoy.
Once a kitten, cute and shy, but she changed: The familiar comes of age.
I painted the above piece last fall, joyful at my little kitten growing up and coming of age as a familiar.
I also wanted to share that immense happiness about my kitty with you, in the spirit of celebrating all our familiars. Creating a painting seemed a way to do that (but I had no chance to post it til now, LOL).
Animals are far more multifaceted than some people understand, but we who live with familiars know better. Let me share a story about that.
After I painted the piece, I wanted to make a Merry Yule greeting with my kitty in it, just for my personal use. (You might have seen my post of it to wish you Happy Yule 2013.) I thought I’d try to adapt the above already-finished picture. The result surprised me and was interesting: Though the adaptation changed only the cat’s environment and the text, and left the cat itself exactly as is, a completely different facet of her became obvious.
In the original, I see her depth, nobility, and new maturity. But put her in a different surrounding with different text? Check it out below.
What a mischievous no-good girl! Such a naughty look in her eyes! None of that was apparent in the original version.
I’m not sharing the story to credit myself as an artist. My point is to credit the complexity of animals, and how you and I both see it in these two pictures, when a lot of people would not.
Here’s to our familiars, the wonderfully complex and mystical beings that are our companions, teachers, co-conspirators, comfort, partners in magic, and all around friends. I honestly do not know what I’d do without them. They play so many important roles for me. I am grateful to recognize their many facets.
