June 23, 2009

  • WCFQ 51d: A Lasting Impression

    Who do you look up to and why?
    BabyGenie

    I admire weird people. I like people who do their own thing, who find their own way of getting the job done. I admire cultural, political, and religious rebels. I admire people who aren't afraid to upset the applecart. Most of the people I admire are dead.... Several of them were murdered. They fall into two categories, creators and leaders.

    Creators I admire... Isaac Asimov, Edgar Allen Poe, HP Lovecraft, Mary Shelley, Mercedes Lackey, Charles de Lint, Tolkien, Guillermo del Toro

    Leaders I admire...     Gandhi, Aleister Crowley, Vlad Tepes, Alexander the Great, Joan of Arc

    It's varied list. The first group, I think, is self explanatory. All artists in their field, which is writing. Any writer who can't come up with a list of writers they admire shouldn't be writing IMO. No one develops in a vacuum, so no writer can possibly write without reading and emulating other writers. I can't imagine anyone who wants to write not falling in love with the written word first. You get bit by the bug of writing. You start out a reader.

    The second list requires more explanation. I mean, I have Gandhi and Vlad Tepes together? Am I nuts?

    Well, the answer is yes, of course. lol But not because of my choice of heroes. The leaders I admire, like the writers I admire, are people of vision. Despite incredible odds against them, they all followed the beat of their inner drummer. Gandhi chose the road of peaceful protest. Crowley shook up the applecart. Dracula was just trying to protect his people through the only means available to him, intimidation. And Alexander the Great wanted to unify the world, albeit under his own banner. Joan of Arc was so determined to save her country, she pretended to be a man.

    These are the people I admire, people who see things others don't. People who are willing to work towards their goals and won't give up, no matter what. Some might say that their goals were unrealistic, but they are still remembered today for the contributions they made to history.

    Some day, I'd like to be on someone's list.
    June 23rd

    St. John's Eve was a traditional time for meditation while waiting for sunrise. Whatever their origin, the Midsummer fires were held from Ireland to Russia, and from Norway and Sweden to Spain and Greece. According to a medieval writer, the three great features of the Midsummer celebration were the bonfires, the procession with torches round the fields, and the custom of rolling a wheel (representing the sun). In Portugal, the spirits of the dead roam free on Saint John's Eve.



    At one time, two hills near Lough Gur were the focus of sacred rites in honor of the Fairy Goddesses, Aine and Fennel (or Finnen). One, about three miles southwest of the lake, is called Knock Aine, Aine or Ane. Aine is an ancient Irish goddess and member of the Sidhe, whose name is derived from An, meaning bright. Every St. John's Night, the peasantry would gather to watch the moon. In this way, Aine seems to have been a moon goddess like Diana. With torches of straw or hay tied on poles, they would march from the hill and then run through cultivated fields and among the cattle. This was to expel all evil spirits from the land so that there would be good harvests.



    Ishtar and Tammuz were honored today, as were Astarte, Aphrodite, Venus and Adonis.




June 22, 2009

  • WCFQ 51c: Music is like air... who can live without it?

    What is your favorite genre of music? Why?
    Oceans_Beautiful_View

    I like almost all musical genres, and even those which I'm not fond of have exceptions. As a general rule, I prefer alternative music, not because it conforms to a standard that makes it alternative but because it's a form of music which tends to borrow sounds from a variety of sources. There is alternative that is more metal and some that is more folk and some that is country and some that is rap. The word "alternative" has come to represent a catchall label for any music which does not easily fit into a more established category.

    More specifically, I like classical music, particularly chamber music and chant. I like rock, classic and alternative. I like some country, mostly Johnny Cash. I like rap, especially Black Eyed Peas. I like some folk, some jazz, some industrial, some dance, New Age, etc, etc, etc. I like music from other cultures, even if I can't understand the lyrics. I like music that mixes genres and finds new sounds. I like music with strong lyrics or a focus on a unique sound. I don't mind music that is heretical, rebellious, or accusatory, though I prefer music without cursing. I can forgive it if the sound is unique. I like music I can sing along to. I like music that moves me.
    I like so many different kinds of music that when I have to travel with someone, I prefer they select the music on the off chance that I'll get to hear something new.




    June 22nd

    The final witchcraft law in England was repealed in 1951.



    The 8th day of Mesore is the Summer Solstice and a Ceremony to Wadjet.



June 21, 2009

  • Writers Choice Featured Questions Week 52

    Writing prompts for discerning writers with more to say
    than Xanga's Featured Questions gives them credit for.

    Announcement!!


    I've decided the WCFQ will be moving to its own blog. I think perhaps it gets overshadowed by my holy day posts (certain kinds of folk may be offended by them) and the length of my other posts (yeah, I'm verbose), so I've decided to create a separate WCFQ blog which will only post passed over featured questions. Also, since Xanga has made it possible to post things in advance, the WQFC will be switching to a Monday through Friday update schedule, rather than everything all together on Sunday. So there will still be five questions, but each will have its own day. Over the weekend, I think I'll try something a little different. While the regular questions are essays, the weekend post will be a creative writing prompt called Writer's Challenge. It can fiction, poetry, whatever you choose. I'll post a scenario or a a bunch of images or instructions, and you can do whatever you like with them. What do you think?

    This week's final five questions are below.
    Next week will start the new site.

    Bringing up Dred Scott Tyler's installation art "What is the Proper way to Display an American Flag?", what are your views on desecrating the American flag? Does the American flag itself, a physical object, truly deserve the reverence that some Americans give it?
    light_khaki

    What childhood memory haunts or delights you?
    wherever_we_go

    Why do people collect things? What does it do for them?
    johnjihoonchang

    If you had an unlimited human resource and a choice limited only to 'civil engineering project' what would you get built and why?
    ChristianHilton

    What's the worst pain you've ever felt?
    Seargent_Peppers
    June 21st

    Oraea is the Goddess of Summer honored in Greece at the Solstice.


    Pope Paul III issued the Licet Ab Initio, making the Inquisition the central authority on heretics in Rome in 1542.



June 20, 2009

  • Midsummer's Eve

    "Solstice" is derived from "sol," meaning sun, and "sistere," to stand still. As the summer solstice approaches, the noonday sun rises higher and higher in the sky on each successive day, but on the day of the solstice, it rises an imperceptible amount compared to the day before, and so it is said to stand still. In some languages solstices and equinoxes begin or separate the seasons; in others, they are the center points. This is so with the Summer Solstice, also known as Midsummer. The exact date and time of the Summer solstice varies every year, occurring on or about the 21st of June when the Sun enters zero degrees Cancer. This year solstice occurs today (June 21st) at 12:45 AM EST. Due to the Celtic tradition of counting days from sundown to sundown, it is customary to begin feasting the night before the holiday. In the Christian religion, June 23rd is St John's Eve, commemorating the birthday of St John the Baptist. He is the only saint remembered for his birth day rather than the day of his death, but this date was adopted by early Christian clergy in an effort to attract more parishioners just as the date of Christmas was adopted to detract from Yule.

    Summer Solstice or Midsummer's Eve is the longest day of the year and the shortest night. There are many other names for this holy day however. Midsummer's Eve is only one of the most common. The name of Litha is a fairly recent appellation based on a Saxon word simply meaning opposite Yule. Alban Hefin, Alben Heruin "Light of the Shore", All-couples day, Feast of Epona, Feill-sheathain, Gathering Day, Johannistag, Mean Samhraidh, Sonnwend, and Thing-Tide are other names. In Spain, this night is called "Night of the Verbena (vervain)."

    In England, large bonfires are lit after sundown which serve the double purpose of illuminating the revelers and warding off evil sprites. Next to Samhain, Midsummer's Eve is one of the favored times of the "Other Folk." One can assume that the bonfires, also called the "Fire's of Heaven," were originally meant to strengthen the sun, whose time in the sky begins to diminish now as the days pass. Such bonfires are also referred to as Need-Fire, Living-Fire, and Wild-Fire. Kindled with fern and pine needles, a combination of nine woods combine to make the fire. These include hazel, oak, apple, alder, birch, holly, willow, aspen, and ash. Other traditions like the flaming wheel and swinging a burning tar barrel may also be seen as an attempt to strengthen the dying sun.

    The practice of lighting the Midsummer's Eve bonfires was referred to as "setting the watch," and people would leap over the flames for luck. In many cultures, it is customary to burn a straw effigy over the fires. This may be emblematic of the funerary rights held for Balder and other dying gods of the season. In Norway, the bonfires were called Balder's Balefires. Herds of cattle are driven through the ashes to bless them and keep them free from harm. Later, the cold ashes from the bonfires were scattered over the fields to ensure their continued health and future productivity. A procession of people known as the "marching watch" carrying cressets (pivoting lanterns atop poles) and accompanied by Morris Dancers, six hobby horse riders, and other players dressed as a unicorn and a dragon would wind from bonfire to bonfire.

    At this time of year, it is customary to gather certain herbs for drying. Many can benefit from being dried over the Midsummer's Eve bonfire or at least being passed through its smoke. Birch, fennel, St John's wort, and white lilies are traditional decorations used in the warding of the home against evil, and they are best hung over the door. Five plants are thought to be most powerful if gathered Midsummer's Eve. These are roses, rue, St John's wort, vervain, and trefoil. Mistletoe is also of special import at this time. As the instrument of Baldur's death, the Norse god of summer, Mistletoe is most powerful at Midsummer, the day of his death. Other powerful herbs are chamomile, chickweed, chicory, cinquefoil, figwort, heartsease, hemp, lavender, meadowsweet, and mugwort. It was typical to dry nine herbs over the Midsummer's Eve fires, and these could be selected from the herbs above.

    This is also one of the best times of the year to collect a variety of magickal paraphernalia. The June full moon is called the Honey Moon because this is one of the most appropriate times to collect the bees' gold. Sound familiar? June is named for Juno, goddess of weddings (among other things). The Honey Moon was typically the time for newly weds to celebrate, drinking mead as an aphrodisiac. Mead is brewed from the collected honey at this time (about 10 days before the solstice) and drunk during the celebration. Honey can also be kept on the alter during June rituals, and you may use it to dip your cakes.

    Birds of all sort, especially water birds, are sacred as solar symbols, as are stags, oxen, and horses. Water as a healing elixir is also a solar symbol, carrying the energy of the sun for those who need it. In ancient times, offerings of glass, pottery, coins, stones, wooden figures, and gold charms were given at sacred springs, lakes, and wells, and their accompanying sacred trees were decorated with flowers and ribbons while people danced and feasted. These sacred waters were used for divination as well as healing, and the water was gathered to sprinkle over the fields and gardens for the blessing of rain and health. If you don't have access to sacred springs, ocean water is one source of magickal water which can be used on your altar. Rain water can be collected if you are not near the sea. The more electrical energy in the storm, the more powerful the water will be. (NOTE -Keep your water in a glass or porcelain jar (avoid metal), and store it on a shelf. Keeping it on the floor will ground it and make it useless for your purposes.) Adding shells, rocks from the sea, and other non-perishable sea items will keep the energy in the water higher longer.

    Spells to divine your future mate are typical for Midsummer's Night. One of the simplest spells involves wearing goldenrod during the waxing of the June moon. You will glimpse your future love the following day. To divine more about your future lover, you might try twisting off the stem of an apple while reciting the alphabet. When the stem finally breaks, the letter you end on is the first letter of your true love's name. Dipping an article of clothing in "fair water" (very clear or rose water) is another way to receive a vision of your future mate. Turn it inside out and lay it on a chair in front of a fire. Place some wine and a bit of salt near the fireplace. If you remain silent, eventually the image of your true love will appear to turn your clothes around and drink a toast to you. Men, don't feel left out. At midnight, a man may go to a churchyard or holy place with a sword. Circling the area nine times (presumably clockwise though my references don't specify), he must say, "Here's the sword; where's the sheath?" On the ninth turn, his beloved is said to appear and steal a kiss.

    Another tradition at this time of year was to attempt to make vigil for this, the shortest night of the year. Success was a mixed blessing. Death was one possibility, madness another, but poetic inspiration was the ultimate goal, some might say a form of divine madness all its own. Keeping vigil in an ancient stone ring was often recommended for such an undertaking, but drawing a circle to sit in could work as well.

    Snakes were particularly active at this time. In ancient Britain, it was said that as they gathered to mate, they would roll themselves into a tight ball, and a ball of hardened foam was the result. Called the glain naidr "serpent's glass," "serpent's egg," or "druid's egg," it is very powerful, allowing its owner to gain access to kings and win lawsuits. In the reign of Claudius Caesar, a Roman citizen was put to death for carrying such a charm to court. Obtaining the charm was no easy matter however. The snakes did not give it willingly. As they writhed, they would throw the ball into the air. The prepared observer could catch the ball in his cloak before it had a chance to shatter, but he had to be fleet of feet. The snakes would quickly turn on him. Only running water would bar their path. Pliny described the serpent's egg as about the size of an apple, "with cartilaginous skin covered with discs." Many folklorists and scholars consider this a fossil echinus (sea urchin), which has been found in many Gaelic tombs and which may indicate a snake cult of some kind. Rings or beads of glass found in Wales, Cornwall, and the Highlands have also been called "serpent's glass" and were thought to have been formed in the same way. These along with ancient spindle-whorls called "adder stones" were said to have the ability to ward off snake attacks.

    Along with snakes, the fay folk were very active on this night. In order to see them, you could gather fern seed (pollen) at midnight to rub on your eyelids. Rue carried in your pocket would protect you from their tricks and being "pixie-led." Turning your jacket inside out was another way to protect yourself. Keeping to the ley lines or crossing living (running) water also protected against malevolent spirits. In Norway, a type of toadstool was thrown into the bonfires by the spectators in order to protect against trolls. If any trolls are nearby, the toadstools will reveal them.
    June 20th

    On Midsummer's Eve, there is feasting, fires, songs, and dances. Bonfires are kindled on high hills to commemorate the high point of the year. The barrier between the living and the dead is very thin at this time. Fire was used to ward off evil spirits and St.John's wort would also drive evil specters away. Fern seeds protected from evil witchcraft, but also allowed young women to divine their future mates. Scattering the seeds at midnight, a woman was instructed to peek over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of her future husband.

    This is the longest day of the year and a time of sanctity. Alban Hefin is sacred to the Mother Goddess, personified as Cerridwen. The Litha celebration includes fires lit to allow the smoke to waft over everything it is meant to bless. Burning sunwheels, blazing brands spun in circles from chains, and flaming tar barrels sent down the hill were once common before the introduction of fire works. Burning torches can be carried around buildings, gardens, and fields to endure their good fortune.



    Among the Asatru, Balder the beautiful and Thor and his wife Sif are honored on the solstice.



    The eve of the summer's solstice also marks the martyrdom of Iron Skegge. He was tortured on the orders of the Christian king Olaf Tryggvason but refused to give up his faith in the gods.



    The solstice is known as Geshi in Japan. Prayers are offered as protection and purification from the heat and disease of Summer.



    The day of All Heras honors women's mysteries. It honors those who have achieved full communion with the Mother of All Things. A hera was often the guardian of a Temple, community, or village.



June 19, 2009

  • WCFQ 51b: How *Not* to Survive a Robot Uprising

    Are you an Alien or a Robot?
    An alien being someone who
    goes their own way,
    not being afraid of being unique;
    A robot being someone who follows
    and likes what other people like
    due to popularity.
    DengKeeevvin

    I've always been an alien. No doubt about it. I have my own thoughts and am pretty indifferent as to whether they mesh with the status quo. I only conform to the practical things, such as being employed and maintaining the skills it takes to be employable, or obeying the laws of my country (ie not dismantling or reprogramming the more ignorant robots I must deal with in my day to day life).
    Conformity does serve a purpose. In some circumstances, it can save you from becoming a victim. On the other hand, nothing was ever changed by hiding out in the shadows. I don't believe in conforming if it means betraying my beliefs or morals. I'm sure lots of people could agree with that principle, but putting it into practice is another thing entirely. I've been told that I was born too late or too soon. I have old fashioned ethics, coupled with a liberal openness to new concepts and ideas. I don't follow rules, per se, rather I feel my way along, examining my motives and the impact my actions will have on others.
    With respect to morality and openness of heart - values usually regarded as something to which religion contributes - a literal approach seems unable to foster one's development as a moral human being.  I think this is because when the world is made up of rules and commands that take their force from Higher Authority, one never has to think deeply about the impact of what one does so long as the letter of the law is obeyed.  This is very sad.

    On the other hand, when the rules are less certain, or are simply principles, they require that we think about the larger context of what we do... The result is to push us to examine our own motives and the impact of what we do on others. (Spirituality and Empathy)


    In the end, I am my own person, conforming to those aspects of society which serve my will but which are not always convenient. It is certainly not convenient in today's society to be asexual or a Pagan, yet I choose to maintain both world views because that is who I am. It would be more convenient to be a robot and conform to society's standards of sexuality and religion, but it would not be satisfying to be someone I am not.
    June 19th

    In ancient Rome, the Day of All Heras began tonight in honor of the Goddess within as well as all wise women.



June 18, 2009

  • WCFQ 51a: Your Death is Your Own

    Should euthanasia be legalized?
    i_heart_concussions

    I don't see the purpose in prolonging a person's life past a certain point. Health-wise, I don't recall ever hearing of someone who lived long enough with a terminal illness for a cure to be found. What we really have to ask ourselves is, at what point does quality of life make living not worth it? How many machines do you need to be hooked up to and how many drugs do you have to take before letting nature take its course sounds like a good idea?

    The thing is, as those who read my views on the afterlife will be aware, I don't see any need to fear death. No one is exempt from death and we're not designed to live forever. As I am fond of saying, it's only life; it's not like it's permanent. Physically we break down and can't be repaired past a certain point. We are finite beings and our flaws are part of the design. People who attempt to prolong their lives are fearful of death. I'm not. And so I think people who want to die should be permitted to do so because obviously any fear they have of death is outweighed by weight of their lives.

    Your death is the only thing you truly own. It's yours and no one else's. When people force another to live well past the time that their body would have given up, then their lives are no longer their own. Their lives become someone else's property. Forcing someone to live in pain is selfishness, not love.  We euthanize our pets when their lives become unbearable. Shouldn't our loved ones have access to the same dignity?
    June 18th

    In ancient Rome, the goddess Anna was honored with an annual religious festival.


    Church of All Worlds chartered with the IRS in 1970.


    Min appears on the 5th day of Mesore.




  • WCFQ 51e: Looking the Part

    Do you think a person's looks
    affect his or her success in the job market?
    WondersCafe

    Say you had to hire someone for a job. You had two candidates. One had a clear complexion, clean hair, lack of body odor, clean cut nails, well kept cloths, etc. The other had dirt under their ragged nails, hair at odd angles, an unidentifiable foul odor, ragged cloths, greasy, pimply skin, etc.

    Which would you hire? Unless the unhygienic candidate had unbelievable skills in whatever position they hoped to fill, you'd probably hire the person who took the time to dress for the interview. If nothing else, the clean cut applicant shows that they're willing to be professional in their appearance, whereas the other candidate is at best indifferent to possible employment.

    Physical attractiveness is more than skin deep. Bad hygiene can make even the most attractive person repulsive and vice versa. If you want the job, you need to dress the part. Dress and behave like a slob and the job will go to the person with the most professional attitude. Getting a job is about being qualified, and self confidence is a qualification that employers look for. If you don't want the job, they can tell and one of the easiest ways to tell is by the ugliness that comes of indifferent hygiene. Ripped up clothes, inappropriate hair, dirty skin... unless you're applying to be a roadie, a garbageman, or a dishwasher, in which case no one cares what you look like, you're not going to get the job.
    June 17th

    In the Japanese city of Nara, thousands of lilies are collected from a nearby mountain and taken to a temple. Blessed by seven young women in white robes, a Shinto priest lays a large bouquet of the lilies at the altar. A dance using the lilies is performed by the women to drive away the evils of the rainy season.



    Eurydice (a tree nymph who was transformed into an Underworld goddess after dying from a serpent bite) was honored annually in ancient Greece. The marriage of Orpheus and Eurydice is celebrated.



    The Ludi Piscatari was celebrated by Roman fishermen.



    In ancient Egypt, this night was known as Leyleten-Nuktah, "the night of the drop." A miraculous drop was believed to fall into the Nile causing it to rise.



    Gwyl o Bardd is a Festival of the Bards beginning at sundown and continuing through June 22nd.



June 16, 2009

  • Poem: [untitled]

    her life's blood adrift in dark seas
    galaxies coagulating
    dark waters of infinity
    lit by fading embers of life
    deep sea vents illuminate the
    curdled darkness of ancient space
    newborn hungry minds glut on light

    consuming inspiration
    and consumed

    look up
    look outward
    see the infinite within

    salty water moving
    in the mirror of a sweet sea

    I'm not sure of a title for this. I am thinking Tiamat... or possibly Kali-ma?
    June 16th

    On Silver Chalice Day, Wiccan friends and coven members gather together in a circle to rejoice and share a traditional silver chalice of wing (or fruit juice) consecrated in the names of the Goddess and Her consort, the Horned God. Many Pagan handfastings and Wiccanings are performed by coven priestesses around this time of the month.


    On the 3rd day of Mesore, a Feast of Raet, and Feast of Hathor as Sirius occurred.



June 14, 2009

  • Writers Choice Featured Questions Week 51

    Writing prompts for discerning writers with more to say
    than Xanga's Featured Questions gives them credit for.

    five questions for this week

    Should euthanasia be legalized?
    i_heart_concussions

    Are you an Alien or a Robot? An alien being someone who goes their own way, not being afraid of being unique; A robot being someone who follows and likes what other people like due to popularity.
    DengKeeevvin

    What is your favorite genre of music? Why?
    Oceans_Beautiful_View

    Who do you look up to and why?
    BabyGenie

    Do you think a person's looks affect his or her success in the job market?
    WondersCafe

    Answer any one or all of these questions in the coming week. I try to mix the whimsical with the serious here, so hopefully there is at least one question here for everyone.

    Next week will mark the 52nd post of WCFQ, one full year of stolen Featured Questions with not a single acknowledgment from the Supreme Xangan Overlords. Should next week be the last WCFQ or should I start a separate Xanga Blog just for them?

    Do me a favor... if you like the WCFQ, click the little recommend button every Sunday or whenever you get to them. Maybe that will make whoever is in charge of the regular featured questions notice.
    June 13th
    (yesterday)

    Gerald Gardner, founder of the Gardnerian branch of witchcraft was born on this day in 1884. Born in Lancashire, England, he was nicknamed King of the Witches and became a famous and well-respected Wiccan author. He died on February 12th, 1964.


    Irish poet and ceremonial magician William Butler Yeats was also born on this date in the year 1865.


    Athena represents the harmonious blending of power and wisdom. She is patroness of both practical and aesthetic arts honored today. This is the first day of the Lesser Quinquatrus in honor of Minerva/Athena. The festival lasted three days and was celebrated by the guild of flute-players, an instrument she invented. They honored in a masked processions through the city, meeting at her temple. A banquet was held in the temple of Jupiter of the Capitol.


    The Nativity of the Muses, Natalis Musarum, is celebrated. According to Hesiod the Muses are the daughters of Mnemosyne (Memory) by Zeus. Their names and attributes are Calliope (epics), Clio (history), Euterpe (lyrical song), Thalia (comedy), Melpomene (tragedy), Terpsichore (dance), Erato (erotic poetry), Polymnia or Polyhymnia (hymns), and Urania (astronomy).


    This is All Souls' Day in Tibet.
    June 14th
    (today)

    The Festival of Jagannath is celebrated by Hindus who flock to the city of Puri on India's eastern coast. Jagannath is a benevolent incarnation of Vishnu, lord of creation. The day before the festival, three huge statues of the god, his brother, and his sister, are adorned with crowns of flowers and golden robes before being transported to three floats. The following morning the floats are pulled to a building called Jagannath's garden house. Helping to pull the god's float brings his blessings to the faithful. The statues remain in the garden house for seven days while pilgrims feast and dance. On the eighth day, the statues are returned to the floats and pulled back to the temple.


    This day is sacred to Vidar, son of Odin and god of forests. Leather workers should put aside all their scraps for his boot which will enable him to successfully fight the wolf Fenris during Ragnarok.


    Rain today meant rainy weather for the next thirty days.


    In ancient Rome, the goddess Minerva (patroness of wisdom and the arts, and a deity of battle) was honored annually on this date at her sacred festival, the Lesser Quinquatrus of Minerva.


    This is the 1st day of Mesore according to the Egyptian calendar. Ma'at unites as one with all the Netjeru of the heavens.




    June 15th
    (tomorrow)

    Vesta was honored with the first fruits, and the Penus of the Temple of Vesta was swept out and closed today for another year. This is the third and last day of the Lesser Quinquatrus in honor of Minerva.


    In the year 1648, Margaret Jones of Charlestown, Massachusetts, was executed in Boston for practicing Witchcraft and magickal healing. This was the first pre-Salem Witch execution to be officially recorded in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.



June 12, 2009

  • WCFQ 50e: Life After Life

    What is your belief of the afterlife?
    Jolteus33

    I'm a pantheist. My own take on "god" is that in creating existence out of itself, the act of expansion and the act of giving creation freewill meant separating its individual aspects and making them true individuals with barriers between consciences. Thus "god" discorporated into reality and allowed all life to follow its own path. We are all contained within the original "God," but all things have a spirit, both organic and inorganic matter from plant, animals, and rocks to planets and stars. This entity left greater and lesser spirits, essentially more powerful, more aware pieces of itself, in charge of things while it's continuously pregnant with and giving birth to reality. If we aren’t aware of them on a daily basis, it probably means they’re doing their jobs properly without too much grandstanding.

    There’s only a small portion of your "consciousness" in this incarnation. Life is our caterpillar stage, and we only reach maturity with death. Sometimes people become confused at death and get stuck in their cocoons, become ghosts, though most ghosts are just echoes IMO. Most people pass on to whatever afterlife they expect. Death is rebirth into a new existence.

    In the afterlife, you pretty much get what you expect. So if you expect to be punished for your "wrong doing, " then you get "hell." It’s all in your "head, " except when you’re dead, you haven’t got a head. lol So your perception is based on your belief/expectation. There is basically no place where god is absent (all of reality is god's body), even hell because hell is "in your head." You get out of hell when you learn to forgive yourself, but the Xtians have got it backwards and wait for god to forgive them. If god’s in you and me, an intrinsic part of us, then one can expect forgiveness to come from within coupled with determination not to do "wrong" any more, in other words, to make amends. It’s also up to you how to make amends to yourself, because once you realize everyone is part of the same being, you realize you’ve wronged yourself. Wrong becomes completely perceptual. The only wrong thing is not respecting yourself or your reality (ie, all the various bits and pieces of god).

    You can be anything you want in the afterlife. Your image of self is dependent upon your attention. If you don’t pay attention to yourself for a couple eons, you could safely be said to not exist until you remember yourself. You can touch on any being you’ve been in any incarnation and be that entity. When you are dead, you are not the person you are right now. You are a collection of all your experiences, and focusing on memories from one life or another will cause you to be more like the person you were in that life.

    The difficulty with discussion of what goes on between lives arises from the fact that spiritual existence is so alien to our current existence. We don’t perceive things the way we do here. Our goals are entirely different. We’re more aware of things that we barely consider here. Between lives, we are simply a collection of thoughts, reflecting on and digesting our experiences, and considering what we would like to do next. Come back, join with the creator-soul, putz around the afterlife for a couple centuries... the only thing that forces us to come back to this realm is ourselves.

    The purpose of life and death is to gain experience and reunite the various pieces of god into a new being, basically all souls and matter rejoining into whatever form It held before the Big Bang. I think black holes are the efforts of the universe to return all matter to its origins and some theories of universal demise do center on massive black holes swallowing everything. According to Mayan and Hindu belief, "the world" has ended several times already and been reborn from the ruin of the previous one. There’s no reason to believe that it couldn’t have happened an infinite number of times, and every time the reformed god and its subsequent new universe is slightly different. The life span of the universe is like a giant mobius strip.

    The term "life span" is subjective, as is "infinity." Since the life span of a universe is stretched out over a period of time that belies contemplation, there’s no reason to rejoin the reforming god prematurely since it would take the collection of all matter and (soul) energy in the universe for the process to begin again. But every end is a new beginning, so nothing ever truly ends; it’s just revised. This universe, the universe with which we are familiar, will end, but another will spring up in its place at the very instant this one ends, so existence is infinite, but our perception is finite, especially as we’re only temporary parts of a larger whole.

    Every being which joins the creator-soul adds its unique perspectives and experiences back to the whole. But new souls are periodically created from this evolving soul matrix because the universe is a long way away from coming to an end. Individuals can also choose not to rejoin the creator-soul, and that’s what reincarnation is all about. Sometimes they’re not ready and sometimes they want to continue their development in a new role. Sometimes they come back to teach others, as with Bodhisattvas. There are even such things as group-souls and soul families which I feel can form mini-collectives, coalescing into one soul and being born as one being. Reincarnation is a personal decision though and has nothing to do with karma (as it is understood in western philosophy) or punishments.

    Just as souls in a soul family or soul group can merge and become one soul, an individual soul can also divide, much like a single celled organism. One soul can divide to become two, with one being born and one remaining in the afterlife, or one soul can become many souls and all incarnate together as a soul family. They may have memories of their shared past or simply be drawn to each other or to similar ideas. A soul is like a seed which grows through the soil of our bodies to blossom into a new entity. Each incarnation changes us subtly in the afterlife so we are never exactly what we were before our incarnations.
    June 12th

    Light gold-colored candles on your alter and wear oak leaves in your hair to honor the Greek God Zeus, who is traditionally honored on this day.



    In Korea, rice farmers wash their hair in a stream as part of an ancient ritual to dispel bad luck and ensure an abundant crop.



    The 29th Epipi is a Festival of Mut and also the Feeding of the Netjers.



    Gwyl o Epona is the Feast of Epona beginning at sundown.