Friday 30 July 2010

Sitting up to 5 a.m. ...

... until we were satisfied that this fire, between us and our German neighbour, was completely out. At one point we had the car loaded with dog and essentials, ready to evacuate.

July and August are fire "season" and the sky is already overcast, blotting out the sun, from fires raging out of control to our north. This is something completely alien to those of us from northern Europe; Portugal, and the other countries of southern Europe, are being completely devasted by random, mindless firestarters. Please send any spare healing energies to the land, that is in danger of rapidly becoming a barren desert.
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Wednesday 28 July 2010

Labyrinth Mk 1...

...Following on from some labyrinthine discussions on Green Witch Garden, here is the proto-type labyrinth we built on our land before we decided on a classical, 7-circuit design.

I did say a while ago I would post more of our experiences, both with building and using our labyrinths. I suppose I will get around to it one day!
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Sunday 25 July 2010

Keeping the bugs at bay...

The cosy glow from our tiny oil lamp that burns citronella to keep the mossies away.
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Saturday 24 July 2010

The sight that nobody wants to see...


...a plume of smoke on the horizon, that signifies the fire season is well and truly underway in central Portugal.Posted by Picasa

Dr Usui altar...

...note, my sweetening jar has a sticky puddle of honey. Must have syphoned it up! Which, I am taking as a good sign, incidentally - overflowing with milk and honey and all that jazz!Posted by Picasa

Monday 19 July 2010

In the centre of the labyrinth...

...drying some sage bundles for home-made smudge. 
 
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...also, still drying the hare´s tail. Not sure how I will use it but it was too pretty to discard.

Fig chutney...

 Some of our black figs are ripening and so I made some into Fig Chutney - delicious with Brie cheese! Pretty colour don´t you think?
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Saturday 17 July 2010

Just a general update...

...I don´t seem to have had much to say, or anything I wanted to photograph. A reflection of the heat and feeling overwhelmed with things I guess. Whilst some of our "stuff" is at last beginning to shift, some of the important stuff seems resolutely stuck. Like selling this property for one, about which I am completely ambivolent, despite the fact that S. mentions it every day. Also, still waiting on repair of our motor camper, which we really need very soon for a planned trip to Sines. And finally, our solar invertor - still an empty space where that belongs and no sign of any payment from our insurance company (surprise, surprise).

Wednesday 14 July 2010

So helpful....

...for dealing with the rather strange, post-eclipse energies of Sun in Cancer.

Monthly Transit Talk

Saturday 10 July 2010

Added to the list of critters on the hit list...

... Horse Flies. I don´t dislike many animals, but these sods really bite. I have a swollen foot, hand and arm and I am not happy!!!

Friday 9 July 2010

In looking up "telestika"...

...I found the following fascinating information here:

In the Chaldean system, Hekate controlled demons that were mediators between the worlds of gods and men, delivering information and guidance to theurgists. She was the mistress of the iynges (sg. iynx), noetic entities (demons) conceived by the Father and sent down to transmit information or creative power to the material world, and who were also able to transmit information back from the material world to the noetic realm. In other words, since it was the goal of a Chaldean theurgist to have his soul released from this world and be unified (anagōgē) with the divine while the body was still alive, Hekate was able to help men take their first steps towards the theurgical ascension of the soul by sending down the secret knowledge stored in her (as the Soul) in the form of iynges. Thus she was a savior figure, comparable to the Gnostic redeemer. Repeated theurgical practice purified the soul for its eventual release from fate when the theurgist’s body died. Other theurgical operations such as initiations, invocations of gods and animation of their statues (telestika), as well as an ascetic lifestyle and contemplation, helped to prepare the theurgist for the union by purifying or unifying his soul. The primary purpose of all these acts was to obtain more information from a god, such as how to perform further theurgical acts leading to the unification or purification of the soul, or to understand more about the cosmos, which in turn facilitated psychic ascension.

Even though Hekate usually sent iynges or other entities to reveal secret knowledge to the theurgist, occasionally she could also manifest herself to disclose information. The Chaldean Oracles portray Hekate as appearing in the dark sky - after all, she is a celestial goddess identified with the moon. Hekate appears as the “Formless Fire” from which her voice emerges as she speaks to the theurgist, while her accompanying cohort of iynges, angels, and other demons appear as “lightning” in the dark sky. The Oracles describe the goddess descending dressed in full armor and bearing weapons - the weaponry being a metaphor for the theurgical knowledge. This knowledge was aimed at the theurgist who needed it for the ascension of his soul.

Gothic Charm School - love it !

Tuesday 6 July 2010

Way too hot...

Touching 40 deg now and we are still struggling without our solar system i.e. running generators and hence NO FRIDGE. I can´t tell you how difficult that is.
Nothing getting done in the day - horizontal all afternoon.

Thursday 1 July 2010

Lavender Bundle...

I harvested my lavender today and used some of it to create this. Here is the method:
Use an odd number, 13 or more, of long stems of lavender, freshly picked on a dry day, and about 1 metre of narrow ribbon in a suitable colour. Make a bunch, lining up the base of the flower heads. Leave an 20cm length of ribbon free at one end, then tie the stems together just below the heads. Gently bend back each stem until the flower heads are enclosed by the stems. Take the length of ribbon you saved and weave it under and over each stem, travelling around the bundle several times until the flower heads are covered with ribbon. Tuck in the short end and tie to make a hanging loop. Tie a bow with the other end. Trim the stalks and the ribbon.