Merry Meet! I guess, I've had two burning questions in my head today, I've asked one, here's the other. What's wrong with being Wiccan? Why is "Wiccan" bandied about like its a bad word--like it burns the lips? I'm a green witch and a hoodoo. I'm happy about who and what I am; the likelihood of my changing is zil to none. I'm eclectic enough as it is, and now Indopaganism is also rearing its head for me and I embrace that call because that path has always been there for me. But still, Wiccanism seems like as much of a viable and beautiful of a path as any other. So, why do some pagans use it like a dirty word? I see a lot of people on covenspace identify as Wiccan, so present company is the exception. You all know I'm an author and I see this negativity towards Wiccanism elsewhere on the net. Anway, I'm very interested to hear your thoughts.
Does any one know about the legend of Lady Asphalta? A Priestess just told me to consult her when I needed a parking space but no further details. She is a most attentive entity and she really does listen. She's helpful but who or what is it? Do any of you know?
Candlemancy is perhaps the most American, of the various aspects of Hoodoo. We have always looked to our neighbors for inspiration and commonalities in our magical traditions. It is difficult to hear someone say, "oh that's Native American" when speaking of sage smudge sticks or "that's from Japan really isn't it?" speaking about specific resins and incenses, because very few cultures have lived in complete isolation for long--monolithic culture is more of an ideal, that supports racism and zenophobia than a reality based in fact--thank the Goddess. And, then there are those who claim there is traditional Hoodoo. Huh? How could an eclectic practice be traditional? What I love about Hoodoo is that it is ever growing, changing and shifting, hopefully with the times. You know, Hoodoos use to boil black cats alive (cover your ears my sweet kitty's) looking for that luck bone to rise to the top of the brew. Is that a tradition we want to uphold so we can call ourselves traditional Hoodoos? I think not; if you do, I hope PETA catches up to your a-- right quick; you'll really be hot footin' then. Seriously though, even before the massive waves of immigrations and the advent of slavery, there were still elaborate trade routes all over the world, making cross overs in traditions, recipes, groups of people and practices inevitable. In the United States when folks huddle together in city neighborhoods the interchange is swift. Many of its practitioners are African American but certainly not all. Hoodoo, is a constantly changing form that has looked to and incorporated many traditions and paths, whether they be Jewish, Asian, Native American, South American or Central American. The most recent explosion has been in our interest in the Botanicas that have popped up in city neighborhoods bringing with them Latino candalmancy--rituals and altars that salute a wide variety of Saints through speciality prayer candles. Saints which easily relate back to gods and goddesses of various African pantheons throughout the diaspora of belief. I grew up with candles in my home and community so I equate them with family, warmth and celebration as I said in my previous post. Since Advent our living space has been aglow, in fact, I'm fixin' to light some candles right now. But they've been acting up right funny lately, hissing, crackling, starting out sooty and ending with long tapering flames. Candlemancy is about interpretation, it involves symbolism, magickal herbalism and more. What, oh what, will those candles tell me next?
Stephanie Rose Bird
expanded excerpt from "Sticks, Stones, Roots and Bones: Hoodoo, Mojo and Conjuring with Herbs."
I enjoy duality so naturally this time of the year is one I am very attentive to. Celtic or not most neopagans visualize this time that draws near to Yule as the time of heavenly battle. Through our mind's eyes we are privy to the age-old battle between Oak King and Holly King, who some see as different gods and others perceive as two aspects in the duality of a single god. Golden King also called Oak King, is the light twin, who rules from midwinter to midsummer. The Dark King, Holly King rules the dark half of the year from Midsummer to Midwinter. Neither rules without a battle for the good graces of the Goddess. The defeated twin lies dormant or dies and is reborn a baby, growing six months until the battle at Litha or Yule. We carry bits and pieces of the battle into our magickal and mundane lives. Some covens reenact the battle. Solitaries have their own ways of engaging. The Yule log always incorporates some oak, as a tribute to Oak King. It is lit ceremoniously; Light King set ablaze creating a warming fire fit for celebration. Spiky holly is worn as a crown or made into a wreath--a symbol of the continuity of live and our stories. Nonpagans are swept up in the glitz and media blitz of Christmas but the underclothing of Christmas is very pagan, complete with Yule logs, an indoor lit evergreen tree, plenty of holly, the colors: gold, green, red and white; and the foods of our ancestors. I find the fire a particularly important element of Yule and preparation for it. Already, each morning I am lighting my green woods, red spice and white vanilla candles to scry, to warm my spirits, to imagine the ancient stories and take time out to remember. These candles are lit from around 6 a.m. until noon; longer if need be. The story of the kings is inspirational and much more sensible than the modern monstrous manifestation that all my friends and readers know I call the Holidaze. I'm fortunate to be African American and Pagan with Celtic and other very intriguing blended ancestry. The gift of my ancestors means I have so much to celebrate and to continue to be thankful for. Yule and Kwanzaa light this time that would otherwise be a chasm of spiritual darkness.
Welcome to my covenspace.com blog. Some of you might know me while others do not and I wasn't quite able to say my true path, which is Green Witch and Hoodoo because those categories were not available. I am a painter, I dance and I write...sometimes, seemingly too much. Writing is consuming and a passion. It brings together my creative impulses as an artist and my tendencies towards the scholarly because I have spent many years in academia. The cool thing about the arts is that you can always be yourself and sandwiched between the creative and scholarly in my case lives a lot of magick. My first book "Sticks, Stones, Roots and Bones: Hoodoo, Mojo and Conjuring with Herbs," remains a huge success thanks to you, my readers and some encouragement from supportive critics. It won the COVR award in 2005 for Best General Interest Book, which was a pleasant surprise. My second book, "Four Seasons of Mojo: an Herbal Guide to Natural Living," came out a couple of years later, also receiving a warm welcome from readers eager to learn more about the spirituality and healing traditions of people of color. This work marked a point of departure as it is not a hoodoo book, rather it is a magickal herbal cookbook designed to help readers get the most out of every season--whether it is wheel of the year or cycle of life. Both books are slimmer than I'd like, yet they are chock full of what I could fit in. This includes rituals, spells, ceremonies, herbalism, conjuring, meditations, affirmations, gardening, spirituality, African pantheons, Goddess lore and much more. So to date, I've brought you a forward thinking contemporary magick book built around the path of hoodoo and a holistic health, seasonal celebration book that incorporates cultures from all around the world. My last book was published last year. Now, thank the Goddess, I have three more books in development. One is a dense book on magickal arts and crafts by women of the African diaspora. The other explores multiracial culture and the third is an African tree medicine book. So stay tuned my friends. I have lots and lots more to say and I look forward to your continued questions, comments, reviews, curiousity and support.
