Brightest Blessings!

The Witchcraft Dawning Newsletter will be conducting a general 
education on Witchcraft for the next couple of mailings.

For this Newsletter, we will address the general principles of 
Rituals, Magick and Spells, as well as some information and ideas on 
the upcoming Sabbat: Lughnasadh.

This newsletter will come in two sections because the GetReminded 
server says it's to long... go fig :)
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Magick is the art of diverting and influencing the original path of 
energy currents. When performing a specific magickal act, the person 
or group is attempting to alter or influence the possibility of an 
event happening (or not happening).  In other words, magick is an 
attempt to influence chance through the will and energy of the 
performer. While it is the Mind that shapes the energy, the energy is 
still the basis of the magickal working, just as it is the basis of 
everything.

Since it is the Mind that shapes the energy, magick is neither good 
nor evil, positive nor negative.  It is the use of the power that 
determines the polarity. An example to consider here is a hammer, 
generally used as a tool to drive nails into a piece of wood for the 
purpose of building a structure. If one chooses to use the hammer to 
whack another person in the arm, it is the person using the hammer 
that has determined the negative focus of energy. The hammer is a tool 
and obviously does not have any say in the way it is wielded. 
Therefore, "there is no Black Magick, only Black Souls" (Markus).

A ritual is a focused mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual 
ceremony to either honor or thank you're chosen deities, ancestor, or 
to perform a specific magickal working. Rituals are designed to unify 
all aspects of our being and from the unison we draw our greatest 
abilities; neither separating the aspects nor gathering them in pairs, 
but pull the trinity together.  Obviously this is not an instant 
achievement and takes much practice, but the complete unison is the 
ideal.

Rituals can be performed at any time: either weekly, during Full or 
New moons (or any phase), called Esbats, or on specified holidays, 
called Sabbats, which fall on the seasonal quarters and cross-quarters 
(as defined the Equinoxes and Solstices).  

During magick rituals the performer extends personal mental, 
emotional, and spiritual energy, spoken aloud or to oneself, written, 
drawn or even danced.  To be effective, spells should be clear, 
concise, focused, and emotional intent. The focus of intent must be 
present at all times to bring any spell to a successful culmination. 
Many say the "Need" must be present for a spell to work.  This is not 
entirely true.  One who is determined will be just as successful; the 
idea of "need" is the Cause of the determination.  Truly, need is a 
more effective way of building determination, but it is hardly the 
only way.  Unfortunately, power lust is another big builder.  The 
principle is that the words, motions, and thoughts cannot be of the 
"going through the motions" attitude; emotional involvement is 
necessary (hence, "need" makes a very effective motivator).  You need 
the energy and belief that your magick is going to work in order to 
most appropriately focus the energy.  

For best results, (Markus interjection: *smile* sounds like the 
directions on the side of a cooking box, "for best results, marinate 
in a spicy cajun sauce and allow to simmer for 10 to 15 mins" -- 
*cough* sorry) various forms of ritual preparation are very helpful. 
Taking a ritual bath, meditation, or both, can help to cleanse your 
body and mind in preparation for the proper focus of your ritual and 
magickal energies.  For ritual baths, many people use some type of 
cleansing spice or mineral; for example salt on a washcloth.  Some 
people focus on certain colors that are relaxing for them during 
meditation.  Whatever manner of mental centering works for you, that's 
the best one. Indeed, meditation is just not for some people, they are 
just to fidgety (for example, my girlfriend, who can't sit still for 
her life even if she tried *smile* -- Markus), and that's okay.  This 
allows your mind, body, and soul to prepare for the event.  You "tune 
in" to the psychic channels required and "tune out" distractions such 
as stress etc.

Magick is always secondary in a witch's life, the primary aspects of 
their life are just like the "normal" persons, consisting of eating, 
sleeping, working, and having fun.  A witch's time is committed to 
benefiting life! (This does at times include using magick to benefit 
self.)  Magick is a tool with which a witch promotes and benefits 
life. Wiccans use of magick is secondary to their worship of the Lord 
and the Lady (the God and Goddess). Traditional Witchcrafters 
concentrate on their primary purpose of benefiting life and reverence 
of ancestors to which their use of magick is secondary.  We will point 
out that not everyone wields magickal energy with high moral or 
ethical standards (we'd be extremely naive to believe that).   The 
majority of the magickal people do wield the energy within an ethical 
boundary.

Article by,
Sapphire SunDove

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Part 2: Lughnasadh 

The Wheel of the Year holds several purposes, both theological and 
practical.  Theologically, the story of the Wheel often varies 
depending on the Tradition.  The Wheel gives the accounts of the 
mythological events that repeat throughout the year as well as a vague 
"history" of the Gods and Goddesses involved within the pantheon.  For 
the newbies, by "Tradition" we mean "denomination"; for example  
Wiccan, Celtic, Druid, Native American, etc.  On the more practical 
side, the Wheel trains us to be able to deal with death and the 
inevitability of re-birth that follows.  Paganism teaches that death, 
a natural function of the universe, is a part of life; a dramatic 
change that is the beginning of a new experience, and something to be 
celebrated at the proper time not feared (not condoning Suicide!)  
Through the ideas of Heaven and Hell, Christianity teaches a deep fear 
of death, and this spurs our society's horror of death.  We are always 
trying to find new and improved ways to beat death, but we will never 
succeed.  It is sad our society portrays death as such a terrifying 
experience; we would certainly have less emotional pain and suffering 
in the world if death could be seen as what it is: a transformation, 
nothing more.  

In this section you will find a rendition of the upcoming quarter of 
the Wheel of the Year.  Included will be the mythological lore and 
some traditional practices for the celebration, along with some ideas 
for activities and decorations.  

*Date/Name:
August 1, 1997 holds the date for the next Sabbat:  Lughnasadh 
(pronounced "LOO-nahs-ah"), or Lammas, begins the last quarter of the 
Celtic/Pagan year.   

*Background Information:
Lughnasadh is the beginning of the grain harvest, and the harvest 
season in general.  The importance of grain to life is depicted in 
almost every pantheon on Earth.  The preparation of the grain is 
symbolic of the life cycle. The growth, havest, and sown seed 
directly mirrors the life, death and rebirth of all life.  The day of 
the festival was originally on the first day of harvest, even if it 
varied from year to year.  Alternately, when the sun reaches 15 
degrees Leo, usually around August 5th, Old Lammas was celebrated.  
This Sabbat can also be known as: Lammastide, First Harvest  Festival, 
Old Lammas, The Sabbat of First Fruits, Ceresalia (Ancient Roman for 
the Grain Goddess Ceres), Festival of Green Corn (Native American), 
Feast of Cardenas, Thingtide, Elembious, Cornucopia (Strega), Harvest 
Home, Feast of Bread, and August Eve.  Various spellings also include: 
Lughnasad, Lughnassad, Lughnasa, Lunasdal, or Lunasa.  The most common 
name is Lammas, meaning "loaf-mass," taken from Anglo-Saxon dialects, 
while Lughnasadh means "The funeral games of Lugh," referring to the 
games he hosted in honor of His foster-mother Tailltiu.

*Meanings:
Lughnasadh celebrates the first harvest of the year, which typically 
produces grain and early sprouting fruits.  It is therefore typically 
associated with the Sun Gods and Agricultural Goddesses.  In modern 
times, Pagans do not (usually) harvest their own foods, not since the 
invention of supermarkets, but this does not negate any of the meaning 
of the celebration.  It is a time of thanksgiving and sharing, not 
only of physical subsistence, but of knowledge and spiritual growth as 
well.  With the passing days, remember the warmth and bounty of Summer 
in the food consumed, and remember that nothing in the universe is 
constant.

It is a time to take a break and enjoy the fruits of your labor, as 
well as a time of health and erotic energy.  It is considered in many 
traditions a taboo not to share food and thought with others.  Natural 
energies are geared toward prosperity, abundance, and good fortune, as 
well as career, financial gain, and health.  On an additional side 
note, all four Quarter festivals were seen as being times of a 
weakening in the "veil," the boundary that separates the physical 
plane from the spiritual plane; "crossing over" was easier, as well as 
magick workings more potent.

*History/Mythology -- Celtic:
There are many Traditions that celebrate this Sabbat differently and 
it would take a book to add all the Sabbat Lore, so we will 
concentrate on two of the most popular areas:  Celtic and Wiccan.
Lughnasadh is named for Lugh (pronounced "Loo"), the Irish Sun God.  
The four Celtic Fire Festivals vary greatly in celebration customs, 
often by tribal regions, however, the religious theme remained 
consistent.

Within Celtic traditions, the masculine principle is sustained through 
the cycle of birth, death, and re-birth, while the feminine principle 
holds immortality.  The Triple Goddess goes through the metamorphosis 
of Maiden, Mother, and Crone because of her maternal longing to create 
and sustain life.  The Goddess sustains the God by never allowing Him 
to reach old age.  In the cycle, she is the Mother who gives him 
birth, the Crone who teaches him, and the Maiden who becomes his 
lover.  This is not an act of incest as many people chose to see, but 
rather symbolic of the shifting seasons and transformations we all 
take on during our life.  From the unison of God and Maiden Goddess, 
comes Tanist, the God’s other self. 

At Lughnasadh, the Maiden Goddess "betrays" the God and gives herself 
to the son, Tanist, who is the God of the dark half of the year.  No, 
this is not like the God of Good and the God of Evil, rather a 
division of the years daylight patterns: one God for the lengthening 
daylight, and Tanist for the half of waning daylight.  With the Maiden 
Goddess, Tanist will sow the seed of rebirth at Lughnasadh, that 
allows the God to be reborn again at Yule.  Lugh, the God of the Light 
half of the year is not killed, but rather the ability to grow is 
taken from him.  In ancient times the stolen growth aspect was 
symbolized through the maiming of the king.  The king was tied to an 
oak tree by his hair with one foot on a cauldron and the other lashed 
to the back of a horse or sow (both which are representative of the 
southern quarter and symbolic of the Goddess).  The horse or sow was 
sent from under him, causing a tear through the genital region and 
destroying his fertility but not his life.  His life was not taken 
until just before Samhain when Tanist began his reign.  

The seeming betrayal is not out of hate or disgust but rather out of 
the love the Goddess has for the God.  The Goddess will give rebirth 
to the God at Yule and he will rise to slay his rival at Bealltainn.  
This battle of light and dark keeps the seasons in balance, as well as 
the cycle of birth, death, and re-birth.

During the Bronze Age the God King, the predecessor of the High Kings, 
was elected to serve for a year  and a day, where after that time, he 
gave his life in sacrifice and honor of the Goddess, as well as for 
the welfare of his people.  The King's physical incarnation represents 
the fertility of the land, which has ceased when his fertility was 
taken; a theme that is found within all Celtic mythology.  In later 
times, this maiming was discontinued and the feast of Lughnasadh 
began.  A feast by Lugh in honor of his foster mother, Tailltiu.

*Mythology -- Wiccan: 
Lammas resides in the month of the Barley Moon.  At Lammas, the Wiccan 
rendition of the Wheel of the Year, portrays a mysterious weakening in 
the God (which is associated primarily with the Sun).  The Sun rises 
further to the South each day and the daylight shortens.  The Goddess 
watches in sorrow, realizing Her mate is dying, but is also joyful in 
the knowledge that he grows in her womb to be reborn as Her child.  
The Wiccan Goddess retains the Trinity aspect of Maiden, Mother, 
Crone, but there is no Tanist to present a rivalry for the God, nor 
any betrayal of love for the Goddess to commit.  The Mother gives 
birth to the God, the Crone teaches him, and the Maiden becomes His 
lover and He becomes His own father.  When He dwindles and dies, He is 
reborn at Yule, when the sun starts to grow in strength again, and 
daylight lengthens once more.

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Apologies for the third part... this server kept saying I exceeded the 
maximum limit.  I guess they expect people who don't do any work on 
their newsletters to use their machine.  They guessed wrong... and 
without further delay, the final section of this weeks newsletter. 

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*Decorations and Activities:
Traditionally, the first grain is baked into a loaf of bread and 
offered to the Goddess on the alter and/or eaten ceremoniously.  Berry 
pies are often baked to honor the sacrifice of the "Green Man," the 
spirit of all vegetation, whose death promises a bountiful harvest the 
following year.

Necklaces of corn seeds were traditionally made, both as decoration 
and a practical way of storing seeds for next years sowing.  Also Corn 
Dolls were fashioned from the last sheaf of grain which was cut by all 
the harvesters together.  The would all stand away from the stalk and 
throw their sickles at it, the one who cut the stalk was honored later 
in the feast.  Corn Dolls are sacred to the Crone aspect of the Triple 
Goddess.  Corn Dolls can also be used as a fertility amulet, charged 
with energy during ritual and can be used as centerpieces for the 
alter, representing the Goddess.

A very easy and fun decoration is the Sun/Corn Wheel, made to honor 
the Sun God of the festival (which ever it may be).  Wire coat hangers 
(or anything) are fashioned into a circle, and the corn husk is 
attached to the perimeter.  Ears of corn are connected from the 
perimeter to small wooden disk that rests in the middle of the circle. 
  Wrapping extra husk around the outside of the wire circle, using 
glue or thread to bind it, and leaving some dangling decoratively 
improves the appearance even more.  Try to keep the hanger hook to 
hang the finished product by.  Another variation is the Corn Man 
Wheel, made in a similar manner, but with five husks to resemble the 
five points of the pentacle.  (Greatly resembles a wire wheel with 
corn husk spokes.) 
 
Rhibo, a traditional Welsh game, is another (previously) common form 
of celebration.  The pairs of people line up facing each other and 
link hands, creating a "bed" with their arms.  A person is laid across 
the bed and tossed into the air, just as grain is sifted.  This game 
was most likely a agricultural lore, designed to ensure a large grain 
harvest the following year, by sympathetically mirroring the 
activities that are in the final sections of harvesting the crops.

Wiccans often hand bake bread and use it in ritual as an offering to 
the God and Goddess, and then consume it with thanks during the "Tea 
and Cakes Feast" afterward.  Sometimes these loafs are fashioned in 
the shape of an ear of corn or wheat, symbolic of the harvest and work 
done to bring the food to them.  

Also very appropriate to plant the seeds of fruit consumed during 
ritual.  If it sprouts, tend it with Love and a representation of your 
connection to the Divine. 

Other activities include: Horse racing (in water if possible, a rain 
lore for the following year); visits to lakes, wells, and/or orchards; 
mountain climbing; bonfire meetings to exchange learned lessons and 
stories. 

*Symbolic of Lughnasadh:
Foodstuffs: Beef, broccoli, cherries, spinach, any type of early 
berry, corn, potatoes, homemade bread (particularly wheat, oat, and 
especially corn bread), berry pies, barley cakes, nuts,  apples, rice, 
roast lamb, acorns, crab apples, summer squash, turnips, oats, and all 
grains.

Drinks: Elderberry Wine, Mead, Ale, Meadowsweet Tea, and Cider

Colors (for those who work with Candle Magick): Red, Orange, Yellow, 
and Gold.  Also Green, Light Brown, and Gray.  

Stones: Yellow Diamonds, Aventurine, Peridot, Citrine, and Sardonyx. 

Animals: Roosters, Calves, and Pigs (sows in particular)

Mythical Creatures: Griffins, Basilisks, Centaurs, and Phoenix

Plants: Corn, Rice, Wheat, Rye, and Ginseng.

Herbs: Acacia Flowers, Aloes, Cornstalks,  Cyclamen, Fenugreek, 
Frankincense, Heather, Hollyhock, Oak Leaves, Wheat, Sunflower, and 
Myrtle .

Incenses would includes: Aloes, Rose, Rose Hips, Rosemary, Chamomile, 
Passionflower, Frankincense, and Sandalwood. 


Article By,
Markus
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Finally Done!!! Thanks for your time all... we are looking for some 
feed back on the newsletter. i.e. What you like, what you don't like, 
what you haven't seen that you Want to see, and your over all opinion. 
  Just a few words from all 30 subscribers would be nice if you 
wouldn't mind.  It will help us improve the information standard 
greatly.  Please email one of the editors below... thanks in advance.

~Markus
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Edited by,        Ralph Melancon
                  ralphmj@hotmail.com
                  
                    &
 
                  Markus 
                  Witchcraft Dawning Webmaster
                  http://www.oocities.com/CollegePark/4885/index.html
                  witchdawn@hotmail.com



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