The Magickal Pen

This is an excerpt from the 13 Keys Series of articles on WitchVox. I began these as a study of the Qabalistic Tree of Life….. enjoy!

13 Keys: The Crown of Kether

The Energy of the Sphere

What’s in a Name?

Kether is assigned a variety of names and attributions. To some degree these are influenced by the essence of its energy as much as the cultural and occult clues to the nature of the sphere that are contained within. Below is a listing of some of the more widely used names:

Existence of Existences
The Concealed of the Concealed
The Ancient of the Ancient Ones

As you see from the semantics of the three above, the duality or doubling causes a unique polarity to arise. It is also a greater emphasis that is given to the attribute described, which alludes to the timelessness of the energetic construct of Kether.

Read Full article here…13 Keys: The Crown of Kether

Read Full Post »

Let us drink from the waters of gratitude and
Be fully present in the space of appreciation
for what surrounds us.

Open your eyes and take in all the lessons of
Both sorrow and joy and from a place of gratitude
Find the grace of mercy that flows
Eternal within your own being.

If you were raised as I was, you were taught to say “thank you’ when receiving something, to be grateful when someone does you a favor and especially at Thanksgiving to offer up with great verbosity the laundry list of gratitude to family and friends.

Now, I am not saying that these things are not good models of polite behavior, but as with many things we have been conditioned to do we act and react on auto-pilot without giving much thought to what the words really mean. With that being said, the challenge then becomes to bolster each word, action and offering of gratitude with the full understanding and intent that it rightfully deserves.

Now, you would think that holding those standards would lessen those grateful moments, but the surprising thing is that when we truly are grateful for what has been given us, we see more clearly the abundance of things we can offer up gratitude to. I envision the space of gratitude to be very much like flowing waters. Some are shallow and you can clearly see all that rests on the bottom. Others are vast and deep like the very oceans themselves, and we wait with bated breath to catch a glimpse of dolphin or whale, affirming that life teams below the surface.

The waters of the earth meander here and there and from the right altitude, etch a veiny trail on the surface, leaving an indelible mark of their course.  These waters respond to the magnetic pull of Luna’s magick just as our perception and awareness of those things deserving of our gratitude are pushed and pulled to the surface by emotional connection. The waters of life are a necessity for our survival and our bodies move with fluid like grace in acceptance of the gifts for which we should be grateful.

We yearn to know more of these deep waters and in that knowing we seek those gifts that catalyze us as grateful beings. Mind and heart are synthesized and become as one in the space of gratitude and in those moments of acknowledgment of what has caused us to be grateful. Gratitude feeds the feelings of appreciation that we seek for ourselves and once found, we may then selflessly share with others.

It is in gratitude and appreciation that we are transformed as we offer up these gifts in recognition of our Higher Self and the Divine Flame that flows within. It is in gratitude that we cease to be, for this is the gift of culmination of the lessons of this lifetime and the power to shed these forms of matter as we reunite with our own Spirit Divine. These are the loftier aspirations of gratitude that are only realized through the building of being able to see with clarity all the moments of gratitude that present themselves daily.

A good beginning to laying these foundations is to begin a gratitude journal. Each night before going to bed, list the things for which you have given thought to and are truly grateful for their presence. It does not matter how small or short-lived that thing was, just write it down. As you continue this process, you will become more selective in what is deserving of thanks and also see areas of your life that would have gone unnoticed and un-thanked. As you open to a deeper awareness of how much you have to be grateful for the waters of that gratitude will flow strong and freely and in their clarity you may drink from them quenching the thirst of a soul that seeks its own flow of appreciation.

Read Full Post »

I frequently work with the elements and the expression of their sub-sets as well as pure forms. This approach has allowed me to experience each in a unique and specific way. In the case of Water this has added a new dimension to how I “feel” my way through all levels of my experiences.

I have always been very much driven by Air. The emotional and Watery nature of myself has taken a lot of practice and lots of effort to develop. It has not always been an alliance that I have been willing partner to, but using the subsets of emotions has given me a wider range to dip into and often produced deeper and more lasting results. These are my impressions of Water, its ebb and flow in accord with the other elements and its gifts as an expression of emotional and spiritual well-being.

Water of Water

The Great Mother sighs and oceans
Tremble and swell filled with her breath.

The Bright Mother opens her eyes
Gazing with expectation and the world is
Suddenly ablaze with illumined gaze.

The Dark Mother stretches out her hand
And you are left exposed and vulnerable
Your darkest secrets are laid bare.

The Creatrix moves and Life awakens
As the fabric of form is woven gently
Within the folds of Her potent embrace.

The Universal Laws of Water

The Law of Rebound

Think in terms of the natural ebb and flow of the waters of the oceans, or the fishing line that is cast out and as result of the rhythmic process of moving forward and then rebounding back is carried on the waves. The element of water (emotions) is very much like this principle. What we send out emotionally and intuitively always bounces back towards us, similar to the sonar-like quality of the directional apparatus of bats. They are blind and in the dark, yet they find their way; largely through intuiting it by using a scientific and physiologic adaptation.

In magickal workings the intent is very important, and as we have discussed previously, intent must be fueled by the Fires of Will to be viable. The true tempering of the metal occurs in the process of placing the heated metal in water. This is the place of rebound, where what was heated and contracted can expand and cool to fill the space between. If this cooling did not have the dynamics of the heat to rebound from and reestablish its form it would eventually melt and dissipate.

The Law of Equalities

This brings us to the Law of Equalities. Not necessarily balance, but at the very least a common ground of meeting where flow and expression can occur. This common state of equanimity is where the lower rises to meet the Higher and the Higher descends towards matter. This is the place where the emotions and the mental have dialogue with one another and the gateways to the depths of true wisdom can be passed through. You can also think of this as the element of water being the interface or interpreter that allows greater and deeper levels of understanding and communication to be achieved.

The Law of Balance

And, finally through the efforts of resistance causing return (rebound) and the correct interface of communication (Equalities) having been achieved, the work can be held within a state of balance. Not a balance that indicates all sides having equal share, but the balance that occurs; when, despite there being a greater amount towards one end of the equation, all works in harmony because there is precisely the right combination of differing ingredients to produce a successful outcome. In this form of balance it is the quality of the contributing energies versus the quantity that are of the utmost importance. And, in magickal pursuits, achieving that perfect state of quality is the key to unlocking the Limitless Divine.

Air of Water

Inhale-exhale
Inhale-exhale
Breath moving as
Liquid sustenance.

Inhale-exhale
Inhale-exhale
Slow down the
Impulsive reaction
And think through
The end result.

I breathe in the emotions
That enfold me
And offer the
Insight achieved
Upwards like spurting
Crown of fountain.

The energy of Air moving through Water is one of question, analysis and intellectualization of our intuitive nature. Faith gives way to inquiry and pause is given to responding from our emotions in order that the response will be informed and insightful.

Most of us are driven either by emotions or by mind and occasionally the two are united. For the most part, it takes hard work and conscious awareness to know how and when to use each independently and to remain ever present in their combined power.

Adding the equation of rational thought to the problem of an ill defined emotional or intuitive nature can offer the resolution to what would potentially become a stalemate and eventually an over – abundance of emotional outpour that only serves to cloud thesolution even further.

Fire of Water

Heat boiling
Away discarded flesh
Muscle and sinew
Raw and moist as new
Shell is formed.

Electricity runs through
Nerves overwrought
From continued abuse.
Let the current run through
The healing waters that
Move just below the surface.

You know those moments when your emotions are in such a volatile place that you simply explode with the slightest provocation? This is the boiling point, or water expressed in its fiery and expansive state.

Fire is an expression of our will and desire. When the will or desire is placed in the container of emotions, passionate expression and fire fueled intent are the natural outcome. This can be productive in urging on towards transformation or destructive in over stimulating the emotional response and causing damage.

Fire within Water is the electrical charge of the fires of will being expressed through the intuitive or emotional selves. In magickal practice, this is the igniting of the inner spark of our inherent Divine nature supported by compassionate love, understanding and the call to healing. This also speaks to the power of self-control. The discipline of knowing when you are nearing that point of boiling over and when there is just the correct amount of energy, action and creativity to produce something new.

Earth of Water

Water rushes through
Stone and rock
Carving its own
Sculpture of emotive release.

Tides expand and contract
Carrying the mysteries of
Each shoreline it has touched.

When we reach into the earth of water, we are calling into action the necessary container to stabilize and coalesce the movement or flow of watery energies. Earth is the foundational energy through which we function and express ourselves in our most instinctual of states. Emotions are the products of response to these prime energies. Earth’s energies are that of creation from the fertile seeds implanted within it. Each of our emotions are those seeds that are planted within the energy of our physical body and eventually out pictured in the landscape that is our physical and spiritual being.

Excerpted from: The Elemental Year

Read Full Post »