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The Mystical Gatherings Newsletter
Ostara 2005
(Volume 3, Issue 4)
Books for Pagans: Exploring Different Pagan Paths
by Ben Gruagach
When you look in the Occult, New Age, or Pagan Spirituality sections of bookstores today, chances are a majority of the books available are about witchcraft or Wicca. You might therefore think that all modern Pagans are either witches or Wiccans, but you’d be wrong. There are actually many different Pagan spiritual paths – far more than could be listed in any practical sense. Groups form, change, and split into new groups all the time. Since there is no centralized authority that oversees all Pagans, there isn’t really much that forces us to stick to just one spiritual path as a community.
There are books for those who are interested in exploring Pagan spirituality that falls outside the categories of witchcraft and Wicca. Here are a few of my favourites. Even if you don’t choose to follow any of these particular paths, there are always things you can learn from them.
The Rebirth of Druidry by Philip Carr-Gomm is an excellent and informative collection of essays by a leading Druid. The chapter entitled “Druids and Witches” was particularly interesting for me personally as it detailed how the history of Wicca and Druidry are connected.
The Living World of Faery by R. J. Stewart. I really like this author’s writing. He has a number of books out, and writes regularly for magazines like PanGaia. His work focuses mostly on the shamanic-style magickal spirituality of the British Isles, largely based on faery lore and connecting with the spirits of the land.
The Western Way by Caitlin and John Matthews (republished more recently as Walkers Between the Worlds) blends in with R. J. Stewart’s work, although the Matthews get into a lot more scholarly depth. They draw on Hermetic and other ceremonial magickal traditions to flesh out an interesting and complex mystical path.
Kindling the Celtic Spirit by Mara Freeman is one of my favourite books. It’s similar to R. J. Stewart’s down-to-earth approach to spirituality, but draws more on traditional Celtic Pagan religion and myth. It’s an inspiring book stuffed full of ideas for things to do to incorporate a Pagan spiritual path into your life.
Learning Ritual Magic by John Michael Greer, Clare Vaughan, and Earl King Jr. is a recent and well-done book for those interested in ceremonial magick. It draws on the teachings of the influential Golden Dawn ceremonial group, as well as its descendants such as Dion Fortune’s Society of the Inner Light, Thelema, and other ritual lodges.
Jambalaya: The Natural Woman’s Book by Luisah Teish is another inspiring presentation, this time focusing on Voudou and African American Pagan spirituality. I love this book – reading it makes me feel like I’ve been invited over to my sister’s house for an informal dinner.
Isis Magic by M. Isidora Forrest is an impressive and workable handbook for those seeking to practice a recreated form of the Isis religion, which spread outside its original Egypt to reach as far as the U.K. during Roman times. It’s not just a scholarly book but a real manual for those who want to build their lives around Isis reverence.
There are lots of other good books out there, but these ones are ones I’ve found enlightening. And as a Wiccan myself, they have proven helpful in presenting alternative ideas for me to mull over, and in some cases incorporate into my own spiritual life.
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An Ostara Altar
by Layla
Here are some altar photos. It felt so good cleaning up the old altar and bringing in the bright, fresh energy. After endless grey skies and bone chilling cold, I felt like spreading out a riot of color. It's no accident that this year's Ostara altar has a slight tropical color scheme, given that I was recently in the Bahamas. Ostara, aka Eostre, is being honored with masses of flowers, my hand-painted eggs, pussy willows and even an egg shaped candle.
It's hard to imagine that Spring is truly around the corner with snow still on the ground. But delicate snowdrops are poking their heads out, and if that's not enough here are a couple of photos from my recent trip to warm you up until the sun does.
Happy light-filled Ostara, everyone!
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Hares and Rabbits: Animals of Many Talents
by Amberlight
This is the fifth in a series about the animals, birds and insects we share the Wheel of the Year with, and the spiritual messages they bring us.
Long a symbol of fertility and new life, rabbits and hares are strongly associated with the spring sabbat of Ostara. Later, the Christians incorporated the symbolism into their own holiday, and turned the hare into the familiar Easter Bunny.
Because hares and rabbits are among the most common prey animals, providing food for a wide range of other creatures, such as foxes, coyotes, wolves, weasels, martens, bobcats, lynx, hawks and owls, they are also one of the most prolific. A single snowshoe buck, for example, can mate with two dozen females, and each female can have two or more litters a year. Out of all these babies, fewer than two percent live until age five, since most end up becoming dinner for a predator.
The main difference between rabbits and hares is that the latter are born completely furred and able to run within hours. Rabbits, meanwhile, are born hairless, naked and blind. Hares are also longer-legged than rabbits, and able to jump higher and farther.
In Ontario, there are several species of rabbit and hare. They include the native snowshoe hare with its wide, furry feet that are especially adapted to carry it over deep snow, and its ability to turn its coat white in winter for extra camouflage. Other species include the familiar cottontail rabbit and the European hare, both of which were introduced to this country by early settlers.
All rabbits and hares have a gift for camouflage, stillness and silence – valuable assets for creatures who spend a lot of their time hiding from hungry carnivores. A threatened rabbit or hare will only run when it is sure it has been spotted, and then it can get up a fair turn of speed, and change direction very rapidly. A snowshoe hare can run 30 miles an hour, and achieve leaps of 13 feet.
Hares and rabbits make their nests in burrows or well-hidden forms under thick bushes or coniferous branches. They feed on a wide variety of vegetation, including grass, leaves, ferns, twigs, bark and buds and all kinds of other plants, and will often munch off new flower or vegetable seedlings, much to the chagrin of gardeners.
Hare and rabbit’s spiritual message
Some people think rabbits and hares are weak and wimpy, and therefore not very useful to have as a totem. We’ve all heard the cliches “like a scared rabbit,” or “run like a hare,” both of which suggest cowardice, while the term “fluffy bunny” is a derisive term used to refer to something that’s overly cutesy. In actual fact, the hare especially can be a powerful totem. In legend and lore, he is often portrayed as a clever trickster figure with more than his fair share of brains and quick wits. He is also associated with fertility and sexuality: the term “mad as a March hare” refers to the leaping, tumbling, kicking and fighting he engages in before mating.
Because they are so preyed upon by other animals, fear is naturally built into the makeup of rabbits and hares. However, these animals show us that we don’t need to become a slave to fears, but that we can learn how to use our wits to help us deal with and overcome them. They teach us that “fight or flight” aren’t the only responses to stressful situations; by being still and paying attention, and learning how to think before we act, we can develop our intuition and wits and accurately use them to help us extricate ourselves from dangerous situations. The large ears of these animals are a reminder to listen – not just to other people and physical sounds in our environment, but also to our intuition, and to the messages that come to us from the spiritual realm.
In the Chinese zodiac, the rabbit is considered a very lucky sign. People born in the Year of the Rabbit are said to be talented, artistic, sensitive, articulate and peaceful.
The fertility of the hare and rabbit can bring fertility into our own lives, not necessarily in the physical sense, but in terms of creative ideas, projects and growth. You’ll probably find this growth takes place sporadically, in leaps and bounds broken by spells of seeming inactivity. It’s a good idea to double-check your plans during this time, to make sure things are moving in the direction you want them to.
Because they often feed at dawn and dusk, those in-between times when the veil between the real world and the otherworld is said to be at its thinnest, hares and rabbits are often connected with the Faery realm. This gives them an aura of mystery and elusiveness, qualities that are reinforced by the way they can switch instantly from a state of complete motionlessness to flying jumps that carry them out of sight in seconds.
Far from being feeble and cowardly, rabbits and hares are mercurial, multi-faceted creatures that bring a variety of important lessons into our lives – if we take the time to study them properly, and to appreciate and learn from their special gifts.
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The Temple of Sekhmet: Honouring the Goddess in the Nevada Desert
by Ben Gruagach
My sweetheart and I spent a week’s vacation in Las Vegas not long ago. While we were there, we did an afternoon road trip north of the city to visit the Temple of Sekhmet, which is located just past the town of Indian Springs, about forty five miles north of Las Vegas.
The Temple of Sekhmet is a holy place erected on private land by a group of eclectic Wiccans, Pagans, and Goddess-worshippers. The building itself is made from straw bales covered with sand-coloured stucco. It has four arched entrances facing the four directions, and a circular opening in the roof so you can see the sky when you are inside. The ceiling opening has a series of interlinking arches and circles made of metal rods.
Goddesses are everywhere at the shrine – there is a ledge just inside the ceiling opening with numerous Goddess statues and images placed reverentially around so they can watch over those inside the temple. There are also various shelves, nooks, and crannies inside the building where different Goddess figures are honoured. There is a fire-pit with a beautiful wrought-iron Goddess figure enclosure. Most impressive, though, are the huge Earth Goddess and Sekhmet statues. They are clearly the focal points for a lot of the worship here.
The temple itself is in the desert, away from town, so it has a beautiful view of the surrounding landscape and distant mountain ranges. The sky is very dominant in places like this, because all the vegetation is rather low and close to the ground. Nestled around the temple grounds are other smaller holy spots and shrines that blend with the landscape. Owl goddesses, prayers for peace and healing are all present.
The temple website at explains the history of the temple and the people who built and maintain it. They hold regular rituals there. If you ever have the chance to go to Las Vegas, be sure to take a half-day and drive up to the Temple of Sekhmet. You won’t regret it!
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The Hare
by Titania
The hare was too Pagan a symbol for the church, and was turned into the Easter Bunny. The Goddess becomes a hare on the full moon and it was thought that witches became hares to avoid capture. I have written a poem on the hare.
Legend of the Hare
Sacred to the Goddess
On the full moon she becomes a hare
Many see a hare in the moon
In myth and legend
Symbolizing love, fertility
Redemption, resurrection
And enlightenment
The hare is the saviour
The hare greets the dawn
Guardian of the wild
The animal of divination
Good fortune
And immortality
A harbinger of peace and prosperity
Bringing greetings from the Goddess
He resides with the corn spirit
Upon the green countryside
The hare is sacred to us
The hare bounds free
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Update from Japan
by Cosmic Child
Hey everyone! After my trip to Okinawa, I have kind of relaxed from travelling a bit. I have just been out on a few day trips to places I've already been!
Things are going well, although I cannot believe that had I not renewed my contract for another three months, I'd be leaving this week! And soon I will be celebrating my one year here. I absolutely can't believe that it's been a year already! Some days I feel as if I've been here forever, and other days I feel as if I’ve just arrived! My students have been asking me with more frequency when I am leaving, because many don't know that I'm staying for a few more months (thankfully they all seemed pleased)!
Japan is ready for spring weather and is gearing up for cherry blossom season. There was a report in the paper today saying that the meteorological society figures the blossoms will bloom on time this year, which means at the end of March and early April. Most Japanese go out for parties under the trees during the short time that they bloom. I missed out last year, but will make sure not do that again this year! Plum blossom viewing is also quite popular, and that usually happens in around early to mid-February. I saw a few and they are pretty purple blossoms!
As for the weather, it's quite comfortable. Winter never dipped below 0ºC, but not having central heating has been a real challenge! I have a couple of space heaters but it's not the same! Never again will I live without central heating! I don't mind it being cold outside, but not inside! It's just not right in a technological society! I am happy though. It hasn't really snowed here at all, but this week I finally got to see some and it's supposed to snow tomorrow as well. Most snow doesn't stay and it's usually wet due to the humidity, but I still love it!
The only real news is not of a Japanese nature is that I decided to buy myself a laptop computer last week. How sad that it is cheaper for me to buy a foreign model in Japan (it was ordered from the States) than it is to buy one in Canada. I ordered it online from a store in Tokyo and got to pay COD. How super cool is that?! I didn't have to do a thing but go to the bank! Japan can really be super convenient at times.
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About Us
Northumberland Mystical Gatherings is a group for discussion of pagan-related topics. Members come from a range of backgrounds and spiritual systems, and embody a variety of interests and areas of practice, belief, and learning. We welcome everyone’s views and perspectives, even if they lead to lively, good-natured debate. However, we do not tolerate any disrespect or condemnation of another’s path, beliefs or levels of learning.
We meet regularly in person but also have an active online community. Some of our members live outside the Northumberland region in Ontario, Canada. Our distant members participate mostly online.
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