Scrying

Your eyes focus as you enter a darkened room. Noticing the design of the dark wallpaper and have a seat on the overstuffed antique chair. Suddenly you notice a woman. She’s sitting there behind a round table. A silk scarf around her head, large hoop earrings in her ears and way too much makeup. As you stand and walk toward her you notice her hands waving over a clear sphere. “Sit….I have much to tell you!”, she utters as you cautiously follow suit and have a seat across the table.


Is this what you typically think of when you think of divination? Does the image of a mystical Gypsy enter your mind? If so, that is only one small minor aspect of divination and scrying.

WHAT IS A PENDULUM?

A Pendulum, in its strictest definition is an apparatus consisting of an object mounted so it swings freely under the influence of gravity. I, personally, think of a Pendulum as more than just an object that moves under the influence of gravity. I think of it as an object that can assist the Working Witch (or anyone that understands Pendulums or anyone interested in learning about scrying) in finding out about the future or looking for answers. I call this process scrying. However, if you want the literal, and actual, definition of scrying it consists of the following:

Scrying: Gazing into or contemplating a shiny, luminous, or reflective surface with the intent of seeing visions or representations of distant places, things, or times.

Not to say that when I scry with other objects that I’m not following the more “literal” definition; however, I add the following to the definition:

Scrying: Gazing into, watching, observing, or contemplating a shiny, luminous, or reflective surface (or object mounted to swing freely) with the intent of seeing visions, representations of distant places, things or times.

HISTORY AND ANCIENT METHODS OF SCRYING

The ancient Romans were renowned for pendulum scrying and their methods were detailed in the writings of Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus. It is also thought that Nostradamus used the same Roman method of scrying from a basin by means of a pendulum to produce individual letters that formed intelligible prophetic verses.

Historically, the bowl used was made of electrum. That is, an alloy of gold and silver. The worker would then tie a thread to their wand and tie a ring (or another metallic object) to the other end of the thread. Typically, the ring (or metallic object) was engraved upon as well as the 24 letters of the Greek alphabet were engraved into the flange of the basin. The basin was then placed in a tripod which was made of branches of laural.

Another option was to tie the ring to an end of a thin string and display inside a regular water goblet. This method included a typical “yes” or “no” question format whereby the ring would tap the side of the glass once for yes or twice for no. More than two taps indicates the spirit was uncertain of the response and for the questioner to ask again.

MODERN DAY SCRYING

Because this section is called “Modern Day Scrying” does not mean these old methods should be abandoned or that these “newer” methods are better. This section is merely to describe more recent methods aside from using a basin or goblet to get your answers.

In modern times we have become more aware of geomancy and use gems or crystals for our pendulums. However you choose to create your pendulum, you should purify it.



PURIFICATION OF PENDULUMS

Fill a clear bowl with fresh, pure water, light a white candle and light incense. Say a cleansing prayer. An example of which is as follows: “Clarify me, purify me, create in me a pure heart, renew my spirit within”. Imagine the water in the bowl as bright white light. Dip the pendulum into the water and leave it for a few moments. Sprinkle salt into the water and allow the salt to cleanse. Imagine the white light enveloping and filling the pendulum and the salt clarifying as the pendulum sits. After a few moments remove the pendulum from the water and pass thru smoke of your incense (I would recommend sage or hyssop to burn for their cleansing abilities). Say another prayer. Perhaps something like “Sage (or hyssop or whatever incense you are choosing to use) dance over, around and thru this pendulum adding your clarity, your renewal and your vision.” Lastly, pass the pendulum thru the flame of the white candle. Say something like “Candle of white, purity, light and energy add yourself to the pendulum and allow me to find the answers I seek, the clarity I crave and the purity I request.” On the night of a full moon place the pendulum and thread in the moonlight and leave for several hours. NEVER allow your pendulum to be placed in direct sunlight.



HOW TO BEGIN USING PENDULUMS TO SCRY

Once you’ve fashioned and purified your pendulum you’ll probably be quite anxious to begin using it. Sitting in a comfortable chair with your feet planted to the floor with your knees slightly apart, hold your pendulum in your dominant hand (the hand you write with). Dangle the pendulum above your dominant knee and ask for the pendulum to show you “Yes”. Observe the pendulum looking for a “spinning in a circle” motion or a “rocking forward and back” motion. This motion will be labeled in the affirmative. Dangle the pendulum between your knees and ask to be shown the “neutral” (or “unsure…ask again”) motion. NOTE: Typically, this is motionless. Moving neither in a circle nor back-and-forth. Moving the pendulum over your recessive knee ask to be shown “no”. You will observe that this motion is the opposite of the affirmative. Here is your beginning to using a pendulum!! Does this mean you cannot use your pendulum in your recessive hand? Absolutely not; however, to begin with I recommend using your dominant hand. MOST people have an ability to keep their dominant hand more motionless than their recessive hand.

In the next lesson I will include different methods of scrying with a pendulum as well as discuss other scrying methods themselves.

S/HE LOVES ME S/HE LOVES ME NOT

I titled this section this way because it seems to me that a lot of people who are novices to scrying (either with or without a pendulum) are seeking the affairs of the heart. In this section I’m going to provide insight on how to use a pendulum to get those “yes” and “no” answers.

METHOD 1:
Needed: Paper, Writing Instrument, Purified Pendulum
Fold a piece of paper in half and write “YES” and “NO” on opposite sides of the fold. Holding your Pendulum above the fold, ask your question. You can watch for your pendulum to swing toward the “YES” or “NO” side of the fold.

METHOD 2:
Needed: Wheel of Fortune Card, Tower Card, Purified Pendulum
Placing the two Tarot Cards next to each other in front of you, hold the pendulum between them and ask your question. Much the same as the Paper method above, watch for the Pendulum to move toward the Wheel of Fortune Card or the Tower Card. I chose these two cards for their definite opposite nature – even though the Tower Card does not have to have a negative connotation. Feel free to use the two cards that would be “opposites” to you.

There are many other methods to find “Yes” and “No” answers most based on the above principal of one side vs. the other. Try these two methods and invent your own. Most importantly, when you begin scrying you should begin a journal of your experiences. Include in this journal the time you began working with the pendulum, day, date, phase of the moon, any other astronomical anomalies, your feelings, your findings and your interpretation of your task.



MOON/WATER SCRYING

This method of scrying uses water in a bowl. I have found that an earthenware bowl with clear, spring water works the best with this method. Go outside (or if you need to stay in sit at a windowsill) and pour the water into the bowl. Begin relaxing with deep breathing exercises and by decreasing loud music and lights. Best would be to put some light music on and illuminate the area with white candles. Close your eyes, take a deep breath thru your nose, and exhale completely thru your mouth. Allow your body and mind to relax. Once you feel completely at peace you can add a few drops of ink into the water (if you so choose) to turn the water black. Sometimes when you are working with Moon/Water Scrying the darker the water is the more clearly you will see the images. Position the bowl so you can catch the reflection of the moon on the surface of the moon. Ask a question in your head or just gaze into the water looking for random images. The images that you see may appear hazy at first, but then become clearer. The larger the images appear the sooner those images will manifest themselves. Smaller images may take longer to appear, thus take longer to manifest themselves. You will be shown images and hear things (in your head) that day that you are meant to hear at this time.

FIRE SCRYING

This method of scrying is one that has been used by Witches for generations and generations. Fire scrying can be used to see events of the past, present and future. There are various methods whereby you can use fire scrying ranging from extremely elaborate to the most simple. Let us start with the most simple since that is what most will be able to do. In a darkened room, or outside, light a single pillar candle. You can choose to use any color candle; however, I use white candles when scrying just so the images come from a pure source. Light your candle and close your eyes. Use the same deep breathing, relaxing techniques discussed in the water scrying description. Once you feel relaxed open your eyes and look into the flame. Ask a question in your mind and watch for images. With practice and with time these images will appear clearer. The more elaborate method is burning pieces of driftwood by the sea once the sun has gone down. I’ve used this method back home in Scotland quite a few times with tremendous success. Once the driftwood has begun to burn, I throw in cedar chips and various herbs such as rosemary, sage, juniper and sandalwood and sit back watching the smoke and flame. The images here can appear quite large and quite powerfully; however, once the embers have died there is a completely different method of scrying which can be quite magickal. Normally I use a large, long fallen limb from a tree to move around the dying but hot embers and watch. I have had experiences where actual scenes will play out; however, more often there are symbols that appear in the embers that need further examination and interpretation. This method of scrying is more typically called “The Fire of Azrael”.

SMOKE SCRYING


Smoke scrying is a technique that can be quite useful and can be added to your Samhain celebrations. Before I discuss this technique, I feel it necessary to describe a scrying mirror or black mirror. This object is a mirror that has had the glass removed and painted black and replaced back into the holder. Often a silver backing is added to the mirror and a round or oval mirror is used; however, I have found that an inexpensive compact mirror with the glass painted black can work just as well. Black mirrors can be traced back over the centuries and were often made of obsidian. You do not want to look directly into the mirror for your scrying, lay it on a table and look from an angle. Spirits can show scenes, images, speak and even touch the scryer with this method. Now, back to smoke scrying. Lower the lights in the room, or better yet light two pillar candles on either side of you. Taking your favorite incense, light and allow it to smoke for a few moments. Position the black mirror so that the smoke dances over the surface easily while the mirror lies on a table. I find stick incense works best this way; however, cones do produce adequate images as well. Loose incense causes you to deflect your attention away from the mirror and the smoke too often to keep placing the powder or resin on the briquette. Once the incense has burned for a few moments, close your eyes to relax. When you feel centered, grounded and relaxed look into the black mirror lying on your table from various angles. Watch and interpret the images you see, hear, smell and feel.

As I said, you can use this technique on Samhain to help summon the ancient spirits or ancestors. I use red candles for this purpose and use sage incense. Once I’m feeling centered I hold my arms into the air and say something like, “O Great Spirit, Great Maiden, Mother, Wise One, you who created all. Bring to us the old ones, the ancient spirits, and the ancestors to celebrate with us, to teach us, to allow us to understand where we came from so we can understand where we are yet to lead the future”.

CRYSTAL BALL SCRYING

I love this method! This is what most people think of when they think of scrying. Crystal ball scrying and its popularity in things ranging from art to literature to television to movies attributes to the fact of the material creating an energy in the reader’s mind’s eye. How big does your crystal ball need to be? Do I have to have one as big as I have seen on televisions that are the size of a small child's head? Absolutely not! The best crystal balls (and easiest to hold, manipulate and work with) range from between 3 to 5 inches in diameter.

Relax, center and ground. Light one or two candles on your working space making sure that the reflections of the candles are not showing in the crystal ball. The ball should be placed on a blue or black cloth so as to assist in hindering the reflection from items in the room to be visible in the ball. You can either hold the ball while working with it, place it on the stand on the cloth or place the ball directly on the cloth itself. My crystal ball is quite heavy! I prefer to keep it on it’s crystal stand on top of the cloth, both because of it’s weight and because I don’t want to run the dropping it or having it roll off the table while I’m working with it.

Center yourself. Gaze into the crystal ball trying not to blink but do not just meaninglessly stare into the ball either. Relax your eyes, take a few deep breaths, and look into the center of the ball. As you begin doing this you should do this task for fifteen minutes each time you practice then increase in increments of 5 minutes until you feel like you have mastered how to look into the crystal ball. Eventually, with practice, you will begin to see a small “fog” in the center of the crystal ball. This is where your visions will appear. Gaze into the fog and watch for pictures, scenes, symbols. Oftentimes you need not even ask a specific question, the crystal ball will lead you to a scene that will greatly assist you.

Colors of objects you see can have specific meanings.
RED – Fire, Passion, Love, Ego, Courage, Strength
GREEN - Nature, Growth, Prosperity, Luck, Fertility, Changes, Envy
BLUE - Emotion, Mental, Calming, Tranquility, Loyalty, Purity, Protection
BROWN - Earth Energy, Grounding, Centering Consciousness, Soil
YELLOW - Thought, Mental, Sun, Sunlight, Memory, Creativity
GRAY - Neutral, Calm, Peace, Darkness with Light
GOLD - Fortune, Rich, Power, Strength, The Sun, Fire
WHITE - Purity, Protection, The Moon
PINK - Emotions, Creativity, Marriage, Friendship, Beauty, Compassion
ORANGE - Mental, Business, Legal, Problems, Ambition
SILVER - Purity, Protection, Ice, Heavenly, Stars, Potential
PURPLE - Justice, Royalty, Psychic, Meditation, Idealism, Divination
BLACK - Absorption, Quiet Power, Self-Control, Restriction, Changes

Shapes you see can be things you recognize or can be symbols of other things connected to yourself or the person your reading.

The larger the image appears the closer in time for it to manifest itself and the more important that information is.

Images can appear stationary or as in a movie. They can be flat or three-dimensional. It’s all in your experience, practice, willingness to see and the ability to try.

Everything you see and hear should be recorded in some manner. Something you may want to try the first few times is to record your sessions and play them back later. I have done this a few times and quite amazingly sometimes, you hear things that you do not recall hearing during your reading.


Scource: WitchSchool.com

Margaret Murray's Unlikely History

Much of the nonsense you might hear uttered about the history of Wicca and witchcraft started with an anthropologist named Margaret Murray. She first published a book on the subject of European witchcraft in the 1920s, despite the fact that her entire academic background was in Egyptology. You will see her name in the bibliographies of many, many books on Wicca, particularly older books. I generally take mention of her as a reason NOT to purchase a book. What the Wiccan books that cite her generally fail to mention is that her witchcraft theories were thoroughly discredited several decades ago due to a painful and unprofessional lack of evidence.

Was she a sham?
Murray never claimed to be Wiccan or Pagan or a follower of the Old Religion, so she had nothing to gain from deception. She probably honestly thought she was promoting historical truth, although her research methods ranges from ignorant to outright deceptive. For example, she provides several quotes from witch-trial documents which are taken completely out of context, and at least one in which she removed the middle of a paragraph, running the beginning and end of the paragraph together as if they made one complete thought, completely changing the meaning of the text.

What did she teach?
She believed, in short, that there was an ancient Old Religion in Europe far predating Christianity and that it secretly survived for centuries despite the Church's attempt to destroy it, culminating in the great witch-hunts, which Wiccans have taken to calling the Burning Times.

According to Murray, the witch-cult was the oldest religion in the world and was practiced by Stone-Age people. Her evidence is two cave paintings, neither of which, according to historian Ronald Hutton, depict what Murray claims they depict. Even if they did, the evidence is way too slight to make such a sweeping claim. One image is supposedly a group of people dancing in a circle. The second is supposedly a priest in animal skins with deer antlers on his head.

Murray's theoretical witch-cult worshipped a single horned god which priests emulated by wearing horned headdresses. Christians, trying to exterminate the cult, claimed this horned god was Satan. Stories of witch gatherings in which Satan was present can thus be explained by a priest wearing a headdress. She initially believed that this cult survived until the 17th century, when the witch-trials finally wiped them out, although Gerald Gardner got her to write an introduction for his Witchcraft Today in 1954.

She provided several "facts" about witches that are now embedded within Wicca. For one, she claimed that covens always had thirteen members. For another, she listed the four holidays we now accept as the Major Sabbats. She also linked the word coven specifically to witches, even though the word originally merely meant an assembly, not a witch assembly.

Why did people believe her?
In the 1920s, there simply were very few English-speaking academics who considered the witch-trials a subject deserving of study. The trials had ended in large part because people stopped believing in magic and witchcraft. If there is no witchcraft, then there could have been no witches, and trial victims were accepted to be victims of a hysteria, end of story. Very few people were familiar with the evidence Murray was using. Thus, very few people realized how selective she was being or how badly she abused it.

The English world's ignorance of witchcraft is highlighted by the fact that the Encyclopedia Britannica allowed Murray to write their definition of witchcraft in 1929, even though Murray had published only a single book on the subject. That was Britannica's idea of a witch expert! The definition was published for forty years.

The very bizarre members of Murray's witch-cult
One of Murray's theories was that this secret pagan cult practiced voluntary human sacrifice. Every nine years a believer had to die. She puts forward several such victims, including King William Rufus (William II) of England, Saint Thomas Becket, and Saint Joan of Arc. Yes, note the "Saint" in two of those names.

Rufus was a bore of a man and detested by nearly everyone during his life, so much so that his body was quickly secured and buried before anyone could defile it. He died on a hunting excursion, when a friend "accidentally" shot him with an arrow. Ironically, historians tend to think it really was an accident. Murray suggests that this friend was in fact a fellow pagan carrying out Rufus's wishes: they had already willingly separated from the rest of a hunting party and were therefore alone.

Similarly Becket's murderers were in fact fellow pagans, according to Murray, flying straight into the face of all accepted history of the saint. Becket was a personal friend of King Henry II, and Henry arranged for him to become archbishop of Canterbury, as the politics between Church and State were not at their healthiest at the time. But Becket had a change of heart. Perhaps it was simply a bit of a power trip for him, or perhaps he did indeed experience a religious reverie. Regardless, Becket began opposing the King much as his predecessor had, until one night, while drunk, Henry famously uttered, "Who will rid me of this troublesome priest?" Four knights took this to be an order, rode hard to Canterbury, and murdered Becket in his own cathedral. Henry was profoundly wracked by guilt, was censured by the Church, and submitted to a whipping by Church officers in penance.

The only odd fact of this whole story is that Becket had warning of the knights' arrival, and when his subordinates attempted to spirit him away, he refused. But instead of accepting this final act as submission to God's will (and one of the reasons why he was canonized), Murray spins this fantastical and quite illogical tale of secret religions and pagan sacrifice.

Joan of Arc's story is the most bizarre of Murray's fables. Instead of having her fellow pagans slaughter her, she allowed herself to be captured and burned at the stake at the hands of the Christian Church. What religious purpose can possibly be served at the hands of a nonbeliever? If this rather sophomoric religion that Murray depicts merely needed a death, then why did she not simply fall upon her sword, poison herself, even throw herself from a high wall? Instead, she was tortured, humiliated and possibly raped before suffering one of the most horrific and painful methods of execution possible.

To make such claims without a shred of evidence is just plain irresponsible. To take two great heroes of someone else's religion and claim they were, in fact, pagans is outright insulting. And even if this crazy religion did actually exist, why on earth would modern Wiccans want to be associated with it? I've never seen a Wiccan claim Joan or Becket as among our ranks, but the idea that we would associate ourselves at all with Murray's nonsense is depressing.

Source: Wicca: For the Rest of Us

Love is Key

Love holds the Keys to all Healing.

To live a fuller, healither, and richer life - Learn to Love. Nothing will benefit you more biochemically, physically, mentally, spiritually or emotionally than Love.

Love is something we all search for; our bodies crave it, our spirits need it. When we experience it, there is a "euphoric high" that our sences feel - a sort of bliss, happiness and power that cannot be explained. We bask in the warmth of the blanket that surrounds us with caring, hope, gratitude, comfort, trust and a general sense of well-being. In fact, feeling and knowing love sets off a complex series of events within our bodies that brings about general good health.

There have been numerous studies that prove does improve our health. The studies go well beyond a male-female relations [ie. marriage] but looks at social connections, pets, beliefs and many other areas. In other words, the studies go well beyond 'being in love'.

Love is a high frequency emotion compared to Hate which is a rock bottom low frequency emotion. Love helps us to over come obstacles, fears, disappointments, low self-esteem, depression as well as over turning our hateful feelings and it's negative effects. In some cases, Love is mind-over-matter - meaning a person has to work on Loving Techniqes to feel the power and health benefits of Love. A good example of this: those that litter the Earth, criminals, abusers and the list goes on.

Love is the Heart Charka. It is the Soul. If one can heal the heart then they create a balance that is much needed in todays world. Healing the heart will release emotional bondages or baggages we carry from birth - experienced in the world in the Physical Realms or 3D. Your soul seeks seperation from the polar opposite, it spends a lifetime trying to over come pain, suffering, greed, hate and other negative experiences in the Physical World.

Romanitc Love is a part of our lives, but is only a quick fix and rarely permanant. Most all of us knows the quick rush of adrenaline we get from 'falling in love' - but it doesn't last forever. Love is more than Romantic and one should seek other sources and ways to love. I have seen depressed people who are in-love, their souls are lurking for something more permament. They have not learned to find the love their souls seek and remain unhealed. The best love for healing is mixed with compassion, acceptance, understanding, help, forgivness, and gentleness.

Studies conducted at the Institute for HeartMath in Boulder Creek, California, confirm the health-improving and life-affirming effects of love on the human body. By studying the heart's rhythms, researchers there have discovered that when we feel love, or any positive emotion such as compassion, caring, or gratitude, the heart sends messages to the brain and secretes hormones that positively affect our health.

"Our heart rate changes with every heartbeat," Rollin McCraty, director of research at the Institute of HeartMath, explains. "It creates patterns we call heart rhythms." Researchers see the difference in heart rhythms easily when study participants wear portable recorders that allow researchers to monitor their heart rhythms as they go about their day. These rhythms provide "a window" into the inner workings of the communication system between the heart and the brain.

McCraty believes the heart actually monitors the blood stream for hormones and translates the hormonal information into neurological information, which cascades up into the higher brain centers, like the cortex. "If we feel love and compassion, that boosts our immune system." ~McCraty said.

Love is a feeling. Love is an attitude. Love is an action. Love is a choice.



Tips:

Enlarge your understanding of Love: Love is more than Romance. Love is more than a good feeling.
You do not have to agree with someone to act with consideration and compassion.
You do not need to be attracted to someone to show a loving attitude.
Love will motivate you to sacrifice for others and not expect any person gains or benefits from it.
Locate your source of love. Is it more than a source of pleasure?
Empathy is a good starting place to learn love.
Express your Love. Learn to speak and write words of Love.
Get involved in your community and/or online communites.
Share your resources with a needy person.
Give to your favorite charites or organizations.
Adopt a pet from your local shelter or one that is living in the streets.
Do not make it your goal to have the world love you. Not everyone will love you.
Offer gifts and perform thoughtful deeds with no ulterior motivation.
Give money or buy dinner for a homless person.
Meditate and/or Pray for greater understanding of Love.
Participate in you Grove, Coven, Synagogue, Church or other places of faith.
Make someone laugh or smile.
Offer a helping hand when and where you can.
Thinks good or positive thoughts.
Give good constructive critisim when needed.
Plant a tree.
Take time for yourself and your needs.




Verses and Poetry:

Power and permanence of universal Love: The essence of a verse from Saadi

I am in love with that mysterious power that made us all,
The power in absence of which the heavens would fall.
I get uplifted when I think of that power,
And when I don't my life is indeed very dull.


A verse from Hafez, 'dar tarigheh eshgh baazi..' where the power of love changes pain to pleasure:

The pain of your love is such a great pleasure,
For which I'll never need a preventive measure.
The happiness I find in my humble hut,
I do not exchange with any worldly treasure.



Rumi [who equates the power of God and power of love that is within each of us.] Rumi addresses those who think the only way to reach God is through rituals and going to special places.

O' seekers of God, your are it, you are it,
God is within you, just admit, just admit.
You look silly looking for what you have not lost,
God and you are one, just admit, just admit!

I often recall my frequent visits to our Saadi's tomb when I was teaching in the lovely city of Shiraz.
I especially recall the verse engraved on the iron gate of the tomb:
'zeh khaakeh saaieh Shriaz booye eshgh aayad, hezaar saal pas az margeh oo garash booi.':

You will detect a fresh fragrance of love from this earth,
If you exhume Saadi a thousand years after his death.


Rumi verses

Love can make your bitter moments sweet,
Love can sweep your beloved off its feet.

Love can turn your copper into gold,
Love can multiply your gold a thousand fold.

Love can turn your vinegar into wine,
Love can make a devil into divine.

Love can cure your incurable pain,
Love can make the sunny skies rain.

Love can make a plowshare out of your sword,
Love can make you happy when you're bored.

Love can create happiness from your blues,
Love can intoxicate you without booze.

Love can make poison be your cure,
Love can make your polluted waters pure.

Love can make a serpent's venom a salve
Love can render a have-not into have.

Love can squeeze oil out of your stone,
Love can vaporize chill from your bone.

Love can turn your vice into virtue,
Love can make all your dreams come true.



A warning on abusive and excessive or wasteful lifestyle.

Knowledge empowers you to perceive what you see,
So that you won't go on a binge and spree,
You are slave if you cannot harness your desires,
Even if you were born in the Land of the Free.





Saadi the corrupt version of which is called globalization these days. That verse starts as 'bani aadam azaayeh yekdigarand...':

Regardless of color, creed and shape of our face,
We are members of one body called Human Race.
If one member is in pain and I don't offer a solace,
Within the Family of Man, I don't deserve a place.


Hakim Omar Khayyam on love and enthusiasm for life. In Farsi this starts as'ay vaay bar on del keh dar oo soozi nist...'

Life without love is a dark day or a bad news,
As is a headlight at night without any fuse.
Each day you spent without love and hope,
Is a day wasted, a day that was of no use.



Omar Khayyam's verses: When I find a stranger a better friend than a relative

Strangers are relatives if they befriend,
Relatives are strangers when they offend.
A poison is a medicine if it cures,
Cures are poisons if they rend.

Another one from Omar stresses persistence and hard work in achieving seemingly impossible goals.

Your success in life depends on how you fare,
In working hard and surviving a despair.
For unless the comb did not have a hundred teeth,
It could not penetrate a beloved's hair.


Omar Khayyam.

An unhappy raindrop said Look at Me,
I'm not even the size of a pea.
As it dropped into the sea it said,
Look everyone, I am the sea.

Hermetic Laws

1. The Law of Mentalism: The Universe is mental or thinking. We exist in the mind of the All. We are the All. We are the Universe.
*Some call it deity, others call it God and a few of us call it the Great Spirit. Another terms used: the All, Goddess or the Grand Illusion.

2. The Law of Correspondence: We exist in all planes, astral, physical, casual, akashic, mental, buddhaic, messianic and so-on. Another way to say this is: We live in other planes/realms not just the physical.

3. The Law of Vibration: Everything is in motion and vibrates with its own rate of the vibration. All vibrates nothing is left out.

4. The Law of Polarity: Polarity = Power. All things are dual, everything contains its opposite. Male-Female, Day-Night, Good-Bad, Left-Right, Black-White, Sun-Moon, Yin-Yang = All follows this law.

5. The Law of Rhythm: All things are in some way circular, spiral, cyclic, and oval. We have to learn to 'dance' with the rhythm of nature; of life. Pagans are very familiar with the spiral while Christians are more apt to understand the circular... It is all the same - something we all need to understand.

6. The Law of Gender: The law of polarity, applied. Everything has both masculine and feminine components and energies. Get in touch with your opposite or opposing side to balance the inner being.

7. The Law of Cause and Effect: There are no coincidences, nothing happens by chance. Everything is a cycle. For every effect, there is a cause, and every cause is an effect in something else.