Showing posts with label myth. Show all posts

Crystal Lore, Legend & Myths - A Review

Today I'm reviewing Crystal Lore, legend and Myths by Athena Perrakis, PH.D.


Book Cover




Author Links - Link
Amazon Book Link
Amazon Author Link
Good Reads Book Link
Good Reads Author Link
My Good Reads Profile
My Facebook Page


Generally I like to start out with a disclaimer. I am an contemporary witch.  I look for the connection between magic and science without the need to search for a creator. I receive no compensation for these reviews and all my links are standard Amazon links and not affiliate links. I am a practicing photo reader and have spent the last 16 years honing my craft.  I offer personal readings by request and have a strong online history that boasts nearly 400,000 views.


Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
Image Source - Crystal: Lore, Legends & Myths

As with all my reviews I'm starting with a review of the physical book.  It's a great size book to toss in a bag to read on the go.  The hardcover is fantastic for protecting the pages and the cover is made well.  The index is quite thorough which I like to see in this type of book.  I will see that on several of the crystals not all correspondences are listed. While there are references to Inanna and Dionysus; Hecate was not mentioned.

Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
Image Source - Crystal: Lore, Legends & Myths

The photos of the crystals are large and full color and the book has several tables that show their properties and place of origin. There are several chapters dedicated to the location of each and gives a brief history of the area and the crystals as well as their modern counterparts.  Chapter 8 provides a list of the crystals of the zodiac with a brief nod to each sign and how the crystal embodies the characteristics of the sign.
Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
Image Source - Crystal: Lore, Legends & Myths

Overall this is a great book for the beginner and the seasoned witch alike. It offers a great deal of historic information as well as the basics you're looking for in a crystal handbook.  I highly recommend this book.


Photo Credit - Renee Sosanna Olson
Image Source - Crystal: Lore, Legends & Myths




Posted by at No comments
Labels: , , , , , , , ,

And Her Hair is Like Snakes…

Hecate is a pre Greco-Roman goddess referred to in the Chaldean Oracles as the mother of souls or as the Cosmic World Soul.  In several references to her she is said to have “hair like snakes” or “hair of snakes”. 

“Hecate appears as a gigantic woman, bearing a torch and a sword. Her feet and hair are formed of snakes, and her passage is accompanied by voices of thunder, weird shrieks and yells, and the deep baying and howling of dogs. Her favour was propitiated by offerings and sacrifices, principally consisting of black lambs.”
From: Berens, E.M. The Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome. New York: Maynard, Merril, & Co., 1880. Text in the public domain.  (Source - http://ancient-greece.org/culture/mythology/hecate.html)

“You who wield terrible black torches in your hands, you who shake your head with hair made of fearsome snakes, you who cause the bellowing of the bulls, you whose belly is covered with reptilian scales and who carry over your shoulder a woven bag of venomous snakes" (IV, 2793-2806).
(Source - http://www.granta.demon.co.uk/arsm/jg/hekate.html)

At first our thoughts might be about Gorgons.  The most famous of the Gorgon was Medusa.  Perseus removed her head and used it as a weapon to turn opponents to stone.
Romans referred to the Celts as having “hair like snakes”, however there is no actual source materials for this claim by Caesar.  There are coins that show dreadlock type hair on Celtic figures after the Roman expansion.  (Source http://www.knottyboy.com/learn/dreadlock-history/ )


Hair like snakes is not only referenced in Greek/Roman sources but also in the Christian tale of Samson and Delilah. 

“And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him.”  Judges 16:19 KJV


James the Just, brother of Jesus, was said to have worn them to his ankles. 

The Hinu god Shiva, responsible for creation and destruction is said to have jataa, or dreadlocks that fall around him.  Sadhu and sadhiv holy men and women allow their hair to dread and follow a path of spiritual enlightenment.




Egyptians mummies are said to have been found with dreadlocks but there is no evidence to support this.  However the Islamic Mouride Brotherhood in West Africa embrace their strong hair or ndiange.(Source - http://dreadsuk.com/content/40-dreadlocks-origins.html ).  

Mummies in Peru have been found with dreadlocks and have been referenced in a book by William H. Prescott in 1843.  Prescott wrote,
"On the summit he was received by six priests, whose long and matted locks flowed disorderly over their sable robes, covered with hieroglyphic scrolls of mystic import."
(Source - http://dreadsuk.com/content/40-dreadlocks-origins.html )

One cannot have a discussion on dreadlocks (hair like snakes) without mentioning the Rastafarian movement.  This movement was embraced by or seen as a way to liberate native Caribbean and Ethiopian slaves from their European slave owners.  In the 1930’s Marcus Garvey led the Universal Negro Improvement Association in an effort to unify blacks against their oppressors back in their home lands.  In the late twentieth century awareness was brought to the movement by the legendary Bob Marley. Dreadlocks have played a role in many parts of our culture today.  In literature and mythology.  In religion and even in human rights.  


Instead of hair, writhing snakes fell down in curls around her (Hekate) neck  and some of them coiled over her shoulders.  Source - Drakon: Dragon Myth and Serpent Cult in the Greek and Roman Worlds, By Daniel Ogden.

 Many people choose to wear dreadlocks for many different reasons.  Some for combined reasons.  I started my deadlock journey because first they are really cool.  I love the way the look and the different styles.  Then as in so many other aspects of my spirituality I learned more about Hecate and how she was referred to as having “hair like snakes”.  This made my transition from straight hair to dreaded hair a bit more spiritual. 

I have found that they are work.  I have to spend time taking care of the and sometimes it hurts. I've come a very long way with my hair and I get a lot of strange looks in the small town I live in.  I have read comments that I have no right to have dreaded hair and others that say, to each their own.  To mean, being able to personify the five virtues of Hecate are something I strive every day to do.   Doing it with “her hair like snakes” makes it even better.

         
Pre-locks
Dreadlocks - 9 Mons Old

I think the biggest thing is to make sure that you're doing it the right and healthy way.  Take care of your hair.  Use natural products and don't wax up your head.  That stuff is bad for you.  Be respectful of others and when someone asks you why you want dreadlocks be strong enough to say exactly what you mean.  If you think that they rock and you like them that's a great reason to have them.  If it something more personal explain that to people.  I think that if we shared a bit more of ourselves with each other we would spend less time trying to kill each other.

My dreadlocks are still babies at only 9 months old, but you can see my full dreaded journey here. I'll be uploading new photos monthly.




Posted by at No comments
Labels: , , , , , , , , ,

Pagan Blog Project 2012 - Y is for Yggdrasil



In Norse mythology, there is a giant ash tree, Yggdrasil, supporting the universe.  This tree roots travel from the underworld, Niflheim into the land of the giants, Jotunheim and a third into the Gods home, Asgard.

Urdarbrunnr or the Well of Fate, Mimibrunnr or Well of Wisdom and Hvergelmir or Roaring Kettle.  These three wells at the bottom was said to give the knowledge of Odin.  It is said that Odin gave one of his eyes for this knowledge.  

Sometimes depicted as a tree with large branches and roots that mirror them, Yggdrasil is often used in pendants and tattoos.  I’ve seen it with the words of the Wiccan rede around it and “As above so below”.

This is Yggdrasill, the World Tree, Tree of Life or Laerad.

Photo Credit - Elijah Olson - Tattooist


Within the tree four deer live in the branches and eat the buds representing the four winds.  Also in the tree is a snake (Vidofnir) a rooster and a squirrel (Ratatosk) noted for gossip. The roots of the tree are chewed upon by Nidhogg.

In the myth, demons are trying to destroy Yggdrasil this represents the constant power struggle between good and evil.  

On the day of Ragnarok, or the end of the world, a fire giant named Surt will send fire in all directions and the nine worlds held up by Yggdrail will burn causing the earth to fall into the sea.

I had read this several years ago and even played an online role playing game that referenced this story.  We always had to get back to the tree!

Namaste and Blessed Be
Sosanna
)O(
Posted by at No comments
Labels: , , , , , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)