Azuren Rain

Mikage Witch In Japan. Innovative Male "Mikage Witch"/Musician/Writer/Activist/Liberal/Cafe Owner/Synthesist I follow "Mikage Witchcraft" based upon Animism, Shinto, Traditional Witchcraft and a blend of Eastern & Western beliefs and philosophies. Mikage is an urban path with strong nature focus and does not follow/worship any pantheon. I believe in the spirit of everything in existence, equal, individual and yet unified and powerful.

[spell-bound-life]

Your Birth Tree

Many witches like to choose what their wand is made of by their birth tree, or have seeds/the actual tree nearby for strength/guidance. So here you go 

Dec 23 to Jan 01 | Apple Tree

Jan 02 to Jan 11 | Fir Tree Jan 12 to Jan 24 | Elm Tree Jan 25 to Feb 03 | Cypress Tree

Feb 04 to Feb 08 | Poplar Tree Feb 09 to Feb 18 | Cedar Tree Feb 19 to Feb 28 | Pine Tree Feb 29 | Poplar Tree

Mar 01 to Mar 10 | Weeping Willow Tree Mar 11 to Mar 20 | Lime Tree Mar 21 | Oak Tree Mar 22 to Mar 31 | Hazelnut Tree

Apr 01 to Apr 10 | Rowan Tree Apr 11 to Apr 20 | Maple Tree Apr 21 to Apr 30 | Walnut Tree

May 01 to May 14 | Poplar Tree May 15 to May 24 | Chestnut Tree May 25 to Jun 03 | Ash Tree

Jun 04 to Jun 13 | Hornbeam Tree Jun 14 to Jun 23 | Fig Tree Jun 24 | Birch Tree Jun 25 to Jul 04 | Apple Tree

Jul 05 to Jul 14 | Fir Tree Jul 15 to Jul 25 | Elm Tree Jul 26 to Aug 04 | Cypress Tree

Aug 05 to Aug 13 | Poplar Tree Aug 14 to Aug 23 | Cedar Tree Aug 24 to Sep 02 | Pine Tree

Sep 03 to Sep 12 | Weeping Willow Tree Sep 13 to Sep 22 | Lime Tree Sep 23 | Olive Tree Sep 24 to Oct 03 | Hazelnut Tree

Oct 04 to Oct 13 | Rowan Tree Oct 14 to Oct 23 | Maple Tree Oct 24 to Nov 11 | Walnut Tree

Nov 12 to Nov 21 | Chestnut Tree Nov 22 to Dec 01 | Ash Tree

Dec 02 to Dec 11 | Hornbeam Tree Dec 12 to Dec 21 | Fig Tree Dec 22 | Beech Tree

Apple Tree | Love | of slight build, lots of charm, appeal, and attraction, pleasant aura, flirtatious, adventurous, sensitive, always in love, wants to love and be loved, faithful and tender partner, very generous, scientific talents, lives for today, a carefree philosopher with imagination.

Ash Tree | Ambition | uncommonly attractive, vivacious, impulsive, demanding, does not care for criticism, ambitious, intelligent, talented, likes to play with fate, can be egotistic, very reliable and trustworthy, faithful and prudent lover, sometimes brains rule over the heart, but takes partnership very seriously.

Beech Tree | Creative | has good taste, concerned about its looks, materialistic, good organization of life and career, economical, good leader, takes no unnecessary risks, reasonable, splendid lifetime companion, keen on keeping fit (diets, sports, etc.)

Birch Tree | Inspiration | vivacious, attractive, elegant, friendly, unpretentious, modest, does not like anything in excess, abhors the vulgar, loves life in nature and in calm, not very passionate, full of imagination, little ambition, creates a calm and content atmosphere.

Cedar Tree | Confidence | of rare beauty, knows how to adapt, likes luxury, of good health, not in the least shy, tends to look down on others, self-confident, determined, impatient, likes to impress others, many talents, industrious, healthy optimism, waiting for the one true love, able to make quick decisions.

Chestnut Tree | Honesty | of unusual beauty, does not want to impress, well-developed sense of justice, vivacious, interested, a born diplomat, but irritates easily and sensitive in company, often due to a lack of self confidence, acts sometimes superior, feels not understood loves only once, has difficulties in finding a partner.

Cypress Tree | Faithfulness | strong, muscular, adaptable, takes what life has to give, content, optimistic, craves money and acknowledgment, hates loneliness, passionate lover which cannot be satisfied, faithful, quick-tempered, unruly, pedantic, and careless.

Elm Tree | Noble-mindedness | pleasant shape, tasteful clothes, modest demands, tends not to forgive mistakes, cheerful, likes to lead but not to obey, honest and faithful partner, likes making decisions for others, noble-minded, generous, good sense of humor, practical.

Fig Tree | Sensibility | very strong, a bit self-willed, independent, does not allow contradiction or arguments, loves life, its family, children and animals, a bit of a social butterfly, good sense of humor, likes idleness and laziness, of practical talent and intelligence.

Fir Tree | Mysterious | extraordinary taste, dignity, sophisticated, loves anything beautiful, moody, stubborn, tends to egoism but cares for those close to them, rather modest, very ambitious, talented, industrious, un-contented lover, many friends, many foes, very reliable.

Hazelnut Tree | Extraordinary | charming, undemanding, very understanding, knows how to make an impression, active fighter for social cause, popular, moody, and capricious lover, honest, and tolerant partner, precise sense of judgment.

Hornbeam Tree | Good Taste | of cool beauty, cares for its looks and condition, good taste, is not egoistic, makes life as comfortable as possible, leads a reasonable and disciplined life, looks for kindness and acknowledgement in an emotional partner, dreams of unusual lovers, is seldom happy with its feelings, mistrusts most people, is never sure of its decisions, very conscientious.

Lime Tree | Doubt | accepts what life dishes out in a composed way, hates fighting, stress, and labor, dislikes laziness and idleness, soft and relenting, makes sacrifices for friends, many talents but not tenacious enough to make them blossom, often wailing and complaining, very jealous but loyal.

Maple Tree | Independence of Mind | no ordinary person, full of imagination and originality, shy and reserved, ambitious, proud, self-confident, hungers for new experiences, sometimes nervous, has many complexities, good memory, learns easily, complicated love life, wants to impress.

Oak Tree | Brave | robust nature, courageous, strong, unrelenting, independent, sensible, does not like change, keeps its feet on the ground, person of action.

Olive Tree | Wisdom | loves sun, warmth and kind feelings, reasonable, balanced, avoids aggression and violence, tolerant, cheerful, calm, well-developed sense of justice, sensitive, empathetic, free of jealousy, loves to read and the company of sophisticated people.

Pine Tree | Particular | loves agreeable company, very robust, knows how to make life comfortable, very active, natural, good companion, but seldom friendly, falls easily in love but its passion burns out quickly, gives up easily, everything disappointments until it finds its ideal, trustworthy, practical.

Poplar Tree | Uncertainty | looks very decorative, not very self-confident, only courageous if necessary, needs goodwill and pleasant surroundings, very choosy, often lonely, great animosity, artistic nature, good organizer, tends to lean toward philosophy, reliable in any situation, takes partnership seriously.

Rowan Tree | Sensitivity | full of charm, cheerful, gifted without egoism, likes to draw attention, loves life, motion, unrest, and even complications, is both dependent and independent, good taste, artistic, passionate, emotional, good company, does not forgive.

Walnut Tree | Passion | unrelenting, strange and full of contrasts, often egotistic, aggressive, noble, broad horizon, unexpected reactions, spontaneous, unlimited ambition, no flexibility, difficult and uncommon partner, not always liked but often admired, ingenious strategist, very jealous and passionate, no compromise.

Weeping Willow | Melancholy | beautiful but full of melancholy, attractive, very empathetic, loves anything beautiful and tasteful, loves to travel, dreamer, restless, capricious, honest, can be influenced but is not easy to live with, demanding, good intuition, suffers in love but finds sometimes an anchoring partner.

[kushandwizdom]

🌟

[azurenrain-blog]

I love this. And I did. She opened my eyes to believe in what I long believed was impossible to find. 

[azurenrain-blog]

Awake to the Rain

My Path

Becoming a witch was not something I set out to do. Quite the contrary, I have dedicated a lot of my life to the study of spiritual and secular philosophy, yet I have always been naturally critical and a born skeptic. 

Looking back at my life now I realize that there had been clues all along. Some of them becoming more obvious in recent years.

I had experienced extremely vivid dreams most of my adult life. Some were prescient with answers to problems or issues. Some involved vivid and seemingly lucid experiences flying, meeting with people who had passed away or experiencing things in ways so vivid that I would awaken and remain disoriented for a few hours. All of this I had always written off as a vivid imagination, though more spiritual friends had long suggested it was something else.

I had also had a strong capacity to predict some things in the near future. Feeling when someone close to me was in trouble, had been hurt or fallen ill were also common events. This I wrote off as my being naturally worried. But there were so many times, in retrospect, that this was extremely accurate despite even having a ocean separating me from some. 

There were many other signs that something was going on with me that I just dismissed for years. So what changed?

After moving to Tokyo I started to follow my wife's family spiritual practices, Japanese Shinto and Animism. The more I explored this belief system the more I started to really connect to the beliefs and to the spiritual aspects. This helped me feel like I had found a spiritual belief system that could co-exist with my secular ideas. 

Next came ten years of practicing and performing ethnic music. Especially ecstatic music from Central Asia from Kurds and Persians. This music was intended to create trance like experiences and put the musician and listener in touch with the spiritual world. It was incredibly effective. We soon had experiences that were truly moving and spiritual. Sometimes sensing we had entered another level of consciousness. 

A side effect of this was that the older incidents began to take hold in the here and now. I had more lucid and predictive dream occurrences. The lucid dreams seemed to become controllable to some degree. I had more instances where I could sense when something negative had happened to those around me. And I slowly started to sense things differently. Feeling something change in both myself and in how I perceived the world around me.

I had studied Wicca and Traditional Witchcraft on and off out of curiosity for years. But I had always left it to move on to exploring something else. I had always felt this curiosity called to me more than other ideas I had read and studied, but I honestly dismissed it as something I would be unlikely to embrace.

The forth time it returned to my attention I decided to dig in much deeper. That is when I started to see that much of what had been going on with me had happened to many others who found their path to witchcraft. The more I experienced, the more I realized that I was becoming a witch. Something I never thought I would say. The skeptic becoming the witch. So unlikely.

Now it is a while later and I am still exploring. I am writing about my chosen path and the elements of other belief systems that make up the foundations and ideas I have adopted. I see the similarities in my family's Shinto faith and in my evolving relationship with witchcraft. I see the magic in the Sufi music traditions that remain a key part of my practice. And I am learning to be able to open myself to more.

So here I am. An Eclectic Witch. A believer of many Shinto, Sufi, Animist and Secular ideas and philosophies. I practice my craft, though I am not very public with my practice. I am still seeking truth and new ideas. I am not religious and likely never will be. And so I am a solitary practitioner and adherent only to my own path as I grow to understand it.

The road ahead seems filled with possibilities. After all, if a skeptic like me can find a spiritual path in witchcraft and unlock so much of who I am, then I believe anything is possible and the road ahead likely takes me to places I could not have imagined before.

[thefaolangirl]

[azurenrain-blog]

Nice tip for urban practice. 

[azurenrain-blog]

Beauty In The Darkness

Since I was very young I loved storms. The energy in the air, the sound and light of lightning, the cold downward air preceding the torrential rain on an otherwise hot day all captivated me. 

There is beauty in the storm, in the darkness it brings, in the spectacle of nature that it is. It is nature and therefore neither good nor evil. It is the source of life giving water, of wind to spread seeks and pollen, of fire to clear the deadfall clutter on the ground. It is a power of life.

As a Rain Witch I believe that some of us are more deeply inspired and driven by the weather than others. As the sea speaks to a Sea Witch, the rain and storms beckon us. 

[azurenrain-blog]

Rain Witch - An Introduction

The Path To Becoming A Rain Witch

When I began to explore witchcraft I investigated Wicca, Eclectic Wicca and Traditional Witchcraft traditions, reading and studying everything I could find. The Eclectic approach fit well with my hesitation to embrace a religious or structured ideology. But I soon discovered that Traditional Witchcraft resonated most closely to my core beliefs.

Traditional Witchcraft seemed focused upon the pragmatic application of their beliefs to living and existing as both physical and spiritual beings. I admired and respected the Hedge, Green and Kitchen Witch traditions yet none really expressed what I felt I was becoming.

Throughout my life I had a strong relationship with stormy weather. As a kid summers were filled with violent thunderstorms that terrified my friends and family. But not me, I had to be locked in to keep me from racing out to feel the rain and watch the sky dance with lightning. This never faded, to this day a storm fills me with energy that I cannot describe. I light up and every sense pulses with the storm.

It was not just the violent thunderstorms of my home state. Snow in winter, and later the slow endless rain of Seattle captured me too, I loved the grey days and the smell of rain.

I had read descriptions of witches who identified with water and air, sometimes called Sea or Water witches. Their stories tied them to tales of the sea and of storms. This appealed to me a great deal. But I did not fully identify with how the traditions were described.

I decided that as an Eclectic first and foremost, I was free to define a path that truly represented my beliefs and who I am.

My practice was evolving from many sources, never "cherry picked" but instead carefully selected over very long periods of time. As such, I knew I would be free to chose my path on my terms. For that I knew weather and storms would be a part of it. Far too much of my life had been filled with the energy and power of weather to ignore it. And so the idea of "Rain Witch" was the best expression of this I could determine.

I have found others on the web who similarly identify. I don't know if the term "Rain Witch" means anything to anyone other than those drawn to it, but it means something to us. If nothing else, it is a way of expressing one of our most powerful inspirations and ties to nature. That alone makes the phrase empowering, meaningful and inspiring.

So what does a Rain Witch do?

Keep in mind that none of this is exclusive and may be parts of other practices, here are my thoughts on the attributes that define one as a Rain Witch.

A Rain Witch draws power and inspiration from storms and weather. We are strongly attracted to water, wind and the fire of lightning.

We thrive best where there are frequent storms. We do not do well where the weather is always sunny and dry.

We love, but do not necessarily desire to be by the sea, rivers or lakes. We are equally content in mountains, the high desert, tropical forest or anywhere so long as it is visited frequently by precipitation and storms.

Our abilities are strongest in the midst of storms. But rainy days can also focus our intentions.

It can be said we are most happy when flowing freely like water, or blowing around at our will like the wind. We don't do well when too constrained. Freedom is essential.

We can be passionate and fierce like storms and lightning.

A Rain Witch, embraces the power and divine aspects of nature as a whole.

A Rain Witch, unlike some water witches does not necessarily worship a specific water god/goddess or any personification of the divine. Some may do so.

We do not worship, but instead revere nature in all its forms. (this is of course a choice for each individual to make.)

We believe in the universal equality of spirits and believe that all things contain a spirit.

We believe that nature is neutral. Good and evil are human constructs, perceptions and are decisions we must each make every day. As a rule, we choose good in our lives.

We accept other belief systems openly and with equality.

We practice positive magic to do good for others, to develop ourselves and to learn. Our rituals and practices are drawn from many traditions or created on our own.

Above all we adhere to the rule "Do No Harm" and believe we have a responsibility to respect, protect and care for others.

[azurenrain-blog]

The Power of Stuff

Here in Japan there is a common belief that all things have a spirit and presence. This is an ancient belief passed on from Animism to modern Shintoism. This extends to the belief that the everyday things we use take on a part of our own spirit and energy. That we put a part of ourselves into the things we use.

It is quite ordinary for everyday people to thank a broken cup, or worn our brush for its service before disposing of it. It is a form of respect for the item, for the person who made it, the materials it is constructed from. It is a wonderful respect for all things, living and inanimate alike.  This is considered to be sensible and responsible thinking. I agree, the things in our lives serve purpose and help us, it is only natural that we would appreciate them for doing so.

Humans and Things

We humans have a strong attraction to stuff. Throughout our lives we accumulate things and gather possessions around us. Some in moderation, others to excess. If it our modern material habit as well as a product of our consumer society.

But there is a aspect of owning things that we often overlook. Our things can have a power over our lives if we are not careful. They can define us, drive us, make us obsessed, burden us or tie us down.

Recent studies have shown that clutter can have profound negative affects upon our mental and physical well being. Stuff can produce stress, make us feel burdened and restrict the freedoms we need to grow and change. Even too much ordinary stuff that does not quite qualify as clutter and lead to deep negative results for our well being. But there is more to this than the purely psychological aspects that we need to be aware of, there is a spiritual aspect to consider.

In Japan we believe that everything in nature has a presence and can take on a spiritual energy. This includes the things we have created out of nature. This means that everything around us has an element of presence, including all those things filling up our homes. They are a spiritual energy and weight added to your environment and to your life.

Let's step back to the psychology for a moment first. There are multiple very practical secular concerns to consider when looking at the stuff in our lives.

We must be aware of and manage our desire for stuff.

We must consider providing space for and keep tidy the stuff we have.

There are limitations and restrictions that having a lot of stuff impose upon our lives.

The emotional attachments we develop to our stuff can be a difficult balance for us.

There is often a struggle when trying to let go of stuff.

Sometimes our best interests and our stuff are in direct conflict with each other.

Cumulatively this is a lot of direct emotional, mental and practical impact caused by the stuff in our lives. It is an impact that nearly all of us endure but may not be fully conscious of.

Now to be clear, I am not anti-stuff. I love musical instruments and collect some that bring a great deal of happiness into my life. I have favorite films and books that I keep to help calm me on rough days or provide an escape when I need one. I have clothes that define me and help me express who I am. And there are some creature comforts I would rather not do without.

But then there are the many things that I know are weighing me down. The things I need to address and free myself from.

A few years ago I stumbled upon the idea of Smart Sizing. It was a seemingly radical common sense idea that we can rework our lives to be free of too much burden. That by reducing our lives to include less and focus upon the more essential things we can find greater well being and happiness. This is something I think is long overdue as an approach to living. Especially for the urban environment.

So I set out to help rid my life of things that I really didn't need. With a few simple rules, I could begin to reduce the role of stuff in my life.

If I didn't touch it in over a year I needed to let it go.

Sentimental items would be limited to a few extremely specail tokens and photos.

Things I rarely used would be recycled to second hand shops to give them a new life.

I would limit the books, CDs and DVDs I love to only those I could not keep digitally.

Photographs would be digitized except the few precious old family treasures.

Papers would be kept only as long as practically needed. The rest shredded and recycled.

All those "maybe I can use it later" things would go except the most practical things that would be impractical or costly to replace. The rest would be recycled.

Getting rid of things meant I needed less furniture and storage, I could recycle these too.

Reduced kitchen items to the core things we use and a small amount of special occasion items. The rest, recycled.

Clothing I infrequently wear would go to second hand shops or donations.

I would exercise more prudence when making purchasing decisions to avoid replacing my newly opened space with other things.

All of this represented practical solutions. It meant we needed less space to live in since much of our stuff would be reduced. It meant we could reconsider where we live, the cost of our living space and the amount of total space we needed. When moving it meant less to move. Less to store if we decided to take a break and travel. Less to deal with should something happen to one of us.

Above all it meant less to worry over. Less to have to weigh into decisions. It was liberating. And we are far from done. The process for us is just getting started.

So why is this important for an Urban Witch's blog?

In our belief system we accept that all these things have an energy or spiritual presence. While most of it is entirely neutral, it never the less exists and exerts a presence in our lives. Even if we do not actively feel the presence, it is absolutely there.

But since we also believe in respecting all things, there were also spiritual concerns. For example an unused instrument is what we see as lonely. We believe that an instrument is our partner in making music. It is its own spirit as well as carrying elements of the person who made it and of us as we use it. Leaving it unattended was to abandon and disregard it spiritually. Something we feel is wrong.

That instrument could be loved and played by someone out there in the city. Someone who would be thrilled to find it in a shop, or have it donated to them. The instrument and the new owner could do good for themselves and for others by coming together. But so long as it sits idle in our home, unused, it is doing no one any good at all. This is in our view something that is both a burden to us and something that is not really ok.

The same can apply to anything. A chair, a cup, a set of brushes, a jacket or even a simple fork. These things could be used, cared for, enjoyed and be of service if recycled our of our storage and into active use by others. It is environmentally the right thing to do, but it is equally the right thing to do spiritually. Those things, no different than us, want to be of use. That is their existence and we should respect it by helping those items become useful to someone.

Perhaps this sounds unusual or strange to some western readers, but it is so much a part of the fabric of spiritual thinking in Japan and in some other parts of Asia. This respect for things is wonderful and helps us appreciate what we have and respect it.

We found that we felt good after seeing items go to new people. We felt we had done a spiritual good deed as well as a practical one. In the process all those unused and unappreciated items and the weight of their existence was lifted from us. No longer a burden to us, they became a benefit to others. What more could we hope for?

Conclusions

If you have not considered Smart Sizing your life, I strongly recommend you consider doing so. A simple open space can be profoundly beneficial to your state of mind and to your health.

It is good and pure magic that any of us can do to make the world a little better for others as we do so for ourselves. It is an exercise to respect all that we have and to know when it is time to let things go to others or back to be created into other things. This is witch magic that only requires a change in how we see things and see the way we affect everything around us.

Use your power of intention and magic to change your perspective and in doing so make the world a better place around you.

[azurenrain-blog]

Urban Craft

Witchcraft is a nature based belief system that ties deeply into the natural world around us. Yet for many of us the urban world is where we live and work. Most often not necessarily by choice but by expedience. Many job opportunities, essential schools and other resources are more readily available in urban environments. Currently nearly 55% of people world wide live in cities. By 2050 the number is expected to be nearly 70%. For witches this means we are adapting along side our neighbors, we must adapt our practices to keep them effective as we do. One of the most compelling reasons for my interest in traditional witchcraft was the practical application of the practice to enhance every day life for my loved ones and for my community. Thankfully the urban world we exist in is also a part of the greater whole of nature, beautiful and alive if we slow down long enough to see and experience it.

We live in Tokyo, the world's largest city, a ranking it has held for many years.  For some perspective, it is estimated that Tokyo Yokohama house a population of 37.9 million, living in approximately 3300 square miles (8,500 square kilometers) with a population density of 11,500 per square mile (4,400 per square kilometer).

I knew early on that my practice would need to be focused upon those of us who live our lives in crowded urban centers. After all the strain and realities of urban living called for the kind of help our craft could provide making it as relevant here as in the country side. Perhaps even more essential and vital.

As I have developed both my belief system and my practice, I have focused on learning ways to benefit my fellow urban residents. This has taken the form of a few key areas of focus;

Providing practical life skills, career and relationship consultation

Creating helpful charms, talismans and other tools to benefit the needs of busy urban people.

Developing practical magic and rituals that apply to and help with urban life, problems and concerns.

Finding ways to help urban people disconnect from the hive and tap into their spiritual and intellectual selves outside the daily rush.

Exposing others to the amazing insights our craft can offer.

This part of the site is dedicated to sharing some of these ideas with others. I hope that what we have experienced and learned in our mega city may be of use to you in your community and practice. It is ever evolving as we learn more and face new challenges. I hope this will be beneficial to others as well.

Please visit and check our our posts. We welcome your feedback and input as well.