A Burning Heart

Black eyes and long arms and teeth too sharp, mouth dripping with gold.

[normal-horoscopes]

Hello CT, while i was doing some light research on Agrippa, i stumbled upon something called Cabbala, some sort of christian version of the jewish Kab*llah created during the renaissance. Have you heard of it before? what are your thoughts? i offer some charge from my phone battery, a nice coffee, and the meaning from the tea leaves in the bottom of my cup.

SEE BACK IN THE 1400s IF YOUR RELIGION HAD AN ESOTERIC BRANCH MOST WRITERS WOULD REFER TO IT AS T "X KABBALAH" FOR EXAMPLE AT THE TIME THE ISLAMIC ESOTERIC PRACTICES LIKE ULUM AL-GHARIBA WERE REFERRED TO BY MANY WESTERN OCCULTISTS AS "ISLAMIC KABBALAH" DESPITE IT HAVING ALMOST NOTHING TO DO WITH KABBALAH AND HAVING MORE IN COMMON WITH HINDU AND BUDDHIST ESOTERICISM

"CHRISTIAN CABBALAH" COULD MEAN ONE OF TWO THINGS:

ANY OF THE MYRIAD OF CHRISTIAN ESOTERIC PRACTICES THAT ARE NOT DIRECTLY STOLEN FROM JUDAISM

OR

THE VERY RACIST ORIGINAL OC DO NOT STEAL KABBALAH THAT THE ROSACRUTIANS FLAT OUT STOLE FROM JUDAISM

[normal-horoscopes]

Getting Started With Magic:

I am often asked “Caretaker I want to get in to magic but I don’t know where to start. Any recommendations?“ and I am at a loss for an answer. Magic is about as unformalized as you can get, and due to the nature of the occult in general, attempting to find a good starting point is almost explicitly impossible. What follows is a jumble of broad generalizations that make up my best shot:

Part 1: A sense of humor

The world is magic. Everything from physical objects and people to ideas and dreams has some relationship with magic. Some things are chock full of it, some are made of it, some resist it, some produce it, some feed off it. At the end of the day, any magical practice will involve experimenting, reading, and learning firsthand how different things interact with magic. Our goal with these first steps is to figure out how you personally interact with magic.

For us humans, magic comes in three primary forms I call humors. To use an analogy, if magic itself is the idea of color these are the three primary colors. Almost any magical act will function on some blend of these three things. Most practitioners tend to either specialize in one humor, or sit comfortably in the middle between two, and the majority have at least modest ability with all three. The humors, the magic based on them, and the archetypes associated with them, are described below. See if one in particular stands out to you.

The Sorcerer - Will: Will magic is logical. Things like sigilcraft, occult geometry, runework, and most forms of magical artifice like enchantment, are all based on will. Traditionally, will magic has been the purview of secret societies, alchemists, and occult researchers. A will user manipulates the magic of the world through sheer focus, and often finds themselves drawn to the mathematical elements of magic. They are the person who spends long hours pouring over occult texts that seem to pull them in.

The Priest - Faith: Faith magic is social. Anything involving communication or interaction with a non-human entity or intelligence is generally faith magic. Most religious magic is based on faith, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be faith in a god, just faith in something besides yourself. This could be anything from the major god of an established religion, to a pagan god, to a local water spirit, to a ghost, to a demon. These are your priests, mediums, and spirit workers.

The Witch - Instinct: Instinct magic is meditative. Its anything that works best when you don’t think about it, or anything that works based on vibes. Most folk magic and superstition falls into this category, along with the oracular arts, divination, and most of alchemy and herbology. Instinct users have a good nose for when stuff just feels magic. These are your classic witches, psychics, and apothecaries. 

[normal-horoscopes]

you said you've encountered several deities before; any impressions or stories you can share with us??

FREYA: LIKE 7 FEET TALL, WAS WEARING AN OPEN SHIRT THAT EXPOSED BOTH A NIPPLE AND A KNIFE HANDLE, CATS WERE WAY BIGGER THAN YOU EXPECT

THOTH: COULD NOT HAVE BEEN LESS IMPRESSED WITH ME

HESTIA: MAKES ABSOLUTELY BOMB ASS CHILLI, EXTREMELY FUNNY BUT IN A REALLY DRY SUBTLE WAY

HERN: KIND OF A JOCK KNOWS A WEIRD AMOUNT ABOUT ANIME

[servantofthefates]

I just wanna let you know that your general life prediction tarot spread from a few months ago is incredibly accurate! All of its predictions have come true for me by now. It's crazy really. Thank you so much for all that you do! I hope it's not too much to ask for an equivalent (or something similar) of that spread, but for life advice? Thanks a lot Diana!

How to Ask Tarot for Life Advice

Sometimes, you have no specific question. On how to move forward, you simply need some suggestions.

Step 1: Shuffle your deck.

Invoke your gods, your ancestors or your higher self, and ask for advice on how to live your best life. For the next nine steps, record the cards. Take notes or photographs.

Step 2: Look for The Fool.

The card to its left is what you should focus on. The one to its right is what you should leave behind.

Step 3: Look for The High Priestess.

The card to its left is what your intuition is wrong about. The one to its right is what your intuition got right.

Step 4: Look for The Empress.

The card to its left is what you need to wait very patiently for. The one to its right is what you can harvest very soon.

Step 5: Look for The Emperor.

The card to its left is the battle you need to abandon. The one to its right is the war you need to win.

Step 6: Look for The Hierophant.

The card to its left is a person who gives bad advice. The one to its right is the source you can trust.

Step 7: Look for The Chariot.

The card to its left is what needs to be stopped. The one to its right is what needs to be allowed.

Step 8: Look for The Hermit.

The card to its left is the question you need to ask. The one to its right is the opposite of that.

Step 9: Look for Death.

The card to its left may look like a wolf, but is a sheep on the inside. The one to its right is a wolf through and through and is trying to deceive you.

Step 10: Look for The Star.

The card to its left is the dream you should chase. The one to its right is a goal that is not worth the fight.

Step 11: Express your gratitude.

Thank the ones you invoked for their advice, as well as your cards for speaking with their voice.

[plantwitch]

Don’t know who else to ask. Bluntly and honestly speaking, Can someone be a witch even if they dont have “psychic abilities” and cant meditate? I know it’s not for everyone, and if I’m just going through the motions should I just stop?

i have a few opinions of this, and all things i say to you are not meant to be rude, or cruel, just blunt and honest. first off... you can meditate. this is a pure lack of will in your arena, and you must overcome this. do not say you can’t. you are fully and entirely capable and i won’t hear another word of it. no excuse you have is good enough to sway me as to why you can’t. you just haven’t tried hard enough. it’s difficult and you don’t want to do things that are difficult, to hold yourself accountable for all the things that are impeding your concentration. magic is pain. to master magic is to be reborn again, a new creature, not bound by the same rules as others- but in order to achieve this freedom, you have to radically change the self- you have to clean it out. you likely don’t want to do this- you might say you do, or want to convince yourself that you do, but you are the only one stopping yourself.

if you are the kind of person who must make excuses for yourself, or want to take the easy route, or are dabbling in magic to make your life easier- this is not the path for you.

psychic ability generates and awakens when you work hard. it will not come by filling jars and saying rhymes. you have to awaken the power for you to feel it... if you are afraid of the power, afraid of losing yourself, afraid of changing yourself, afraid of giving up everything you know now, then move on.

[carmillacalls]

Spirituality and mindfulness are great as a personal crutch but at the end of the day I have to come to terms with the fact that witchcraft probably isnt for me and I am incapable of doing any of this. I am just going through the motions and collecting items. This isn’t real, and never has been- at least in my world

There are people where witchcraft and spells and ceremonial magic work. But I learn that it just isn’t for me. I’m not talented or gifted, and it would be delusional to call myself that.

Im glad I bought that seminar. It made me realize that all of this has been useless. All these years were a distraction, I can’t even meditate.

Wall the athames and wands and talismans in the work are pointless if held by someone with no disipline, no secrecy, no true willpower and faith that is shaky at best.

Even the whole law of attraction thing doesnt work because I lack strong will and faith for anything. I get discouraged so easily. I feel so hopeless

[carmillacalls]

Me: ah yes i tapped into my subconscious through dreams and im really growing in my witchcraft

Also me: I am completely incapable of meditation and useless, I have 0 skills and I’m faking all of this

[carmillacalls]

i was this tall (like 8ft) pale being with long sharp nails and sharp teeth and black eyes, and under the moon i took up the same space, folded down into 6ft, now round and dark and warm. Muscle and hair and sharp senses. An eclipse passed over me and i sang on a podium in a town square as I burned under that dark light that seeped out along the edges of the moon.

[carmillacalls]

My name is not Carmilla.

It is a beautiful name, but not one I respond to. If I hear it in a crowd, I may turn to it. But this is only out of interest, not identity. Not once has this name been called out to me.

The name comes from the novella titled Carmilla. It is a story of a young woman and a beautiful vampire who drains her slowly, until they both look pale and shallow. It is first true vampire literature, in my opinion.

As fantastic as a vampire story is, I do not claim this title, of a fantasy creature written by a long dead Irishman.

Carmilla is a beautiful name. It is not mine