Iâve been building a little browser-based digital grimoire / webgrimoire for my site, and itâs finally at the point where I want to let other people try it.
https://shrine404.neocities.org/grimoire
Itâs still in beta, so im basically just asking people to poke around, play with it, and tell me what works, what feels clunky, and what youâd want added.
It's not a productivity app so don't go in expecting that. I wanted it to feel personal, decorative, a little old-web, a little devotional lol..
I worked really hard on this so if you can give me feedback and maybe reblog I'd be so happy. Again it is FREEEEE.
What it can do right now:
âž create entries for different sections like spells, materia / correspondences, dreams, lore, links, journals, divination / omens, and more
âž has an altar / webshrine area where you can make little devotional pages with things like:
shrine images
candles
offerings
blinkies / extra shrine images
shrine frames / styles
relics / decorative bits
ânow playingâ style details
guestbook / shrine personality features
âž has a practitioner / about area so you can personalize it with your own path, signs, beliefs, deities, tools, icon, etc.
âž includes writing tools so entries can be more than just plain text â invocation blocks, prayer cards, omen / warning boxes, poetry formatting, ritual steps, foldaway notes, dividers, and other little text charms
âž lets entries link to each other, so it can work more like a tiny personal web or wiki instead of just isolated notes
âž has optional ritual metadata / seals for entries, but they can also be turned off if they donât fit the page
âž has backup / export options all grouped together, including a full HTML export option
âž has different palette / theme options in settings, including lighter and darker modes for readability / vibe
âž has a header image option and other little personalization settings
A few important notes before using it:
đš it is still a beta
there may still be bugs, odd save issues, awkward layout moments, or parts that need smoothing out
đš it currently saves in your browser storage
so if you use it a lot, please export backups regularly
đš itâs meant to be a little expressive and decorative
so some features lean more âdigital shrine / personal archive / weird old web objectâ than âminimal serious appâ
If you try it, Iâd especially love feedback on:
â´ď¸ anything confusing or unintuitive
â´ď¸ bugs / things not saving properly
â´ď¸ sections or features you wish existed
â´ď¸ readability / accessibility issues
â´ď¸ whether the altar / shrine side feels fun enough
â´ď¸ whether the writing tools feel useful or too much
â´ď¸ anything that feels especially charming, broken, annoying, inspiring, messy, or missing
Basically: if you use it and have thoughts, I want them.
This is my weird little beta grimoire child and Iâm trying to make it genuinely beautiful and fun to use, not just functional.
Also, if you like strange personal websites / old web things / occult tools / shrine pages / browser toys, you may enjoy it just for that alone.
Tumblr loves Halloween, so here's a cheesy Halloween metal song I've been working on. I'm gonna redo the vocals at some point but it's otherwise complete.
TRANS GLORY - a reminder, a promise, a beacon, a bulwark.
Free To Use, Distribute, Whatever.
this was not requested, but I saw a post by a mutual and something inside me clawed out and drew this, I actually went through all of my papers for this lmao. Thankfully the new stack of papers came in yesterday.
Oh no. What's wrong with Silver Ravenwolf? I feel like I see them recommended everywhere...
Yeeeeaaaah, it's an ongoing problem. Her books were wildly popular for over a decade and they're were widely marketed as THE Book To Have for beginner witches by Llewellyn, which was the heaviest of the heavy hitters in occult literature at the time.
The problem with Silver Ravenwolf is largely that she is wildly out of touch in a very New Age White Woman kind of way. Her books tout loads of misinformation, appropriation, and historical revisionism that are simply not acceptable (i.e. claiming victims of witch trials were actual pagan witches, citing a fictional ancient matriarchal goddess religion that never existed was the basis for Wicca, leaning into the hereditary superpowers / indigo child / starseed narrative, etc). Besides which, the theories she posits contradict each other from page to page and chapter to chapter, claims a Gardnerian lineage which canât possibly exist, and trumpets Bucklandâs personal theories on the Burning Times and interpretation of the Threefold Law as if they were fact.
And thanks to her runaway popularity, those of us who instruct and answer questions from newer witches have to UNTEACH all of this nonsense.
If it were simply a matter of being a product of her time, I could forgive some of the nonsense. But sheâs still selling mammy dolls on her website, though she labels them as âprimitiveâ and equates them to âpositive voodoo dolls.â Yes, she's been confronted about this, and yes she doubled down. I donât think I need to explain how gross and racist this is on SEVERAL levels. She's been given opportunities to show growth and self-work with regards to her work and simply refuses to believe that she was ever wrong about anything.
So, her books aren't entirely worthless by any means, but they require a LOT of critical reading and a strong understanding of actual history and science. Furthermore, she leans rather hard into a borderline cult mentality that boils down to, "Nobody understands you, but because you're drawn to witchcraft, you're SPECIAL, probably because of some ancient hereditary superpower, so don't worry - Mama Silver understands you. Also, there's no need to read further into anything, just take my word for it."
I would not recommend them for beginners, which is a problem because that's exactly the demographic her work is marketed toward. (Personally, I would not recommend them for anybody, but that's just my opinion.)
For more details, I suggest the following articles:
Continuing Anger Over Silver Ravenwolf
The Problem With Silver Ravenwolf
Trae Dorn (@traegorn) of BS-Free Witchcraft expands on the topic in this video. They've been wrestling with this issue for YEARS within the Wiccan and wider witchcraft communities and I'm sure they could cite examples I've missed.
Want some fun, queer, contemporary fantasy books to read (with a good dose of humor and a pinch of spice)? Try my books -- the Mia Graves series! The first two books are out right now, with the third coming in December (and several more volumes on the way).
Start with The Witch and the Rose, which has Witchcraft and Ghosts, while Mia deals with trauma and Riley makes bad life decisions!
Then read the sequel, Bloody Damn Rite, which has Witchcraft and Vampires, while Mia deals with trauma and Riley makes worse life decisions!
Then, in the upcoming Shadowcasting, there's Witchcraft and more Witchcraft, while Mia still deals with Trauma but Riley only just gets kind of judgy... because Bobbi is the one making bad life decisions.
Do all of these people need therapy? Probably.
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The Witch and the Rose
ISBN: 9798869132666
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Bloody Damn Rite
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The freemasons came from ancient Egypt, tarot cards came from ancient Egypt, alchemy comes from ancient Egypt, Dorothy Eady comes from ancient Egypt, thatâs just how itâs done
if you pinch out a candle with ur fingers ur SQUISHING ur MAGIC like u sqursh a BUG and it will say WHY DID U DO THAT i thought we were FRIENDS and ur spell WONT WORK
Lammas is the âcross-quarterâ day marking the first harvest of early grain, where the first loaf of the bread from the harvest is broken and shared in the name of the Goddess. All crops associated with grain and of the season are sacred to this time. Much festivity is coincident with Lammas in Australia, with Australia Day being marked on January 26. It is a time to reflect on the successes of the year and to reward yourself for jobs well done. Lammas magic can be magic of facing up to change. The God gives his energy to the crops to ensure life while the Goddess, as Mother, prepares to transform into her aspect as the Crone. The God loses his strength as the days grow shorter.
Mabon/Madron (Autumn Equinox)
March 20-23
Mabon is a balancing point in the light and dark of the year, the day when the sun has equal hours in and out of the sky. It is also the second harvest. At this time food is prepared for storage, jams and pickles are made, and fruits are candied and preserved for the coming winter. Pagans celebrate this as a rite of Thanksgiving, a celebration of harvest abundance, an appreciation of hearth, home, and family. It is a time to reflect on what it means to be a Witch and re-affirm your commitment to the Craft. This is the time when the Goddess is mourning the God even though she carries him within her, to be born again at Yule.
Samhain/ All Hallowâs Eve / Halloween
April 30/May 1
The Pagan year begins (and ends) with Samhain. It is a time of reflection, of looking back over the last year. This is the time when the boundary is thinnest between the worlds of living and dead; the powers of divination, the Sight, and supernatural communication are strengthened on Samhain night, and it is considered a powerful but dangerous time to communicate with lost loved ones. Pagans celebrate Samhain as an acknowledgment that without death, there can be no rebirth. At Samhain, the darkness increases and the Goddess reigns in her powerful aspect of the Crone. The God passes into the underworld to become reborn of the Goddess again at Yule. It is a time to honour those who have gone before us and it is a poignant co-incidence that Australia and New Zealandâs day of Remembrance for their fallen in war, ANZAC Day on April 25, should be so close to the southern Samhain.
Yule (Winter Solstice)
June 20-23
Winter solstice or Yule is the shortest day, and also the longest night of the year. It marks the return of the Sunâs warmth and light, and the promise once again of a productive Earth. Pagans celebrate these aspects with candles, fire, greenery and feasting. At this time, Yule logs are burned. The Yule log must traditionally be the root of a hardwood tree, and in Australia mallee roots are ideal for this purpose, as are Tasmanian oaks and all types of Eucalyptus. The Yule log is burned down until nothing but a small piece remains, which is saved and kept to be used as a lighter for the following yearâs Yule fire. A Yule tree is placed within the traditional Wiccan home, with a pentagram (five pointed star) at the top, symbolizing the five elements. Presents are exchanged and many Witches stay up all night to welcome the sun. This is symbolic of the Goddess giving birth to the God and then resting after her ordeal.
Imbolc / Imbolg / Candlemas / Feast of Torches / Oimelc /Lupercalia / Brigidâs Day
July 31/August 1
Imbolc is the time of the beginning of beginnings, the time to consider carefully what you will do with the year stretching before you. Imbolc brings the awakening of the life force when the first green shoots of bulbs appear. Life is stirring again and this marks the Goddess recovering after giving birth while the newborn God is depicted as a small child nursing from his mother. The God is growing, spreading sunshine all around causing things to grow. It is a time to honour the feminine and get ready for spring. At lmbolc, the Australian forests are bright with the colour yellow, the Acacia trees coming into full flower. Until fairly recently, the 1st of August was âWattle dayâ in Australia (it has now been moved to the 1st of September).
Ostara / Eostre (Spring/Vernal Equinox)
September 20-23
The Equinoxes are the balancing points in the cycle of the seasons, when the day and night are of equal length, reminding us of the harmony of the whole. Buds of flowers and leaf, all manner of eggs and just-born life are celebrated in decorations and imagery as Pagans rejoice in the Earthâs reawakening. The urge of spring is to do, create and bring in the new. Here light overcomes darkness with lengthening days bringing the magic of new growth. Ostara is associated with childhood and new life, and the God and Goddess are perceived as children, personifying youth and innocence before their entry into adulthood. The Goddess, as the Maiden, covers the earth with flowers and love while the God grows to maturity. This is a time to honour the masculine and to celebrate everything that is great about being alive.
Beltane / Bealtainen / Beltaine / Walpurgisnacht / May Day (Northern Hemisphere) / Novey Eve (Southern Hemisphere)
October 31
Beltane, the beginning of the summer months is at the November cross-quarter. This is the festival of the Great Rite - of sexual union between Goddess and God. Beltane is the spring fertility festival and there is feasting and celebration - a great festival for lovers! Beltane is the most popular time for Witches to be handfasted. This is the time when the brilliant red flowers of the Flame Trees highlight Australian forests and gardens. Our famous horse race, the Melbourne Cup, is happily coincident with southern Beltane, being run on the first Tuesday in November and taken as an unofficial holiday across Australia.
Litha / Midsummer (Summer Solstice)
December 20-23
This is the longest day of the year, and a time of joy and strength for the light. It is a time when the powers of nature are at their fullest. In the past this was often marked with bonfires and celebrants staying awake through the short night. To leap over the bonfire was to assure a good crop; some said the grain would grow as tall as the leapers could jump. Due to fire restrictions in Australia throughout summer, celebrations for this Sabbat tend to be quite different from those throughout the rest of the year. No candles can be lit, no cauldrons burned, and no open flames are allowed outside throughout much of the country. Litha falls in the dry stifling heat of summer in the southern part of our land, but in the north, Litha falls in the hot, wet season, and represents fruitfulness. In Australia the Sturt Desert Pea is a sacred flower of this time. This is a time of ascendancy of the God, at his most powerful now, while the burgeoning Goddess brings forth the bounty of the Earth.
As Iâve gotten into deity worship and have been more open about it with friends the number one response I get is âbut you donât really believe in that do you?â
and yes, I do, but if you MUST argue with me about it
I grew up non religious and described myself as agnostic for a long time, and I do still hold truth in that. I think itâs arrogant to say we know for sure whether there is or isnât some higher powers. But if thereâs really just nothing
WHO CARES
itâs fun to believe, itâs motivating, itâs energizing. Even if the gods arenât ârealâ in a scientific sense, they are real in my mind.
Even if when I die itâs all been nothing but a placebo effect, thatâs okay!!
itâs helped me get by, itâs helped me be happy, and that is enough
