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I will give you a starting point for the symbol of the week, covering the basics. I’d engage you to take these basics to build your own research.
Spirit/Ghost
Keywords: Spiritual—sometimes feared—aspect of the Dreamer’s Self; Memory
See also: Spectre, Phantom, Manifestation, Appearance, Religious Images Question: What keeps catching up with you?
Psychological Meaning
— Mirror of a part/trait of the Dreamer confronting them
—→ Traits of the Dreamer that need to ‘die’
—→ Traits of the Dreamer that ‘died’, but need to be revived
— Can also be the spirits of people that the Dreamer lost
—→ Those also often just represent a trait of the dead person, namely one that the Dreamer remembers
— In the case of the Dreamer being a child: A bogeyman after a fearful experience in the wake life
Spiritual Meaning
— Connection to the collective subconscious (meant for self-development)
— An actual encounter (Dreams, like Meditation, offer entrance to the Astral/Spirit)
European Folk Belief
— to see: Bad things coming the Dreamer’s way—will be overcome if the Dreamer didn’t flinch
— Spirit of a Parent: Danger, be careful with the development of relationships with strangers
— Spirit of a beloved Friend: Far travels with an unpleasant travel partner
— to talk to one: Dreamer will get good reputation; Dreamer will lure enemies into traps; if Dreamer is a woman she might experience deceit and widowhood
— To see a female ghost in a long white dress hover through the sky: The Dreamer will be successful in scientific things, but suffer a life of sorrow
— To see a female and a male spirit next to each other in the sky: The Dreamer will be very successful from scratch in a short space of time, but not for long as death will carry the Dreamer off
— To see the spirit of a living friend: Bad things will happen to the Dreamer’s friend, this can also be a sign for an early death
— To see spirits making music: Things will change for the worse
— To hear them knock on walls and windows: trouble is coming
Good evening, and welcome to a spooky Symbol Saturday!
I will give you a starting point for the symbol of the week, covering the basics. I’d engage you to take these basics to build your own research.
BAT
Keywords: nocturnal, spooky, sensible
See also: darkness, night, vampire
Question: Which darkness am I ready to infuse, or to embrace?
Psychological Meaning
Unconscious fears might be terrorising the Dreamer
Symbolises all physical and mental movements the Dreamer isn’t aware of
Disturbance of the spiritual balance
Compulsive emotions
Spiritual Meaning
Uncertainty
Vagueness
European Folk Belief
Fickleness
Proclaiming sorrow and hardship, bad fate, catastrophes; the death of a parent, or loss of a limb or eyesight
seeing many bats: good business despite fear of debt
seeing a white bat: death symbol—often, a child will die
being attacked by bats: bad thoughts through malicious gossip
catching a bat: things will become better; a sick Dreamer will soon be healed
Association: I’m tempted to associate this symbol both with the Tower (due to the heavy symbolism in folk belief), and the Moon in Tarot. If you have other suggestions, please share!
Question/Exercise As above: Which darkness are you ready to infuse, or to embrace? Alternatively: DRAW A BAT!
Rune: Ingwaz Pronounced: Eng-wahz Translation: Seed, The God Ing (Freyr) KEY WORDS Upright: Common sense, time of relief, freedom from anxiety, trust yourself, freedom to move on, resting, making time for yourself, diplomacy, agreement, strength of the heart, stored energy, creation, evolution. Merkstave: Impotence, futility, movement without change, unproductive, toil, Labour, immaturity RUNE POEM Anglo-Saxon: Ing was first among the East Danes, Beheld by men, until afterwards to the east, He went over the waves, (his) chariot ran after, Then the warriors named the hero thusly Question: When you feel overwhelmed and over stressed, how do you unwind? #divination #runeoftheweek #runecasting #runecastingforbeginners #elderfuthark #norserunes #pagan #paganism #witchcord #ravenskeep #ravenskeepdiscord https://www.instagram.com/p/CUaxI9stJ6Z/?utm_medium=tumblr
Today we’re going to talk about a very precious creature of Scottish folklore:
The Haggis (Scottish Gaelic: taigeis); or better said, the Wild haggis (Haggis scoticus), the source of the same-name national dish.
Living on steep mountains and hillsides, the wild Haggis is rather special: Its legs are shorter on one side of its body than on the other side. Over the years, two varieties of the wild Haggis came to be, based on that peculiar detail: One Haggis variety is only able to run around the mountains clockwise, the other one anti-clockwise. The two varieties coexist peacefully, but cannot be mixed by natural means. After all, they’re not facing in the same direction… This resulted in a wee bit of inbreeding, causing the leg length difference to have become even more extreme.
Since it’s not that easy to find a wild Haggis in the vast Highlands, I personally recommend to visit the Glasgow Kelvingrove Gallery: They have a stunning Haggis taxidermy, right next to an Otter and other creatures of Scotland.
Haggis is traditionally served with Neeps (Swedes/Turnips) and Tatties (Potatoes) as part of the Burns supper (around 25 January), the birthday of Scotland’s national poet Robert Burns.
Burns himself wrote a Poem about Haggis:
So, if you come to Scotland, make sure to look out for the little creatures…
Happy Autumn Equinox! (Or Spring Equinox for our Ravens South of the equator) As of tomorrow, it is officially autumn! This time of year is all about balance, reflection, abundance, and blessings (especially of the home!) So join us om the server over the next few days (join link in bio) as we sprinkle a little autumnal love around - stay tuned for food, folklore, music and more! To kick off the festivities, check out our Autumn Tarot Spread. Heres to many more celebrations to come! - The Ravens Keep Mod Team x How do you celebrate the start of Autumn? #autumn #autumnequinox #equinoxtarot #tarotspread #mabon #paganism #pagan #divination #ravenskeep #ravenskeepdiscord https://www.instagram.com/p/CUGL5lGLpuk/?utm_medium=tumblr
Information for my followers on Tumblr: This weekly event is part of the discord server “Raven’s Keep”. If you want more than this, I recommend you checking it out! And without further ado…
I will give you a starting point for the symbol of the week, covering the basics. I’d engage you to take these basics to build your own research.
Feel free to message me in case you have any questions.
Yew Tree
Keywords: Healing, evergreen, revitalising, but also poison and ambivalence.
See also: Tree, Evergreen
Question: No question linked to this specific symbol. However, if looking for “tree” the question is, “where in my life am I ready to grow?”
Psychological Meaning
The Yew Tree is an ambivalent Symbol. On one side its wood was much-valued, but on the other side the Yew Tree is poisonous without peer. Once upon a time it was a symbol for sorrow and sadness.
Spiritual Meaning
Can symbolise immortality.
European Folk Belief
Harbinger of illness and disappointment, pointing to the death of an old person.
Sitting under one: the dreamer’s life won’t last long
Just looking at the tree: having a long life
The dreamer (in folk belief usually a young woman) sitting under the tree means that they will have fears regarding their lover’s faithfulness. If their lover is standing by the yew tree, the young dreamer might hear about an illness the lover has. If the dreamer is in awe about the yew tree, they will become estranged to their family through a misled marriage.
A dead yew tree symbolises a tragic death in the family.
Association
Some of you may know that there’s a Rune symbolising the Yew Tree: Ehwaz/Ihwa
Question/Exercise
For today’s exercise I’d ask you to look at the connections between the rune and the dream symbol. If you can think of other places where this symbol pops up, even better! Think about how you would decide to interpret the yew tree in a dream, based on your own connections to the symbol.
Today we will go into detail about the dream symbol “house”. If you think back to the time we first talked about this symbol, you may remember that it came with a lot of information. I will try to break it down to the essentials, so you can work with the information I’ll give you.
But first we will need to talk about how to use this information.
Dream analysis may sound intimidating and somehow occult, yet it is pretty straight-forward. The way I do it is by taking the things that I dreamed about _without giving them any additional interpretation_. I just take them as they are (e. g. “blue house”, “broken window”, “rain”) and look them up in my lexicon (if I’m not a 100% certain about the meaning, and even then, I might still look it up).
I make sure to make notes of the different meanings one by one, and then (and only then!) I look at them as a group, looking for the connection between the symbols. Note that things like “broken window” may need to be separated into two searches (“broken” and “window”) and then combined to one image before looking at the whole group.
Now, on to the Symbol…
HOUSE.
The question connected to this symbol is, “What do I believe or fear relating to me?”
The house, familiar or not, usually represents the dreamer’s Ego/Personality. It will almost always refer to how the dreamer “builds” their life, and how it looks inside him.
Rooms and other areas of the house represent parts of the dreamer’s personality and experiences. It is important to pay attention to the state of the rooms: How does it look? Is it tidy, empty, messy? If something in the room stands out, it’s also worth looking into: Is there a big desk, a broken window, a bouquet of flowers? All of these are keywords to look up in the lexicon!
To explore the house can symbolise the beginning of self-discovery, especially if the house was familiar, but the rooms were different.
The study refers to work discipline. This doesn’t always need to be job related, but can also refer to work on relationships, friendships, etc.
The bathroom refers to the dreamer’s cleanliness and intimate thoughts. It can refer to a spiritual cleansing, or to the need for the dreamer to morally purge themselves. The toilet often represents letting go of old memories, guilt, etc.
A library would represent the mind, and how the dreamer works with information. It may also stand for the dreamer’s need to learn something. The books in the shelves might give you a better idea of the details.
The roof represents the mind and intellect.
The attic represents experiences from the past and old memories. Here the dreamer will often find suppressed and forgotten memories. It may also give them a hint on what kind of clutter they still hold on to.
The dining room and the living room are pretty similar; both are spaces of social conversation. Only the focus in the dining room is on food. The question here is, what does the dreamer consume, and why?
The kitchen represents the motherly side (may be different if the dreamer’s dad took care of the cooking—this is why it is necessary to always keep the context in mind), and how information is processed.
The house front represents the ‘social mask’ aka ‘Persona’ the dreamer wears for the public.
The fundament represents, you guessed it, the fundaments of the dreamer’s life. Those can be financial security, but also opinions, expectations, etc.
The corridors represent how the dreamer interacts with other people, and how the dreamer refers to them. Remember that the corridors connect rooms, and with that practically the different aspects of the dreamer.
A basement usually represents the subconscious, and experiences with which the dreamer hasn’t dealt properly. It also represents spiritual/mental depth, and sometimes even hidden qualities. If you didn’t grow up with a basement, think of other places with a similar use (e. g. conservatory).
The bedroom represents sex, but also death and birth of the dreamer.
This is only a small overview of all possible symbols. As said before, it is important to look at these things in the context of the dreamer’s experiences, but also in the context of each other (after the initial sorting and defining). Things like the wallpapers, state of the house, the rooms, music playing, things or creatures in this house, are also important to form a complete picture.
RUNE OF THE WEEK Rune: Algiz Pronounced: All-yeez/al-gis Translation: Elk Upright: divine might, protection, sacred, defense, a shield, warding, a guardian, connection to the gods, spiritual awakening, maintaining success Merkstave: Hidden danger, a warning, loss of spiritual connection, blockage, going backwards, the Underworld, the unconscious mind Description: As with all the runes, Algiz is multi-faceted. Today, I'll touch on two key aspects in divination. Primarily, you will see this rune discussed in its fuction as a powerful protection rune. In a reading, the appearance of this rune may indicate a need to protect yourself, or that you are feeling the need to shield yourself or others. It does not *necessarily* indicate a definitive danger, but may relate more to a perceived lack of safety or desire to seek protection. It may also indicate that you are *being* protected or guarded - which brings us to our next aspect. Connection to the Gods. This rune can also represent the strength of the divine, whether that suggests you are being guided and protected *by* the divine, or otherwise seeking a greater connection or guidance to the gods (a spiritual awakening or developing sensitivity). Upright, Algiz may be a positive sign of success or progress here. Merkstave, this rune may take on a relatively literally inversion of the upright meanings. A warning, a danger just out of sight, a reversal of progress, a feeling of being blocked on your spiritual path. As always, look to the sounding runes for greater context. Rune Poem (Anglo-Saxon): The Elk-sedge usually lives in the fen, growing in the water. It wounds severely, staining with blood any man who makes a grab at it. Question: What makes you feel most connected to your practice? #runeoftheweek #runecasting #runecastingforbeginners #elderfuthark #norserunes #algiz #algizrune #paganism #divination #ravenskeep #ravenskeepdiscord https://www.instagram.com/p/CSusuDaLyIO/?utm_medium=tumblr
Today we talk about one of the most common dream symbols: Teeth.
Teeth help us to eat, speak, and to look healthy. Given this, teeth symbolise independence, strength, health, but also sexuality (people will usually be attracted to someone who’s got teeth, rather than someone who doesn’t). As always, the meaning of the symbol will be depending on the circumstances it appears in, but here’s a list of some of the most common tooth dreams:
Seeing teeth in dreams can have varying meanings:
Only seeing teeth is mainly a sexual symbol, but may also signal an unwelcome encounter with sickness or ruthless people. • Seeing beautiful teeth in others: having wealthy friends
Having beautiful teeth symbolises wealth, health, friendship, etc.
Seeing false teeth in someone else: a warning regarding a liar
Having false teeth: symbolises falling victim to trickery
Some of the most uncomfortable dreams are about losing teeth. These dreams often point towards one’s own mental/physical wellbeing, and are always to be seen as a warning sign.
Having shaky or damaged teeth hints towards material loss, and may be a sign that bad messages are on the way.
Having really bad teeth symbolises depression, being unlucky, and loss of wealth. It also symbolises plans going wrong.
Losing 1 tooth: uncomfortable news.
Losing 2 teeth: bad things will happen, if you don’t do something.
Losing 3 teeth: illness and/or accidents will happen.
Losing all teeth: Bad things happening, might point to a family member dying; also symbolises sickness or handicaps, or even hunger/famine. On a slightly easier note, this can also symbolise circumstances that blemish pride and damage business.
Losing teeth with pain: Death
Spitting out teeth: One self, or a family member will turn sick
There are lots more very detailed symbols regarding tooth dreams, such as what it means to let a doctor pull your teeth, what brushing them means, and even what it means if you pull one, search the hole with your tongue, but can’t find it. But I hope the provided list will help you figure out your teeth dreams in no time.
Keep in mind: If you regularly dream of losing your teeth, or having bad teeth, it might be a sign that you need to change something in your wake life, or even that therapy might be a good idea. It can also be a sign for you to let a doctor check your physical health. Remember: Dreams are also here to help you improve your wake life.
Travel/journey (physical and spiritual), a change of pace or direction, seeing the right move and doing it, active change, progress, rhythm, taking charge, initiative, adventure, the right path, morality, right action, leaving your comfort zone
This is the rune of travel in all forms, whether that's a physical trip, or some sort of spiritual or emotional development. Which ever it is, inertia is not an option. The time to take affirmative action is here. Change can be scary, but this rune indicates that it is necessary and unavoidable.
When this rune shows up, we can be sure there will be a journey of some kind, but remember; runes can rarely be read alone. Always look to the surrounding runes for context.
The roots of the word Raidho have also been connected to the concept of counsel, particularly of the internal kind. This rune relates to motion and taking action, but usually based off of our own internal "compass". Our sense of morality, our sense of direction. The fate woven by the Norns may mean that this change is inevitable, but it is directed by our own sense of self.
When presented Merkstave, it suggests a state of stagnation, or an inability to 'move on'. Perhaps the querrant is stuck in the past in some way, trapped in a cycle of inertia, or self sabotaging. If you're more familiar with tarot, think of the five of cups, nine of swords, or the hanged man reversed.
RUNE POEM (Anglo-Saxon)
Riding seems easy to every warrior while he is indoors
and very courageous to him who traverses the high-roads
on the back of a stout horse.
Question:
When you feel stuck or indecisive, what helps you move forward?
Hello, and welcome to the seventh Symbol Saturday!
Today, our members had a choice, even if it didn’t look like it. They picked between three houses. If you want, take a look at them and think of which house you'd have picked:
🏠🏡🏚️
This is what we will be talking about today: “Home” in dreams and its possible interpretations.
Nearly everyone has dreamed of “home” in one way or another. Sometimes you don’t really pay much attention to the house or flat you’re dreaming of, but sometimes it plays a major role. These dreams will usually have you walk through a building that may seem familiar to you in some way. It often doesn’t really matter if the house looks like this in the wake world as well, or if it exists at all. You just know this place.
Sometimes this can be a nice feeling, sometimes it’s uncanny; and there’s a reason for that.
We know these places because they reflect our inner Self according to dream analysis.
Now’s the time to ask yourself, which house did you pick? Even if you picked all of them, which one was your first choice? Of course, this isn’t a dream (from what we can tell *winkwonk*), but the subconscious doesn’t take breaks.
Did you take the house with the little tree? The plain house? Or the abandoned one?
Homes in our dreams are of course usually far more complex than these little house emojis. The part we want to focus the most on is their interior:
What do the corridors look like? Are they narrow or wide? Long or short?
Are there stairs? Are they cluttered, or can you walk them easily?
What’s on the walls? Is there a nice wallpaper? Pictures? Or are the walls cracked and mouldy?
What kind of rooms are there? Are they full? Empty? Locked?
The parts that stood out the most to you in your dream matter the most.
See the house as a reflection of your inner Self, quite literally: Do you like the pictures that hang on the walls of your inner Self? Are the rooms of your inner Self well-lit and clean, or are they cluttered? Are they maybe even locked, because you don’t want to know what’s inside? This could be bad memories, traumatic events, secrets… Sometimes our dream even clutters the stairs, or tears them in, if it doesn’t want us to go up to these rooms of our Self and our mind.
Whatever the home in your dreams looks like, it’ll help you understand yourself better.
Hello and welcome to Sense it Sunday! An intuitive weekly tarot reading ✨ here are 3 tarot cards relating to the week ahead. I’ve marked them all with an emoji, so just comment with the emoji of whichever card you feel drawn to, then later this evening I’ll show you what each card was and explain what it could mean for you! The deck I’m using is the Neo Tarot by Jerico Mandybur with art by Daiana Ruiz. Why not come say hi to us on discord? Link in the bio! #tarot #tarotspread #witch #witchcraft #pagan #divination #witchcord #discordserver #ravenskeep #ravenskeepdiscord #senseitsunday https://www.instagram.com/p/CRvlrEhL8Kk/?utm_medium=tumblr
Six is a perfect fit, because it’s also the number of birds that Romulus spotted in the sky:
Mox pastores illum in Palatio, hunc in Aventino vultures exspectare viderunt.
Subito Remus vocavit: “Videte! Sex vultures! Sex vultures advolant!”
Iam victoriam suam celebravit, cum Romulus clamavit: “Duodecim, videte, duodecim vultures adsunt!”
Pastores, qui haec audiverant, hunc vicisse consenserunt, illum reliquerunt, in Palatium abierunt.
… but his brother Remus spotted twelve. What was this about?
Romulus and Remus didn’t just go out for bird spotting because the day was inviting. Instead, they went in order to decide who will be the emperor of the city they were about to found. Remus saw twelve birds, and the pastors agreed that the signs had come in his favour.
Counting birds has been a practice known in ancient times already, and to this day it is one of the popular beliefs.
Counting crows is rather popular, and easy when sticking to the nursery rhyme:
One for sorrow, two for joy, three for a girl, four for a boy, five for silver, six for gold, seven for a secret never to be told, eight for a wish, nine for a kiss, ten for a time of joyful bliss.
Birds often represent freedom, the soul, rebirth (especially if we look at the Phoenix), but every type of bird also has its own specific symbolism.
From the pigeon in Roman and Christian belief as a symbol of peace and deliverer of good news, to the caged Nightingale and her song, there’s plenty of stories providing different birds with different symbolism. Let’s look at a few examples:
Crows usually always comes in groups, sometimes accompanied by rooks and jackdaws. These birds are often seen as symbols of death and darkness, as especially crows used to stick near to battlefields to feast on the fallen. This aspect may have been one of the reasons the crow ended up being the symbol of the Morrigan. But crows also symbolise friends/family that can be trusted blindly (as the German saying goes: a crow will not peck out the eye of another crow). Like their bigger cousin the raven, crows also symbolise intelligence, magic and the unknown.
Robins seem to have become one of Britain's trademarks: If there’s winter, there’s Robins. These cute little critters with their red chests are often symbols for endurance, rebirth, and strength. They stay here during the cold winters and somehow always seem to make it through.
Eagles are especially popular birds as national symbols, since they’re considered strong and powerful. If you’ve ever seen an eagle’s claw, you may also know why— in Mongolia, eagles are being used for hunting foxes. Their claws are strong enough to crush their skulls. They also represent wisdom linked to strength: “What do I have to understand to make use of my power?”
Swans are another popular symbol. While white swans symbolise emotions, sensibility, marriage, and beauty, black swans often symbolise intuition in dreams— but they can also be an omen of death, like any other black bird. The popular ‘dying swan’ is a symbol of unrequited love.
Do you have any favourite bird? If so, what do you love about it?
Today we will be talking about something enchanting…
Sirens were already known in Greek mythology, and made their way through history ever since. Sirens are dangerous creatures, luring seamen to sail their ships into cliffs and rocks with their singing. The Greek depicted them as creatures part human part bird, and only in medieval times their appearance changed to that of mermaids.
While Roman poets placed them on little islands called Sirenum scopuli, sirens later on also populated other areas. One popular example far from the sea is the Loreley: she’s a beautiful woman sitting on a high cliff along the river Rhine, singing and luring sailors into their death. The place (also called Loreley) is known for its dangerous bends, causing more ship accidents than usual.
In the Odyssey, Circe described the Sirens as, "lolling there in their meadow, round them heaps of corpses rotting away, rags of skin shriveling on their bones."
Homer didn’t give the Sirens in the Odyssey names, but later authors did. Some of these names are:
Aglaophonos (“the one with the beautiful voice”)
Himeropa (“gentle voice”)
Leukosia (“the white”)
Ligeia (“the bright sounding one”)
Molpe (“song”)
Parthenope (“girl voice”)
Peisinoe (“the persuading one”)
Thelxiope (“enchanting voice”)
According to lore, goddess Hera persuaded the Sirens to have a competition with the Muses. The Sirens lost— they plucked their feathers and fell to the sea as white bodies, forming an island.
Since this is about enchanting songs, let us ask: Do you have any favourite songs about myths and legends?
