#roaenpost

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When I don't ask my runes any specific question they tell me things like, "The breath of God and the primordial water nourish the seed of human creation." When I do the same with my tarot cards they say shit like, "Wash the dishes, whore. One day your parents will die."

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Taro As Colour by Ithell Colquhoun, published by Fulgur Press

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But anyway, before I got distracted by my last post.

Hekate.

I wanted to share some things I've learned about Her.

1) She is The Unseen Witness. This is an epithet I personally have given Her, but which derives from Her role as Persephone's savior and guide to and from the underworld.

2) She's pre-Greek. Anatolian, actually. That's how I personally like my deities—from a localized cult but so powerful they got picked up by a nearby pantheon (Diana is another example of this).

3) She's a goddess that was traditionally worshiped not in temples, but at homes. In my personal experience, She has a LOT of presence in apartments and shelters (especially shelters), as they are inherently liminal living situations.

4) She presides over Dogs and Polecats (like a weasel or ferret) and Horses, so I view Her as a goddess with dominion over all domesticated pets.

5) Hekate faces the three directions the roads lead at a Y- or T-junction, so in my personal practice I understand The Horned God to stand at Hekate's back and watch The Wild Way for Her. On my altar I have my representation of The Horned God facing away from me. Hekate did call me a sneak for that one, though, so YMMV.

6) I get the vibe she doesn't like to share altar space so she'll be getting a bookshelf of her own soon. You can use keys, the triple moon, and various momento mori (like bones, or the charm I made with a sprig of dead rosemary and a beetle carcass) to represent her in an altar space.

7) Herbs and Plants: Garlic, Yew, Mandrake, Dandelion, Belladonna, Cyclamen, Hemlock, Mint, Oak, Date Palms, Willow, Wolf's Bane. You'll notice many plants in her domain are poisonous or otherwise baneful. To this extent, she presides over all baneful plants.

8) She basically requires you to prioritize self-improvement and learning. Therapy and working out and reading and journaling can all be devoted to Her.

9) UPG but I also associate Her with mushrooms, moths, foxes, and rose thorns. She is carrion birds and the rust that eats at iron. She is the dark side of the moon and She likes it that way.

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Collage Altars for Diana, Aphrodite, and Hekate.

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CIRCLE TIP:

I know books from the seventies would have you believe otherwise, but you don't have to mentally hold circle for the whole ritual, and you don't have to physically mark the whole circle boundary, nor do you need a coven member to hold space. You can put regular old rocks at each of the cardinal directions along the walls of your room or along the outer perimeter of the sacred space and use those as anchor points for the energy you lay.

Start by gathering, cleansing, and sanctifying/consecrating/blessing/charging/whatever four stones of any shape and size that suits your needs. Larger stones are good if you want them to be a visible reminder of the boundaries of circle, but smaller ones are good for discretion. Anoint them with a protection oil if you'd like (I only recommend doing this if you are using them indoors with no animals around), and/or pencil protection sigils on them. Cast circle but make sure your energy hits each stone and runs through it. If you call in the quarters, invite them to reside in their respective directional stones. Boom, done, now you have an easily marked sacred space that doesn't need constant maintain.

And, fun fact, circle doesn't HAVE to be round. Round is easiest when you're using mental energy to hold the space, but if you use physical barriers like existing walls then your cast energy resides in that physical block and is held automatically. I especially love doing this as a quasi-permanent marker to sanctify an entire room because any doorways become defacto entrances/exits that spiritually open and close when physically opened and closed.

Okay but isn't this being lazy? NO you rude hypothetical, it's not. It's being resourceful. Using these physical anchors allows a solitary practitioner to put their focus towards other things. I use this method when I'm studying magic texts, or so I can hang out with my ancestors and spirit friends casually for extended periods of time, or if I am going to be attempting astral projection. And by "I use this method," I mean it is one of the permanent protections I have in place in my home.

Has anyone else tried this? Please share any experiences or circle hacks you might have!

[roaenexists]

Pick-A-Pairing Tarot and Oracle readings for the collective.

From left to right we have Pairing One: Leather. Pairing Two: Starburst. Pairing Three: Cerebral.

Pairing One: Leather.

You have been getting a little too big for your britches, as my grandma would say. You have been communicating and behaving in a way that has showed those around you a haughtier side of yourself than I know you'd prefer. In other words, you've been coming off as a bit of a bitch and we both know you're capable of better than that. You need to do some inner child work and tap back in to a learner's mindset. You don't have to fundamentally change who you are, just walk it back a bit. Did you ever love learning? Did you ever used to value the input of those around you? Tap back into that energy and you'll be surprised at how naturally it comes. Past You is here to support Present You. Stop trying to rush to your future self because right now you're missing the mark. Open yourself up to the lessons your friends and mentors and colleagues have for you, and embrace the youthful spirit you've been neglecting. Come home to yourself.

Pairing Two: Starburst

Recently you've ended something and then immediately begun something new that, quite frankly, you are ill-equipped to handle. I'm inclined to think it's a relationship, though for some of you it's a new job, or a personal project. But y'all all got one thing in common: You are going about this all wrong. You had your head in the clouds about what was going to be required of you, and how quickly you were capable of providing it, but the reality of the situation is that you have all the wrong tools, most of the wrong perspective, and none of the energy. You aren't seeing the situation clearly, most likely because you haven't been doing the necessary work on yourself to make sure you were ready for this new journey. If it's too late now to walk it back, don't panic. Set aside some time to really refill your emotional, spiritual, and physical cups. Make your own health and well-being the priority, at least for long enough to recenter and reassess. You cannot expect a battery to work when empty, and you cannot care for others without first tending to your own needs.

Pairing Three: Cerebral

Shit sucks right now. You're in a situation where you are powerless and/or unhappy, with the caveat being that there's no fucking reason you shouldn't be seeing and, more importantly, feeling progress already. You feel you've learned all you can from where you are, you've made all the moves, and all that's left is to move on. The good news is that it's only a matter of time. If you can bear down and get through time then you will be able to pursue your own idealistic future, which includes physically moving location in some way, and probably also mental health support services. Will you actually make it there is up to you, but overall this draw is giving big Trevor Project, "It gets better," vibes. It's corny but it is literally in the cards. You are moving forward. Time and space are not separate, so the longer you press on, the farther you are from where you want to leave. Things are changing. This is inevitable. If you can ride the tumultuous waters, they will eventually calm down, and you will be able to take control of your vessel in the way you know you need to. You know you are meant for different; you just need to believe it until your experienced reality is reflecting that truth back to you. Take this energetic hug from me and Spirit and know that your future is full of potential. If you need to vent you can DM me. Just keep going.

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the herbalist sources i have and trust don't mention a damn thing about oregano so i've made up my own correspondences damn it

oregano?

she's that bitch for family and friendship spells and she makes a great offering to ancestors especially. she's ruled by air and mercury which is a fun break from the gendered norm. she's all about communication and understanding. having an emotional issue? allow her airy logic to release and counter-balance the heated tempers and watery eyes.

-petty family feud of some kind? use oregano to prepare a meal and then invite over the offending party/ies to hash out your differences while in fellowship. allow her communicative properties to soothe everyone's egos and open up new paths to mutual understanding.

-take a bath in oregano and salt before a difficult cord cutting spell to prepare your body to release its attachment smoothly. can also be the ritual in and of itself for less intense relational cleansing

-put her in sachets or bowls that only have a few ingredients to help bond strengthen and meld their existing energies

-use oregano oil to anoint behind the ears of your partner before renewing your vows as a promise to always hear and understand one another

got more? include em!

[roaenexists]

PICK A PAIRING : LOWER SELF EDITION

From left to right we have: Inner Child, Animal Intuition, and Shadow Self.

For some of you all of these readings may resonate. Take the messages that you feel apply to you, but be very honest with yourself in regards to what you choose to discard.

Pairing One: Inner Child

You remember when you were a kid and you made things just for the sake of making them? Do that again. I get the feeling you either have been in a dry spell of fresh ideas, or you've recently had the muse hit but you haven't put pen to paper. You've had on-and-off blockages caused by your personal experiences, but right now you need to be trying to Make Things whether you currently feel inspired or not, especially because if you haven't then the practice will probably trigger an idea or otherwise yield good results (even if you don't think so). But no matter what, right now your inner child is begging to be allowed to be creative. Make things and hang them on the fridge. You deserve the space to be creative, to craft, without judgement.

Pairing Two: Animal Intuition

You have been playing around lately, having more fun than you probably should, and overall not taking care of your physical body or surroundings. Your animal instincts, your literal body parts, are telling you to eat a vegetable, drink water, take a good long shower, clean your room, and get a good night's sleep. Not necessarily in that order. But you need to stop ignoring the subtle voices that alert you to your physical needs, give them attention. Your instincts are telling you to do the hard work for yourself but you've been too tapped into whatever else you've got going on to listen. No more excuses now, though, that it's been shoved in your face. Go brush your teeth. Make your bed. Be responsible for yourself.

Pairing Three: Shadow Self

Shit, baby. You done fucked up something beautiful by freaking out, undermining everything, and then walking away. It doesn't look like you can roll this one back, either. And what's worse is this is a pattern of behavior from you. A huge part of the problem is the way you are never in tune with what you REALLY want, and it's causing you to self-destruct over and over again. Your shadows and your highest self are currently incompatible and your shadow has the answer . Why are you lying to yourself, and about what? Maybe you've been acting like money will fix everything but your ideal life actually involves more free time? Do you really want a relationship, or does your bad side hate being seen, even by you? Figure out where your actions and your desires aren't aligning and either change the desire or change the action. Be fucking honest. Stop hiding your ugly bits and admit what you want.