Celtic Wheel of the Year
I decided to share the article above because it has a great description of the Celtic wheel of the year. The Celtic year was lunar based, with thirteen months. Extra days were added in as needed at New Years as a ‘time between times.’
Rik Garrett’s “Earth Magic” Photography Book – Witches of the Earth
Rik Garrett‘s “Earth Magic” photo series has recently been collected into a book, and is now for sale here (US) and here (International). “Earth Magic” portrays women in nature, in a raw, but very natural way. The women are one with the landscape of the wood, mysterious weavers of the weird within the forest’s primordial depths.
In the making and binding of the book, Garrett was inspired by the style of the Malleus Maleficarum, which was a sort of pocket-book for witch hunters in the 15th century. Garret’s intent is obviously more positive, but his theme is similar. If you are looking for witches in the forest – this is what they might look like.
Each book contains 13 photos (like the number of members in a coven) and each book is different. The pictures are picked from a pool of 30 total photos and randomized. So even if you buy two books, they will most likely be different.
Here are some photos from the Earth Magic series:
Rock Icons Episode – Heavy Metal God Rob Halford of Judas Priest
My love affair with the world of metal began in middle school when one of my friends was listening to Judas Priest’s “Metal Meltdown.” She said, “Hey, you gotta check this out.” I put the headphones to my ear and it was like a bolt of electricity was shot straight into my brain.
Now this isn’t to say I wasn’t already a fan of rock music. I grew up listening to my dad’s music collection of 60’s and 70’s rock legends like Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd. Later on I was introduced to the “Nu Metal” trend of bands like Korn, and also rap/rock groups like Linkin Park (Yes, I’m admitting that I listened to Korn and Linkin Park).
But when Judas Priest entered my life, it was like everything I once thought was great paled in comparison to the awesome power of these raw and brutal Metal Deities.
What I really like about this video above is it does more than explain the creation of a type of music, it describes the birth of a Metal Legend and a way of life. Judas Priest wasn’t just some ordinary band, they developed the Heavy Metal leather rebel look, they pioneered the Heavy Metal sound.
Heavy Metal really has helped a lot of people get through the most difficult times of their life because it gives them a sense of invincibility and power. There are times in my life too that I felt weak and helpless, but when I fired up the Heavy Metal and blasted it out of the speakers of my car, I felt like I could do anything.
All hail the Metal God Rob Halford! \M/
A 1,300 Year Old, Egyptian Book of Spells Has Been Deciphered
Egyptian Handbook of Spells Deciphered (Live Science)
Order the Coptic Handbook of Ritual Power
How did the Egyptians in the 8th century A.D. cast a love spell, exorcise a demon or subjugate their enemies? A recently translated codex reveals 27 different spells that were combined for form a “single instrument of religious power.” The book was written in the Coptic language, an adaptation of Greek script, at a time when many Egyptians were Christians. In fact, the book contains many invocations that refer to Jesus Christ.
What is interesting is that several of the invocations seem to originate from a group who called themselves “Sethians.” This was a group that flourished in Egypt during the early centuries of Christianity. They held Seth, who they believed to be the third son of Adam and Eve, in high regard. One invocation refers to Seth as the living Christ.
What is interesting is that before Christianity came to Egypt, Seth was one of the chief Gods of Upper Egypt. He was a desert God of war and strength. (He was also demonized in other parts of Egypt).
This Sethian Cult eventually died out, but it is interesting to see how Pagan ideas and Christianity were blended together in the early days of Christianity.
I think some of the articles about this topic are misleading however, because they call the book an “Ancient Egyptian” book of spells. Since this codex was written in the Christian and Islamic Era, I would hardly say that it was “Ancient History.” I’d be more likely to call it Medieval History.
RELATED READING
Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost
All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.
~ Lord of the Rings
New Judas Priest Song Preview “March of the Damned”
Sad that this preview isn’t longer, but it’s a tasty appetizer of greater things to come:
This is a preview of one of the tracks from Judas Priest’s ‘Redeemer of Souls’, which is coming out on July 15th. To learn more about the album, read the review on Loud Wire. Apparently its very “epic” and has a lot of great guitar solos (couldn’t that describe almost every Judas Priest album, lol?) Lead Vocalist Halford says he was very inspired by the popular post apocalyptic zombie show, ‘The Walking Dead’ in the making of this album. I’ve heard umpteen million Death Metal songs about zombies, but it’ll be interesting to hear a zombie inspired song by the Gods of Heavy Metal themselves.
“Redeemer Of Souls” CD track listing:
01. Dragonaut (Could this be a Sleep cover?)
02. Redeemer Of Souls
03. Halls Of Valhalla
04. Sword Of Damocles
05. March Of The Damned
06. Down In Flames
07. Hell & Back
08. Cold Blooded
09. Metalizer
10. Crossfire
11. Secrets Of The Dead
12. Battle Cry
13. Beginning Of The End
Bonus tracks:
14. Snakebite
15. Tears Of Blood
16. Creatures
17. Bring It On
18. Never Forget
“Redeemer Of Souls” release dates:
Friday, July 11: (Europe gets all the good stuff first)
Australia
Austria
Benelux
Finland
Germany
Ireland
New Zealand
Norway
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
Monday, July 14:
Asia (excluding Japan)
Czech Republic
Denmark
France
Greece
Hungary
Poland
Portugal
South Africa
UK
Tuesday, July 15:
Canada
Italy
Latin America
Russia
Spain
USA
Wednesday, July 16:
Japan
The Remaking of the Galdraskræða (Icelandic Book of Spells)
The tradition of magic among the native Icelandic population goes back to ancient times. Magic was an important part of life, and mastering it was vital to interacting with nature and controlling one’s destiny.
Jochum M. Eggertson (better known as “Skuggi” meaning shadow) collected these spells into a book called the Galdraskræða. The first edition of this book was published in the year 1940. It was only published in a limited edition of 150 copies. The book contains nearly 200 spells and an ensemble of runic letters. Since there were only a few limited editions of this book sold onto the market, the book was very difficult to find for several years.
The book has been republished recently with easier to read designs drawn in red (in order to represent blood).
Purchase The Book (Note, it is written in Icelandic)
Rumi – Poem of the Atoms
O’ day, arise!
Shine your light, the atoms are dancing.
Thanks to Him the universe is dancing.
overcome with ecstasy,
Free from body and mind
I’ll whisper in your ear where their dance is leading them.
All the atoms in the air and in the desert are dancing,
puzzled and drunken to the ray of light,
they seem insane.
All these atoms are not so different than we are,
happy or miserable,
perplexed and bewildered,
we are all beings in the ray of light from the beloved,
nothing can be said.
Rumi is a 13th century, Persian poet and considered a Sufi Saint by many. While Rumi was an Islamic poet, his poetry has a transcendent appeal among various cultures world wide. His poems contain a deep theme of creative love and the urge to rejoin the spirit to the divine. He believed that this was the goal of every living thing that moved, human, animal or mineral.
Not only is the poem above exquisitely beautiful in terms of rhyme scheme, but it has a deep scientific and spiritual significance when you really think about it.
Let’s take this concept of atoms dancing in the light of the divine.
While the “atom” itself wasn’t physically discovered until the 19th century, early Greek and Indian philosophers had an idea of an atom as an indivisible particle that was the smallest unit of matter. “The Poem of Atoms” captures the idea of every living thing, even the smallest pieces of matter, are participating in a universal dance in the light of the divine.
Today scientists know that sub-atomic particles rotate around a nucleus, planets rotate around stars, stars circle around galaxies and that life occurs in cycles. Everything from the infinitely small to the infinitely large is participating in an orbit – a form of cosmic dance with no clear beginning or end.
The next key piece of imagery here is divine light: “We are all beings in the ray of light from the beloved.” Light is necessary for life. Without the light of the sun, none of us would be here. Light has a variety of meanings in poetry, it could be the light of the sun, the light of knowledge, illumination, or the Divine itself.
The last significant verse I’ll mention is the following: “All these atoms are not so different than we are.”
All life is made up of the same particles. You and I are made up of the hydrogen and helium of the stars that formed this galaxy billions of years ago. All life forms are made up of the same atoms, the same particles and the same star stuff.
When we die, our bodies may decompose and our memories may fade, but the atoms and particles that make up our being will rejoin the universe in the endless, ecstatic dance of life.
Eight Folk Metal Bands (Including Drudkh and Primordial) Collaborate on an Album
One and All, Together for Home comes out May 23rd 2014
In an effort spearheaded by the Ukrainian band Drudkh, eight different Folk Metal bands have come together to produce a compilation album. I’ve included a list of the eight bands below:
- Drudkh (Ukraine)
- Ava Inferi (Portugal)
- Primordial (Ireland)
- KAMPFAR official (Norway)
- Winterfylleth (England)
- Häive (Finland)
- HIMINBJORG OFFICIAL (France)
- Mondvolland (Netherlands)
Each band listed above has used music as way to link the listener back to their culture’s respective folk traditions and history. In this album, you’ll find that these bands have created their own unique way to represent traditional folk songs as well as the melodies from their musical heritage.
The Irish band Primordial has recently released a preview of their Dark Horse on The Wind on Metal Hammer (a song that will appear on the One and All, Together For Home album). Dark Horse on The Wind is a folk classic that is an ode to the pain of Ireland’s Civil War. Enjoy!
Metal Gaia 