What's in the Holler

Saturday, March 31, 2012

The Hag Stone

The Hag Stone
The Hag Stone has a natural hole through it caused by running water, The name “Hag Stone” comes from the belief that they could ward off witches (hags). They are usually found in streams, rivers or along the seashore. The belief is that magick can’t work on flowing water and since these stones were formed by running water then they possess a powerful protective influence from magick. This protective power keeps the person who owns it safe from negative works done against them.

Other names this type of stone is known by are Eye Stones, Faery Stones, Goddess Stones, Hagstones, Holey Stones, Holy Stones, Mare Stones, Nightmare Stones, Odin Stones, Pledge Stones, Wish Stones, and Witch Riding Stones.

 Some of my collection of Hag Stones, plus a Woods Spirit face in a bovine vertebrae that I found in our woods several years ago.

Pagans use these to symbolize the female principle, the Earth Mother, the Great Mother, and because the natural holey stones are caused by the elements, not man, they are considered extremely powerful. They are symbolic of the Mother Goddess, the Goddess of Creation and are protective in nature. They are sometimes used by peering through the hole in the moonlight to may see visions, spirits, and other unworldly beings.

There were, and are, many uses for the Hag Stones. Some of these include:

Being worn as charms on necklaces.

 This is the Hag Stone necklace I made and wear everyday.

Hung on stable doors to protect the farm animals.

Hung above the bed, much like a dreamcatcher is used today, to catch and ward off nightmares.

It was also placed on the stomach at night to relieve stomach ailments.

In parts of Scandinavia large quantities of ale poured through a hag stone was given to an expectant mother to ease birth pains.

An Arabic custom was to tie a hagstone around the neck of young camels to protect them from evil spirits and the evil eye.

In some parts of Britain hagstones were fastened to the bows of boats to keep them safe when at sea.

An interesting custom was the use of hagstones as pledge stones, being held to ensure a person was telling the truth.

Perhaps the most interesting properties a hagstone was thought to possess were the ability to enable the bearer to see the faerie folk, and be warded from their enchantments.

Hagstones found at mounds or other such sites were considered especially powerful.

For a hagstone to keep its full power it was supposed to be found by the bearer or given as a gift.

Larger hagstones were used for Weather Warding, having a cord threaded through the hole and tied, and then being swirled vigorously around the head at arm’s length for dispelling winds and rain clouds.

 These are my largest Hag Stones, I may have to try out the Weather Warding with one of these to see how well it works! I'll just have to make sure I don't hit myself (or anyone else) in the head! LOL

As wish stones, they were held in the palm of the non-dominant hand, and rubbed with the thumb of the dominant hand, in a clockwise manner whilst concentrating on the intent of the wish. This is a form of creative visualization, using the repetitive rubbing to focus the mind and then concentrating on the desired result.

Man-made holed stones with multiple holes in them were used as spell casting stones by medieval witches. The holes, equidistant and in multiples of three, would be made in a stone and then a cord or pebble would be passed through the holes in patterns of three, during which the intent of the spell was repeated, usually in multiples of three, thus emphasizing a belief in the power of repetition to achieve a desired result.

***

Daily Psalms of the Week

Did you know that there is a Psalm for each day of the week (2 for Sunday)? The Psalms, and many other Bible verses, are used in Granny Magic and Southern Hoodoo/Rootwork/Conjure for the powers they hold. Whether one believes in the God of the Bible or the Divine by any other name in general doesn't matter. The power of the words comes from the same Source.
Daily Psalms of the Week

Monday:
Psalm 95
1 O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.

 2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.

 3 For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.

 4 In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.

 5 The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.

 6 O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.

 7 For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,

 8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

 9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work.

 10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:

 11 Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest.

***
Tuesday:
Psalm 96
1 O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.

 2 Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.

 3 Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.

 4 For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.

 5 For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.

 6 Honour and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.

 7 Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.

 8 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.

 9 O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.

 10 Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.

 11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.

 12 Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice

 13 Before the LORD: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.

***
Wednesday:
Psalm 97
1 The LORD reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.

 2 Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.

 3 A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.

 4 His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.

 5 The hills melted like wax at the presence of the LORD, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

 6 The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.

 7 Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.

 8 Zion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O LORD.

 9 For thou, LORD, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods.

 10 Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.

 11 Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.

 12 Rejoice in the LORD, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.

***
Thursday:
Psalm 98
1 O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory.

 2 The LORD hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen.

 3 He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

 4 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.

 5 Sing unto the LORD with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.

 6 With trumpets and sound of cornet make a joyful noise before the LORD, the King.

 7 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.

 8 Let the floods clap their hands: let the hills be joyful together

 9 Before the LORD; for he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.

***
Friday:
Psalm 99
1 The LORD reigneth; let the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be moved.

 2 The LORD is great in Zion; and he is high above all the people.

 3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name; for it is holy.

 4 The king's strength also loveth judgment; thou dost establish equity, thou executest judgment and righteousness in Jacob.

 5 Exalt ye the LORD our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy.

 6 Moses and Aaron among his priests, and Samuel among them that call upon his name; they called upon the LORD, and he answered them.

 7 He spake unto them in the cloudy pillar: they kept his testimonies, and the ordinance that he gave them.

 8 Thou answeredst them, O LORD our God: thou wast a God that forgavest them, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions.

 9 Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy.

***
Saturday:
Psalm 100
1 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.

 2 Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.

 3 Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

 4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

 5 For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.

***
Sunday (2):
Psalm 110 (morning)
1 The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.

 2 The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.

 3 Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth.

 4 The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.

 5 The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath.

 6 He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the heads over many countries.

 7 He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up the head.

***
Psalm 106 (afternoon)
1 Praise ye the LORD. O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

 2 Who can utter the mighty acts of the LORD? who can shew forth all his praise?

 3 Blessed are they that keep judgment, and he that doeth righteousness at all times.

 4 Remember me, O LORD, with the favour that thou bearest unto thy people: O visit me with thy salvation;

 5 That I may see the good of thy chosen, that I may rejoice in the gladness of thy nation, that I may glory with thine inheritance.

 6 We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.

 7 Our fathers understood not thy wonders in Egypt; they remembered not the multitude of thy mercies; but provoked him at the sea, even at the Red sea.

 8 Nevertheless he saved them for his name's sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known.

 9 He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up: so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.

 10 And he saved them from the hand of him that hated them, and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.

 11 And the waters covered their enemies: there was not one of them left.

 12 Then believed they his words; they sang his praise.

 13 They soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel:

 14 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tempted God in the desert.

 15 And he gave them their request; but sent leanness into their soul.

 16 They envied Moses also in the camp, and Aaron the saint of the LORD.

 17 The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan and covered the company of Abiram.

 18 And a fire was kindled in their company; the flame burned up the wicked.

 19 They made a calf in Horeb, and worshipped the molten image.

 20 Thus they changed their glory into the similitude of an ox that eateth grass.

 21 They forgat God their saviour, which had done great things in Egypt;

 22 Wondrous works in the land of Ham, and terrible things by the Red sea.

 23 Therefore he said that he would destroy them, had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, to turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.

 24 Yea, they despised the pleasant land, they believed not his word:

 25 But murmured in their tents, and hearkened not unto the voice of the LORD.

 26 Therefore he lifted up his hand against them, to overthrow them in the wilderness:

 27 To overthrow their seed also among the nations, and to scatter them in the lands.

 28 They joined themselves also unto Baalpeor, and ate the sacrifices of the dead.

 29 Thus they provoked him to anger with their inventions: and the plague brake in upon them.

 30 Then stood up Phinehas, and executed judgment: and so the plague was stayed.

 31 And that was counted unto him for righteousness unto all generations for evermore.

 32 They angered him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with Moses for their sakes:

 33 Because they provoked his spirit, so that he spake unadvisedly with his lips.

 34 They did not destroy the nations, concerning whom the LORD commanded them:

 35 But were mingled among the heathen, and learned their works.

 36 And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them.

 37 Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils,

 38 And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.

 39 Thus were they defiled with their own works, and went a whoring with their own inventions.

 40 Therefore was the wrath of the LORD kindled against his people, insomuch that he abhorred his own inheritance.

 41 And he gave them into the hand of the heathen; and they that hated them ruled over them.

 42 Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.

 43 Many times did he deliver them; but they provoked him with their counsel, and were brought low for their iniquity.

 44 Nevertheless he regarded their affliction, when he heard their cry:

 45 And he remembered for them his covenant, and repented according to the multitude of his mercies.

 46 He made them also to be pitied of all those that carried them captives.

 47 Save us, O LORD our God, and gather us from among the heathen, to give thanks unto thy holy name, and to triumph in thy praise.

 48 Blessed be the LORD God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: and let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the LORD.

Friday, March 30, 2012

A Few Thoughts on Spell Oils

A Few Thoughts on Spell Oils


I used to buy all my oils and herbs. They had great names to them, they smelled sooo good, their labels were fancy, so they just have to be better than anything I could make. There certainly looked great all lined up on the shelf in my altar supply cabinet! Wow, I was really there in the spell supply department!

Wasn't I?

Or was I?

HA! No, actually I wasn't. I had formulas that were put together by unknown people that may or may not have actually used all those (expensive & exotic) Essential Oils and only organic herbs (that supposedly they grew themselves). These fancy labeled bottles were usually a minimum of $5 / dram. Damn! Seriously?! That meant I had to plan my cupboard supply purchases very carefully, as my budget was more than a little limited. Food on the table far outweighed the quantity & variety of spell oils in the cabinet.

There had to be a better way for me. And I was going to figure it out. The first thought was regarding the base oil and the herbs. Ok. They're just plants. Plants grow everywhere. So, which plants would I need for the works I would be doing?

I imagined how my predecessors would've gone about it. The first thing that came to mind was that they would've used only that which they found immediately around them. I'm sure their budget was just as limited as mine and thus only used local not "foreign" herbs and oils. Their cost would've been prohibitive, to say the least. 

Also, the energies of "foreign" plants, oils & herbs bring with them aspects that may not be complimentary to the local environment and those who would utilize those plants. However, I would like to quantify that with, if those same plants and herbs were actually grown locally, then the problem becomes moot. (This is why I want a greenhouse, ooooh, the plants I would grow!)

Anyway, back to the subject; The oils used would've been their cooking oils, so that's certainly easy! Problem solved there.

We have almost 10 acres, which include hillside pastures, woods and a creek running through the woods. (I love this place - and hoping hubby will change his mind about moving). The pastures and woods are full of soooo many great plants used in spellworks and healing situations, and I'm sure there are many which I don't know what they are that are also able to be used. (I really need to find a book that tells me all the plants, i.e. "weeds", as most would think of them, so I can wildcraft them as well).

So, with all the plants we have around the property, and the herbs I grow, and the oil in the kitchen, I knew I was more than equipped to make my own oils. To-date I have designed formulas for, and made:

Blockages Removed Oil (3 varieties: Hard & Fast, Strong & Steady, Slow & Subtle)
Cedar Oil
Dragon's Blood Oil
Fiery Wall of Protection Oil
Juniper Oil
Money Oil
Protection Oil
St. Joseph's Oil

They each work beautifully and I have many more in the works that are soon to be made. The cost for these was barely pennies! The oil was the only thing I had to buy. With the exception of the Dragon's Blood, which I've had alot of for years, the plants & herbs were wildcrafted or harvested right here on our property. The bottles & jars they are in were either bought in bulk at a flea market or re-purposed jars (jelly, salsa, liquor, etc.) from the kitchen.

Are they fancy smelling? No, but they are distinct and representative of their respective herbs and the use for which they were designed and made. For example, store-bought Dragon's Blood smells "pretty & sweet". This is due to an added Essential Oil that is specifically used for making it smell good. Well, surprise, surprise! Dragon's Blood does NOT have a scent unless burned! So why make it smell good in an oil? Simple. So people will buy it, that's why. A true worker doesn't pay attention to such things, they use what they use because it works as the Divine designed it to, and it certainly doesn't need us to try to "improve" it by making it smell a specific way just so we can get someone else to buy it! But for those who must buy their own, there certainly isn't anything wrong with those oils, I know they work quite well. I used to use them myself. But, to be true to myself I had to try this experiment to see where it would lead me.

And my little, personal, experiment proved that I don't need the fancy stuff with the fancy price tags for those tiny dram bottles. I can make what ever I need in what ever quantity I want for 95% less than I could buy it for from all those suppliers!

I no longer buy my oils. I make them. And because they have the energies of my geographical location, as well as my personal energies infused in them from choosing them to using them, I have added powers in my oils that I never had before.

Yes, belief in an object or thing gives it power. But that belief also includes the self! By doing this little experiment I have found a belief in my own capabilities that wasn't really there before. This in turn, increases the power & energy of my works. I've been on this Path for decades and was quite surprised at what I learned.

And I look forward to finding out what else I'm capable of! So stick around if you'd like to follow my journey! :)

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Sugar Love Spell

For My Son
My oldest son met a wonderful woman that he feels is "the love of his life". Having that myself, and knowing that he is not one to make such a claim out of the blue, I knew that I needed to do something to help bring them together.

She is a nurse, has 4 children, and had to move from Florida back to northern South Carolina to be near family, so they can help with the kids. My son is devastated and is planning a visit in the near future and to work out getting a job (he's a Paramedic working on his Nursing degree), and finding a place to live. She wants him & my grandson to move in with her and the kids, but he knows that isn't really the thing to do, as the kids are still getting over leaving their Dad in Florida.

So, the spell I decided to do is to open the road for them to be together and to sweeten their lives by being together. I wish for them a long and happy relationship and a happy home with their children. The overall purpose of the ritual is to sweeten all aspects regarding them and their situation.

I've had it going for 4 days now and will continue it for another 5 days.



Sugar Love Spell

Materials:
Small jar
Sugar
Rice
Love Herb Blend
Wood Rose
Oleander leaves & flowers (purple)
Basil
Sweet Love Water
Petition Paper
Name Paper (use pink paper)
Pink Candles (2 for each day of the spell, one is the Unity Candle, one is the Sugar Jar candle)
Love Box (2 rose buds & Love Herb Blend inside)
Love Birds (Venetian Glass, gifts to my mother, but returned to me when she passed)

Instructions:
Write the purpose on the Petition Paper.

Draw and cut out a heart from the pink paper and write the names of the couple inside the heart.

Wrap the Petition Paper around the Heart, folding toward you.

Layer all dry materials in the jar, placing the Wood Rose on top.

Pour in the Sweet Love Water, fill almost to the top.

Add Love Herb Blend on top of the Sweet Love Water covered Wood Rose.

Put the lid on the jar.

Dress the candles with Love Oil.

Spread Love Herb Blend around the Sugar Jar.

Melt the bottom of one pink candle, the Unity Candle, and place it in front of the Sugar Jar.

Melt the bottom of another pink candle and place it on top of the Sugar Jar.

Light the Unity Candle and state the desire of the Divine’s work in the Sugar Jar Love Spell.

Light the Sugar Jar Candle and state the desire for the intended’s of the Sugar Jar Love Spell.

Do this for each day of the spell. 

When the work is complete keep the jar on the altar (or a Love Altar would be better) until the manifestation of the work.