Samhain

Last night, the veil was the most thin between our world and the spirit world. This is the holiday where we celebrate the life of the God, and we also are able to contact loved ones who have passed. A new God is almost born, with the coming of Yule, and the coming weeks, we prepare for that.

But, this is Samhain, which is what I wish to talk about. Samhain (pronounced SA-WEEN) is more of a solitary holiday than the others; due to the fact that you are summoning spirits. Those that are harmless to you, could not be harmless to others. We had company over last night and drew a protective circle for only positive spirits to join us. I called upon my grandmother and friend/mentor who had passed yesterday as well. Once I was done calling and communicating, I opened the circle for anyone else who wished to contact family/friends who have passed on.

Later in the evening, I felt something close to me, I whipped around to see if I could see what was there, I didn’t see anything, but I felt a very strong, and loving presence. I have a photo of my altar from last night, which is here, and you can decipher for yourself what you see in the flames/smoke.

We celebrated good friendship last night with plenty of alcohol, and lots of laughs. Even a few oracle readings to top everything off.

For those who have been feeling a little down over the last week, this is normal during the time leading up to and away from Samhain. Because the veil is at its thinnest, emotions “leak” from the other side to ours, which causes mood swings. For those who are deeply connected to the other side, you will feel this even stronger. The opposite can also be true; you can also feel a great high of feelings from the other side. For myself, I felt particularly down over the past week, more than likely because I could feel my grandma’s presence a lot more than normal.

However you spend your Samhain, I hope that it was joyful and blessed.

Thanks for reading, and Blessed Be!

White Tiger  )O(

Crystal Magic

Blessed be my friends!

I apologize for the gap between posts, but work has kept me exceptionally busy.

I have recently bought “Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Crystal, Gem & Metal Magic”. I have just started reading it, and I can already tell that I am going to enjoy this sector of magic in my life. There is such history with crystal magic it is crazy! It dates to early civilization, where people used rocks to warm things instead of fire. Crystal and gem magic is extremely powerful down to the core of our own DNA. The magic of rock resonates within ourselves.

Do you have a “lucky rock”? Or do you wear your gemstone because it represents something? Or have you even stumbled across a stone at the beach that just captures your attention? That is the power of crystal and gem magic. It gets us to our very core.

I am looking forward to posting about my experiments and experiences with stone magic. If you have any advice or suggestions, please feel free to write in the comments below.

Thanks for reading, and blessed be!

White Tiger

)O(

Suicide

I have to be honest; I spent a long time staring at an empty text box… trying to figure out what I was going to say.

Once upon a time, I was in high school. When I was in there, I believed that suicide was for “attention seekers” and the “emo kids”. Little did I know that it was linked with such a treacherous illness known as depression. When I was young, I didn’t think it was a mental illness. but an excuse that people used to dress darkly and “cut themselves”. I was young and naive, and looking back, I should have asked more questions.

I now know how serious these issues are, and I would like to weigh in:

Having suffered from depression, and known people very close to me who have suffered from depression, I have learned so much. People say to you “get over it”, “it’s just a bad day, things will get better tomorrow” or my favourite “stop being an attention seeker”. it’s not something that you can just get over and it’s not just a bad day, no, it’s much bigger than that. People who are depressed don’t live that way; they live with a constant shroud over them, and a storm cloud overtop. If you think that they should just get over it don’t you think that they would? It’s much more complicated than that. It’s a chemical imbalance in the brain that forces them to think this way. 

DEPRESSION IS EVIL!

When people say “Robin Williams died of suffocation” no… Robin Williams passed after a long battle with depression. You don’t say ” So-and-so died of [insert a cancer complication here]” you say “after a long battle with Cancer… So-and-so passed away”. There is no difference.

Suicide is an extreme out for those with depression. A human’s natural instinct is to do whatever they can to preserve their own life. Those with severe depression don’t have that instinct, depression robs them from that basic human right. DEPRESSION ROBS YOU OF THAT RIGHT… YOU CANNOT CONTROL THAT URGE!

For those with moderate and mild cases of depression, this is not necessarily so, this is only extreme cases. 1/10 American’s are diagnosed with depression, and that number increases by 20% every year. 80% of those diagnosed, do not seek treatment (source: http://www.healthline.com/health/depression/statistics-infographic). Those are scary facts.

I could say so much more, but I think I have made my point. Just one more thought though: It sickens me that  it takes a death from a great man and comedian to raise global awareness for depression on a completely different level.

 

Blessed Be

White Tiger

My Son

I’ve spoken so much about my religion, and talked about my wife-to-be, but I have not talked about my son at all.

My son will be two on December 7th of this year. I don’t know where I would be without him today.

My son came into this world after only 6 hours of making his way here, and the first words I ever said about him were ” he’s perfect”. Now, I know that sounds cheesy, but I said this because there were problems right before he was born, and his heart rate was dropping rapidly. My fiancée was scared, so she looked at me for comfort, and found it.

He is a challenge, I will give you that, but it’s a good challenge. Not only do I teach him about manners, eating, and blowing kisses, but he teaches me patience, and unconditional love. All things considering, I think I have learned more than he has. When he was born, I still wasn’t in “Parent Mode”, it honestly took my several months for that to click in, that I wasn’t just babysitting, but that he was mine, and I needed to man up and start doing shit around the house.

My godfather told me

“Being a parent is the hardest job in the world, but it’s the most rewarding”

 

He couldn’t have been more right. Being a father to this package of awesomeness is very hard, but I consider myself one of the luckiest men alive to have a son as great as mine. He may not be the next Einstein, but he’s my pal, and I love him more than I can even put into words. 

My son has made me a better man. I used to be completely irresponsible and staying up all night watching TV or playing video games just because I could. I used to spend money so foolishly (I bought a $200 sword once because I had the money). If it wasn’t for him, I’d be broke and probably quite lonely. 

I love you little buddy, and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for you.

 

Blessed be,

White Tiger

Wicca and Abortion

Before I go into details, I urge you to remember that this isn’t the way of all Wiccan’s, but only this Wiccan (at the very least).

As someone who is a believer of the protection of life, and the sanctity of said life, the idea of abortion completely, and utterly repels me. I am aware that this particular post could very possibly receive some hateful words, but I am prepared to face them peacefully. As a forewarning, any insulting comments will be removed, only those looking for a good-natured debate, or positive comments, will remain.

Wiccan’s (as I have said on multiple occasions) live by one very important rule:

HARM NONE

That rule not only applies to people who have exited the womb, but also to any animal, born, or in utero. Whether he/she has harmed you, bullied you, stole from you, or ruined your life in any way shape or form. We. Harm. None. Period. That means physical harm, emotional harm, mental harm, and most importantly, magical harm.

I had a discussion with a young college girl on a Facebook post in a witches group. A guy there was teasing her, over and over and over and over again, until finally one day she threatened him with a curse. She followed through with said curse. I read the comments and mentioned that it was against our beliefs to curse someone who has wronged you, and that it will come back ten-fold.

Yes, there are witches who are not Wiccan’s, but I was definitely not pleased with how this lady handled the situation. If you are truly Wiccan, you meditate on the situation, ask the Goddess and God for guidance, and pray that they will lead him/her down the right path.

Now, back to the topic on hand. An unborn fetus is still considered life. It breathes, it has a heartbeat, and it thinks, dreams, moves it’s flanges, etc. That is life! Whether or not he/she is not in this world, drinking from his/her mothers breast, walking this planet or soaking in its sun, it IS life, and we do not terminate said life under any circumstances.

 

If you are a rape victim and get pregnant, on what grounds are you in the position to  end life? Yes, I can understand that being raped is a traumatizing experience that you would rather forget, but the unborn child does not know any better. For all you know, that child could be the next Einstein, or the person who cures cancer, or the next Leonardo DaVinci. Would you end that life before he/she had the chance to even enter this world and find out for his/herself? That child will be the light of your life, and even if you don’t want the “constant reminder”, then adoption is always an option. Ending life, is never an option.

I am very pro-life, as being pro life has never harmed anyone (golden rule), but pro-choice has definitely harmed others, as everything is this life that we live is a choice. Being pro-choice gives us the chance to harm others, whereas being pro-life gives us the chance to harm none, and start new life.

Imagine your parents decided to get an abortion with you. You wouldn’t be here reading this. You wouldn’t have become the person that you have worked so hard to be. Being pro-life, and anti-abortion saves more lives than does pro-choice.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to share. If you have a derogatory statement, or an insult, I encourage you to keep it to yourself.

Thank you, and blessed be!

White Tiger

Meditation

One of the big questions in Wicca is this: should I perform my rituals and/or my meditations clothed, or nude?

There is no right or wrong answer here, only preference. Some may not feel comfortable performing these tasks naked, whereas some find it the only way to truly connect with the Goddess and God. Some also find that it doesn’t matter if you are or not, and periodically change it up depending on their mood.

Personally, I choose the latter. The God and Goddess don’t care whether or not you are nude during these rituals, as long as, in your heart, you want to be doing them in the first place.

Nude or clothed, as long as your heart, mind, body, and soul are fully invested in what you are doing, that is all that should matter.

Veering away from attire, or lack thereof, I would like to now go into what meditation is and how it can be setup.

Meditation can be a number of things from just clearing your mind to connecting your thoughts with the Goddess and God. Personally,I usually use meditation to calm myself when I get overwhelmed. This can be done anywhere, as can any meditation, from sitting in a forest just listening to the sounds of nature, to sitting in your living room. Let’s talk about the latter.

When I meditate, I usually like to have incense burning; opium has been a favourite of mine lately. Also, I like to have one of my Goddess/God candles, I find that it helps bring them into my meditation. I have my smudging shell, or censor on my pentagram plate (just to protect the floor from any heat damage) and I have some select stones around the plate. One constant stone is my moonstone. When I light my incense, I use the flame on the cone to light the Goddess/God candle (never use a direct flame source on these candles). I let the incense burn, and just open, and clear my mind, looking for peace and tranquility. I normally cast a circle as well to keep the good energies in, and keep the bad ones out. Once I have finished my meditation, I let the incense continue to burn (if it has not already finished burning) and put out the candle with my snuffer.

Now, I understand that this is not always possible, and definitely not something that has to be done. If you are, let’s say, in a forest just listening to the sound of nature, nothing is needed. As long as your meditation is doing what it needs to do, be it connection with the Goddess and God, or just to calm yourself, that is all that matters. Personally, this setup helps me. This is not the way to meditate, but it is my way. All you need to do is open your mind, push out the negative thoughts/images, and let in the positive.

Blessed Be,

White Tiger

Happy Anniversary!

It has been 3 years now, since my fiancée and I have started dating. If it wasn’t for her, I’m not even sure that I would be here right now.

It all started with a Harry Potter marathon. I remember one of the first things I said to her. She was upset about a guy, and I just looked at her and said “He’s not worth crying over, you’re too awesome for that” (or something along those lines). Who would have thought that I would be the one that she would have picked to be her life partner.

After being friends for a year, we decided that it was time to take it to the next level. Less than a year after that, we found out that she was pregnant with our son (who is now over a year and a half… but more on that later!). These times were tough leading up to his birth, I moved from my hometown to hers, got a new job, and started to settle down.

If I thought that the pregnant months were tough, well, I was definitely unprepared for what was about to come. Raising a child is difficult, but here we are, 3 years later as strong has we were when we first started this journey, if not, stronger.

I proposed to her on November 19th of 2012, just a few weeks before our son was born. It was the best decision I have ever made, and I have never regretted it, not for a second.

 

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I love you Snickers, forever and always, I am so happy that we are on this bumpy road together, for I would not be able to do this on my own.

 

Blessed be my love,

White Tiger

Moving

This post is a little off the path from my normal posts, but here it goes.

I am in the middle of a move with my family into a 3 bedroom apartment. The posts are going to be few and far between for now until we finally get permanent internet in the new place.

Some changes that have happened over the course of the past dew weeks:

Dante: That kitten that I mentioned previously, has moved in with us and has been an absolute joy. I am so glad that we were able to bring him into our home. For someone who has never liked cats, I can easily say that I have fallen in love with Dante. He has come into my life at the perfect time. He is family to me, he is not a pet, but more of a familiar to me; and I couldn’t have a better familiar.

Now that we have the extra space, it will be awesome to be able to set up our own permanent altar. It has been temporary for some time, and the fact that we will be able to have it permanently setup is an amazing feeling.

 

Thanks for reading, and Blessed Be!

Wicca in Schools

 

Wicca is becoming a more and more common way of life with each passing day, which brings up a major question of religious freedom.

In most public schools and post-secondary schools, there is a chapel, or sacred place for a person of any religion to sit in silent meditation. In a Catholic chapel, there is a cross, in a Buddhist sacred space, there is a statue of the Buddha, Judaism, the six-pointed star. Unfortunately because of a huge misconception of Wicca, posting an image of a pentagram, may come across as a symbol for “devil worship” and “black magic”.

I went to a Catholic high school, and it goes without saying that there was a chapel there. But, in the eleventh grade, we had a class on world religions. Unfortunately, that course did not have Wicca in the curriculum. Because of this, a lot of people are still uneducated on the religion of Wicca, which would lead to ridicule. I believe that the education system should A) in a religion course, introduce Wicca to try and dissolve some of the ignorance, and B) have their own sanctuary. As most other religions have an indoor sanctuary, Wiccan’s have an outdoor sanctuary, the entirety of nature is our sanctuary. However, while other religions believe that they can pray wherever they are at any given time, they also have their own dedicated “sacred” place in most establishments.

In my personal opinion, I believe that establishments with a “sacred space” for Catholic’s, Jew’s, Buddhists, etc, should also create an outdoor sacred space, that is clearly labelled for religious use. As some places have a Zen garden for Buddhist use, there should be a sectioned off area for Wiccan’s to meditate. For example, in a public school in the yard, there should be a space that is clearly marked for Wiccan meditation/rituals.

 

Thanks for reading, and blessed be!

White Tiger

Sex: Before or After Marriage?

 

Every single religion on this planet as their own view on sex. Some are 100% for it, and some are completely against it. The Church of Jesus Christ and the Latter Day Saints, absolutely forbids sex before marriage. In the old days of the Catholic church, a woman was stoned to death if she had sex before marriage. Some Buddhists think of sex as a sin, whereas others embrace sex as a form of reaching  Zen.

In Wicca, sex is considered sacred. It is considered this because this is how human life begin, and it is how our Goddess and God continue their circle of life. I know it sounds odd to the non-Wiccan, but our Goddess gives birth to our God, mates with him, and when that God dies with the winter, another one is born. No this is not incest.

In our Sabbat of Beltane, we celebrate the union of the Goddess and God by celebrating our own union with our lover (if you are with someone). If not, in some Wiccan paths, a close friend as well, as long as it is someone that you love. In Wicca, we believe that as humans, it is natural for us to have sex, as it is written in our blood. This stems from the union of the Goddess and God through their annual union.

We believe that sex at any time, whether you are married, or whether you’re young and in love and looking to try and take that next step with that special someone. We are not a judgemental people, we are very accepting to most ways of life.

 

Thanks for reading, and blessed be!

White Tiger