Being somewhat of a newbie with Lenormand cards, I jumped at the chance to work with The Sirens’ Song: Diving the Depths with Lenomand & Kipper Cards by Carrie Paris and Toni Savory with contribution from Tina Hardt. The Sirens’ Song is a combination divination kit that contains 40 Lenormand cards and 38 Kipper cards. (What I know about Kipper cards would fit in an earbud!)
Paris is one of my favorite diviners and deck creators and I had an opportunity to meet with her for coffee at a tarot event several years ago. She is a generous, incredibly creative and gifted teacher and mentor. I’ve also “met” Savory on Zoom via her World Divination events, and her knowledge and enthusiasm for various types of card divination is contagious! When I heard that the two of them collaborated on this kit, I was very excited to learn more.
Paris has created four other tarot and Lenormand decks, as well as numerous charm casting kits. Her The Relative Tarot and The Beloved Dead kits are two of my favorites for communicating with the ancestors for messages and guidance to live my life. Paris is a very talented artist, who blends art and graphic elements from across many eras to create her decks and frequent Facebook posts. She has a master’s degree in the Cultural Study of Cosmology and Divination from the University of Kent, UK. Learn more about Paris at her website.
Savory (aka The Card Geek) founded the World Divination Association and hosts virtual teaching events several times a year with a collection of teachers and mentors. She is also well-known for hosting free events with classes on tarot, Lenormand, Kipper and other types of cards. She has created five other decks and written five books on card divination. Savory has researched Kipper decks for more than ten years, including spending time with the families of readers going back several generations. See more at her website.
Contributor Hardt is an author, who has worked with Paris to create the guidebooks for The Relative Tarot, The Beloved Dead, and The Sirens’ Song. She considers herself a diviner and enjoys sitting in circles and communicating with departed souls.
Paris and Savory have beautifully created this kit with a compact box in hushed tones of gray-blue and aqua. The teal lettering and haunting image of the siren and some of her underwater friends grace the cover of the box. Printed inside the kit, this lovely invocation greets you:
“May the Sirens’ Song guide you away from rocky shores and lure you into the dazzling depths of your own truth and mystery.”1
Next, you notice the guidebook, which provides a brief history of both Lenormand and Kipper cards, as well as how this deck came to be. Paris created the original Sirens’ Song Lenormand deck in 2017. Savory asked her to create a Kipper Deck and then the two of them combined both decks “into a single treasure chest because, at their core, these two card decks are kindred divinatory tools.”2
“Both the Kipper and Lenormand cards long to tell the reader a detailed, no-barnacle- unturned story, in which the Querent is always the main character. The potential for discovery is enormous. . . . The Petite Lenormand can serve as a gateway to the Kipper.”3
The guidebook was expertly structured to introduce you to the Lenormand style of reading and descriptions of the card meanings before flowing into the Kipper cards and their unique card descriptions. The creators made it clear that the cards can be used alone or in tandem, and they showed how each deck has its own “ability to tell a story, to sing you the song that you need to hear.”4
Unlike tarot and oracle decks, which are read intuitively, Lenormand cards are read symbolically, and Kipper cards are read quite literally. Lenormand deals with the outer world while Kipper deals with the interpersonal. Read together, the story the Sirens tell reveals the hidden meaning to be found in both people’s everyday lives and in societal issues they face.
This kit is so much fun! I enjoy the graphics, with the beautiful artwork and symbolism. Each of the images has an underwater creature theme, from an octopus to fish and so on. The cards are marked on the back with either a K for Kipper or an L for Lenormand, so you can keep the decks straight.
The spreads in the back of the guidebook were so helpful! I especially loved how they showed a three-card Lenormand reading and featured the three cards in each of the three positions. Paris and Savory also share how to do the Grand Tableau style of reading, which involves using all the cards in either deck. The deck creators also shared how to combine the cards and read a Grand Tableau of 36 cards created out of both decks. However, I think I will master the four, five or nine-card spreads before I venture into the deep waters of the Grand Tableau!
Yet the coloring on the front is the same, so it is not easy to distinguish between the decks for someone like me who was relatively new to the two styles of cards. Yes, the Lenormand deck features the miniature card symbols from playing cards in the top right-hand corner. Yes, the Kipper deck has different card images. But it may take me lots of practice to be able to distinguish between the two decks.
The cardstock was a nice weight, and the cards had a matte finish. I loved the small size, which made the cards easy for my small hands to shuffle. The guidebook was also a great size to tuck into a bag or purse and was printed in four-color with thumbnails of all cards. The paper was glossy, and the font was whimsical, to complement the underwater theme.
Armed with this background information, I decided to give the Lenormand cards a spin. I created a question regarding the launch of a new program I wanted to present to my community. I decided to use Paris’s spread called “The Tell it Like it is Spread.”
Creating my own sentence from the key words and the placement of the cards as shown, I saw the following:
Sharing my knowledge is NOT going to be challenging, so I may move ahead to schedule the event and know that all will be well.
Great first reading!
For the Kipper Cards, I decided to do a simple three-card spread. I placed the Siren significator card to the right as I asked my question: How may I support my daughter at this phase of her life, after her recent break-up? I drew three cards and placed them alongside the Siren card. The cards lined up as:
Long Road
Hope
High Honors
Siren
From this, I saw that recognition, maybe a promotion was forthcoming, especially since it was next to the Siren card. Hope was the next card, meaning manifestation of love, fame and/or fortune. Finally, I saw Long Road, which could be indicative of a great distance or maybe a time of two years. The fact that the Hope card was next to it said that the time may pass quickly and the road may not be rocky. From these cards, I saw that my daughter’s job will be very rewarding, and there is hope for her future in both love and fortune, although it may take some time. Wonderful reading!
The Sirens’ Songwould be great for anyone who wants to learn or practice Lenormand or Kipper. I was a relative newbie to both styles of reading, and I enjoyed learning them very much. I could see myself keeping this deck by my desk to refer to when I had a quick question. For now, I’ll be off to check out one of Savory’s videos on Kipper cards on YouTube!
Polarities are what ultimately bring everything into harmony. However, often we wind up focusing on just one side, especially in astrology where everyone wants to read about the specifics of their natal placements, forgetting they are part of a bigger picture and creating an imbalance through neglect of the other half. In Astrology of the Shadow Self: Working with Oppositions in Your Natal Chart, Maria D’Aoust teaches readers how to discover the shadows of their natal places and through this polarity discover wisdom that yields more insight about their strengths and weaknesses.
D’Aoust is a scholar of alchemy, practicing witch, and professional astrologer with over 20 years of experience. She holds a master’s degree in transformation psychology, using her educational background to inform her astrology readings. Her previously published works include The Occult I Ching, Familiars in Witchcraft, A Witch’s Bestiary, and The White Witch Tarot.
In this book, D’Aoust teaches readers about the power of embracing their shadow. In her introduction, she describes how through embracing the “not I” aspects of ourselves, the parts we disown and do not identify consciously with, we can perpetuate oppression, superiority, and victim mindsets–all of which strip ourselves and others of power the more we refuse to acknowledge it.3 It is through embracing these shadow aspects that the full potential of astrology as a tool for healing, self-acceptance, and personal growth can be utilized.
“Here we shall try a new way of dealing with the shadow, the unwanted self, the naughty one. We shall raise it up into power so that it grows and matures. The shadow within us may then ascend and become not a more powerful shadow but rather a more powerful part of our whole self. This prevents the shadow from taking over the self and hiding, lurking in our blind spots, and gives it a chance to actually heal.”5
D’Aoust instructs readers how to create an “antichart”6 where all their natal placements are in the opposite sign and house. This is one’s shadow chart. She also explains how the concept of shadow can be used for transits as well. For instance, when the Sun is transiting Aries, the shadow exploration would be the Sun in Libra. Whether one is curious about their own personal shadow chart or looking to examine the current cosmic influences, D’Aoust’s descriptions of the shadows are a wonderful starting point to further understanding the energy in play.
For each planet–Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto–D’Aoust profiles the shadow placements of every zodiac sign. Readers are looking up their shadow placement, rather than their natal placement as they explore the book. For instance, in the Mercury chapter, as an Aquarius Mercury natally, the entry pertaining to me would be Leo Mercury Shadow.
Her entries are very thoughtful and provide great insight into the shadow placement. Each entry has the title, a few word description of the shadow, the corresponding birth planet, parasite of the shadow, a two to three page description of the shadow, and an example from nature (almost always a quote) that grounds the shadow in the natural world.
The first thing I did was read all the entries for the planetary placements in my chart, and right after I also created my husband’s shadow chart and read his entries too. Honestly, reading about our shadow placements opened up a whole new level of dialogue for us and it put a lot of things in perspective. Things that we couldn’t articulate, yet were impacting our relationship (habits, communication styles, emotional relating, etc.) were laid out bare for us to reflect on.
It’s extremely evident that D’Aoust has spent so much time exploring these shadow placements and bridges the gap between psychology and astrology in her writing. Plus, the examples from nature are also something both my husband and I found added a beneficial new layer of understanding to the shadow description. When you can see how the energies manifest in the natural world, it puts things into a context that is tangible.
Another really neat way that I’ve engaged with the book’s text is when writing my new moon manifestations. Every month, I’ll write out a manifestation list in my journal, using present tense as always recommended! Usually, I will draw from the traits of the sign the sun/moon are joining in, for instance Aries was the most recent new moon. But this time I decided to instead explore the shadow of the new moon and read about the Libra Sun Shadow and Libra Moon Shadow. Wouldn’t you know it? I was engaging more with the shadow attribute of the new moon (toxic codependency, not clearly verbalizing my true feelings) more than the Aries attributes!
This made me pause and reflect on how I wanted to attune myself to the new moon energy and write my manifestation list. Rather than just putting all Aries qualities, I choose to focus on transforming the shadow qualities coming through the opposing Libra energy. And my manifestation list felt extra powerful! I’m going to continue exploring the shadow for on-going transits to better understand the full-spectrum of the zodiac shadows beyond just what is apparent in my shadow chart.
“Why must we deal with counterforce? We live in a universe that contains opposition as a physical law of reality; nature is always seeking to reach homeostasis and equilibrium. We find peace not by destroying opposition, for this imbalances the scale, causing the weights to swing wildly; we must only equalize and neutralize.”7
My favorite chapter is “Ophiuchus Shadows: The Venom Master” where D’Aoust examines the shadow of this hidden 13th sign, which many astrologers typically do not acknowledge. I have always been fascinated by Ophiuchus though and was thrilled to see it included. As the sign is between Sagitarrius and Scorpio, D’Aoust explains how the shadows fall in the sign of Gemini. So those with prominent Gemini placements, specifically near the Orion constellation, will have the Ophiuchus shadow. Her interpretation for the shadows is briefer than the other planetary shadows, but it gives a good start point to explore. She notes “Placements here are the venom masters and poison artists, usually studying plants, healing, and medicine.”8
The remaining chapters focus on the shadow of the moon’s nodes, thought to correspond to one’s destiny or life purpose, and D’Aoust’s insight on shadow integration. There’s also the bonus of an epilogue all about eclipses and their relation to shadow. This was another favorite chapter of mine since I was immersed in the book leading up to and during the solar eclipse on April 8th. Perfect timing!
Another thing I really enjoy about this book is how D’Aoust draws from different religious traditions when discussing the shadow and the journey one must undergo to integrate it. There’s examples from Taoism, Christianity, Judaism, alchemy, and more. These examples go to show the archetypal nature of shadow work, as well as offering different perspectives about the experience. There’s also a good deal of depth psychology woven in as well.
All in all, Astrology of the Shadow Selfis a must-read book for those with an interest in astrology. It was absolutely the best astrology book I’ve read in a while; none of the material was recycled, depicting the same old as countless books out there. This fresh take and unique perspective of the shadow chart was entirely new to me and already the concepts in this book have enhanced my astrology practice and lead to wealth of personal insight. D’Aoust has done a great service to the astrological community in writing such an insightful book. There is so much we can learn from the shadow, and it’s something we must face if we truly want to transform. This book is a wonderful starting point for those ready to explore their own shadow and immensely expand their astrological knowledge.
Dragons are absolutely majestic, and quite frankly, they can also be intimidating! Though I’ve desired to connect more with dragon energy, I was struggling to find a book or deck that made the grandiosity feel accessible. The Dragon Riders Oracle by Christine Arana Fader and illustrated by Elena Dudina was the “in” that I needed to discover my own dragon and better understand their true nature.
It was the way Fader provides a creation story for the origins of dragons and how they came to be companions to other energetic beings. According to what her own dragon has shared, Fader explains dragons were “the first entities in our universe”1, who were entrusted by Source to be universal protectors. I now see dragons as guardians of the galaxy, an energy that vibrates with high love for the multitude of energetic beings in the universe.
Those energetic beings are the dragon riders–gods, goddesses, elves, angels, and ascended masters–who are coupled with their dragon on the cards in this deck. The dragon riders Fader has depicted come from a range of spiritual traditions (Christianity, Celtic, Greek and Roman Pantheon, Buddhism, Confucianism, and more) giving a wide range of insights. Many of the dragon riders will be familiar names, though there were some energetic beings I was happy to discover and learn more about, while the dragons’ names will most likely be new to readers.
Fader teaches how the true name of each dragon cannot be uttered by humans, as it is a matrix of “pure power and comprises numbers, letters, sounds, symbols, and colors.”9 Reading that sentence, I conjure a mental image of what a potential matrix might appear as, but as Fader notes, it’s hardly translatable to paper! For this reason, she has chosen names that still resonate with the dragon’s energy and have meaning in regard to “the element of the dragon’s being.”10
Another thing Fader notes in the introduction, which I really appreciated, was how the energetic beings portrayed do not actually have human forms; the way they are depicted by Dudina is intended to help readers form a relationship with their energy by giving them a relatable appearance. Fader writes, “All the beings portrayed in the cards have a body, a face, eyes, and distinct colors, but it is important to remember they are not the “truth”, they are only representations to help you make contact.”11 I value this reminder, as it helped me to attune myself to the spiritual dimensions of the cards, while also providing a form I could visualize connecting with while meditating.
The cards themselves are very sturdy with a sleek feel that makes them easy to shuffle. Dudina has done an absolutely incredible job illustrating the multitude of dragon riders and dragons. There are so many types of dragons in all the colors of the rainbow, yet for each one, Dudina has captured their loving spirit in the way she’s drawn the eyes. I feel the regal presence of the dragons shining through, portraying a relationship of mutual love, trust, and devotion with the companion dragon rider. As for the dragon riders, they all look immaculately handsome and beautiful.
Each card is numbered and has the name of the dragon rider and companion dragon along with a short message at the bottom. The number makes it easy to look up the corresponding entry in the guidebook for further insight. In the guidebook entry, Fader provides background on the dragon rider and then a message from both the dragon rider and the dragon. The messages are in direct quotes, indicating it was spoken directly to Fader by the energetic being to be shared with readers.
Here’s an example of the messages from the card Kuan Yin & Susuri. The first quote is a snippet of the message from Kuan Yin, while the second is part of the message from Kuan Yin’s female dragon companion Susuri.
“Follow my teachings and learn to love without expecting anything in return. In doing so, you will discover unimaginable inner riches.”12
“Let me penetrate the very depths of your being; let me expand you from within and break your inner chains. To do this, hold the card over your heart and feel how with my resonance I am at work within you.”13
The insights are not divinatory–they are more like advice directly from these higher spiritual beings for us. In the introduction, Fader even encourages readers to not ask a question when shuffling and pulling a card, rather she instructs to connect to one’s heart and breath, concentrating on being in the moment without overthinking. This is the way to establish the connection with dragons, and the message that is meant for you will come through. There is a specific energetic being that wants to guide you, one whose teachings are most relevant to you at the time of drawing your card.
One fun and unexpected aspect of this deck is the addition of two Joker cards (number 7 and 13) with cats on them. These cards represent “a leap in consciousness”14 and that new opportunities for spiritual growth are on their way. In order to ensure readers are prepared for this new energy headed their direction, the Joker cards offer rituals to perform to find one’s center, becoming the bridge between the spiritual and material world. If readers don’t feel called to work with the Joker cards, they can of course just not include them in their deck.
Overall, The Dragon Riders Oracle is a wonderful way to gain the spiritual wisdom of high vibrational energetic beings of love. From gods and goddesses to angels and ascended masters, this deck opens the door to protection, guidance, and support from the realms above. Most especially, the genuine and powerful essence of the dragons shines through to ensure readers are aligned with their spiritual path. The primal, mystical powers of the dragons is sure to create a fulfilling change in readers’ lives.
Seiðr (pronounced “SAY-ther”) is a form of tribal shamanism unique to medieval Norse culture. Since there is very little historical documentation of this ancient practice, it’s not clear exactly what was involved, and in the modern revival of Germanic heathenry, seiðr is often inaccurately glossed over as a type of Norse witchcraft and used as an umbrella term for contemporary witchery, such as spellcasting and reading runes and tarot cards.
In his debut work, Seiðr Magic: The Norse Tradition of Divination and Trance, heathen reconstructionist and woodland conservationist Dean Kirkland, who holds a Ph.D. in ecology, argues that there is indeed enough archeological evidence to revitalize the practice of seiðr, using literature, artifacts, and the unverified personal gnosis of modern practitioners. The primary literary source Kirkland refers to is Eirik the Red’s Saga, which vividly depicts the ritual garb and practice of a völva and prophetess named Thorbjorg (völva means “staff-bearer” and is a female seiðr-worker10). He supplies a pronunciation guide for Old Norse words at the beginning of the book, and a glossary of terms in the back, which makes the foreign terminology easier to comprehend and digest.
By comparing the ancient tools of seiðr-workers to those used by Indigenous shamans, Kirkland believes we can make educated guesses about Norse shamanism based on similarities. He has devoted several years to researching and engaging in shamanic practices, and has studied Andean shamanism with an indigenous paco. He currently resides in Lincolnshire, UK, where he is dedicated to woodland conservation and restoration.
Since seiðr was considered a form of magic, it was not a common practice among Norse heathens. Seiðr-workers were viewed with suspicion by the general populace and lived on the fringes of society. Contrary to modern neo-pagan faiths like Wicca, which integrates witchcraft with religious rites, there was a social stigma surrounding practicing magic among ancient heathens. Perhaps with good reason, because Kirkland warns that seiðr can be perilous for both the practitioner and their community, since it involves contact with mighty and potentially very dangerous wights, or spirits. However, he assures readers that the introductory exercises presented in this book are designed to make the practice as safe as possible for beginners. That being said, seiðr is not for everyone; it is a shamanic path of service to both the spirits and humanity as a whole, destined for a chosen few.
“Seiðr-workers are chosen by Wyrd, which is to say fate or destiny, and made by the gods,”15 Kirkland says.
Seiðr-workers are mediums for wights, the spiritual beings they serve, and the greater community at large. The wights that are friendly towards humans are interested in collective spiritual growth and advancement, not individual progress. According to Kirkland, “the effect of shamanic work must be shared with others—if you focus solely on yourself and your own spiritual development, you are coming at this from an ego-based approach, and ego is the implacable enemy of all shamans.”16
Attempting to practice seiðr for selfish gain and to satisfy an egoic craving for increased personal power is disrespectful to the wights and may incur their wrath. Furthermore, one should not assume the role of seiðr-worker unless they are recognized as such by the community. “Titles should never be taken for oneself, but only bestowed by others,”17 Kirkland says. He sees community validation as a sign of authenticity. I found this to be an interesting perspective, because this line of thinking could be used to insinuate that an accused witch, whether they personally identify as one or not, is serving that role for the community because it has been projected upon them.
Kirkland dispels the common misconception that only women and homosexual men can practice seiðr, and provides historical context as to why it has been perceived as a feminine art. In the warrior dominated society of the Vikings, covertly practicing magic on the battlefield instead of confronting an opponent directly would have been viewed as cowardly. The shamanic practice of channeling spirits was also seen as an intimate form of receptivity comparable to sexual penetration. Kirkland argues that, despite these stereotypes, straight men are just as capable of practicing seiðr as a woman or a gay man. It is the spiritual calling to do so that matters, not one’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
Kirkland clarifies the role of fate in relation to seiðr and I was intrigued by his discussion of hamingja in particular. Hamingja is often simplified as the Norse version of luck, and Kirkland explains that everyone has a limited amount of hamingja allotted to them by the Norns at birth. For those who believe in reincarnation, he suggests that this allotment may be higher for new souls who have less experience in the physical realm, so they can have an easier time adjusting to the material plane, whereas old souls are presented with more challenges in life in order to facilitate spiritual growth. Seiðr-workers would therefore have very little hamingja, forcing them to rely on their supernatural relationships with the wights to get them through life instead of materialism. This makes sense to me, because shamans tend to be initiated by traumatic experiences, which detach their spirits from their physical bodies so they can traverse the unseen realms during trance and communicate with the entities that reside there.
Hamingja is closely intertwined with megin, which means “might” or “honor,”18 and is accrued through doing good deeds for living beings and wights and keeping one’s promises to them, which builds trust with the spirit realm. Helping the Norns apply clay to the roots of the World Tree Yggdrasil during shamanic trance is given as an example of a way to build megin.
Kirkland details the ritual clothing (referred to endearingly as “shaman’s armor”) and the shamanic tools unique to seiðr-workers, the most important one being a seiðstafr, or “seiðr-staff,” which, instead of a drum, is rhythmically tapped to induce a trance.19 Archaeologists have found staves of this nature in the graves of seiðr-workers. Most of them were wooden, but iron ones have also been discovered, buried with an elite few. Kirkland provides instructions on how to obtain, craft, and awaken one’s own sacred seiðstafr. He also includes photos of his personal staff for reference.
The seiðstafr reminds me of the stang, or forked staff, of traditional witchcraft, which serves as an axis mundi, or World Tree, for traversing the shamanic realms. During trance work, Kirkland emphasizes the importance of having some sort of focal point that exists in the physical plane and functions as an axis mundi, to serve as a gateway through which one can enter and leave the spirit realm. He warns that not having this anchor to the physical world can cause parts of the soul to get lost during shamanic journeys.
Understanding the various components of the soul is a crucial part of practicing seiðr, since it includes spiritual healing techniques that involve the extraction of energetic blockages and the retrieval and reintegration of lost soul parts. Kirkland explains that the Germanic soul complex is composed of four major parts: the lík, or lich, which encompasses the physical body, and is animated by the önd, the “sacred breath”20 of life, bestowed by the Allfather Óðinn; the hamr, meaning “shape” or “skin,”21 which is the etheric body that takes flight during shamanic journeys, and has the ability to shift shape; the fylgja, or “follower,”22 which can take the form of an animal and acts as a psychopomp upon death; and the hugr, or “mind,”23 which continues on in the afterlife.
For protection during rituals and shamanic travels, Kirkland considers casting a magic circle to be ineffective, since the circle is physically present in a fixed location while the shaman’s spirit wanders. The primary means of protection is merging with a spirit ally, in a type of “low-level” possession, in which the practitioner remains in complete control. Seiðr-workers use magical chants called varðlokur, meaning “ward songs” or “guardian songs,”24 to summon spirits and raise protective energies. Coupled with the rhythmic beating of the seiðr staff, these cantillations induce shamanic trance. Kirkland does not provide any of these chants because there are no surviving authentic examples. Besides, the most powerful ones are given to the seiðr-worker by the wights themselves, and he offers shamanic techniques for acquiring them, including a ritual invocation using lyrics from a modern song by the Norwegian folk band Wardruna, which is brilliant, since anyone can listen to the song for the correct pronunciation of the words. In addition, he suggests using galdr, or runic chanting, to raise vibrations, and recommends intoning the runes laguz and algiz to spiritually clear the air. He also supports the use of mugwort as a purification incense, as opposed to the more popular white sage, which is not native to Germanic lands.
This book has been so illuminating for me because it explains the reasoning behind some shamanic practices that I have intuitively discovered through trial and error on my own. I abandoned circle casting several years ago, and I appreciated Kirkland’s explanation of why circles are ineffective for self-protection, because I couldn’t articulate why I stopped; I just felt that I didn’t need to cast them anymore. Now I purify my sacred space with incense and use deity epithets like ward songs.
I once had a dream in which a hag spirit merged with me. She told me telepathically that she enters my body and sees through my eyes to help me. It wasn’t creepy, or anything at all like a horror movie possession. It felt more like being in the driver’s seat of a car and having a guardian spirit riding shotgun. She was observing through the windshield of my eyes and whispering in my mind, but not interfering or controlling my actions. I’m not sure who she is, but I know she is some sort of guardian spirit and she has appeared to me in multiple dreams as a witchy old woman with long silver hair. She felt so familiar she could be an ancestor or an elderly version of myself, and I’ve felt blessed by every interaction with her.
I’ve always sensed that I have mediumship abilities, but fear of possession has been a barrier to developing them further, and that dream made me realize that merging isn’t invasive and makes spirit communication easier. Learning from Seiðr Magic that wights merge with seiðr-workers really clarified the significance of this dream for me. I identify as a witch, and I don’t feel a calling to be a seiðr-worker, but traditional witchcraft is heavily influenced by Norse practices, and shamanism is universal, so I’m seeing a lot of overlap between both traditions.
An important class of wights Kirkland writes about is the dísir, or lesser Norns. The dísir are female ancestral spirits that watch over and guide their descendants. According to Kirkland, it’s possible to have a nonhuman dís/lesser Norn. He claims to have met people who have lesser Norns that are elves, dwarves, and even giants! I now suspect that my hag spirit might be my lesser Norn.
Kirkland also discusses the often overlooked wights of place, such as landvættir, or land spirits, and the cofgodas (pronounced “COAF-goadas”), or “household gods,”25 which are the spirits of hearth and home. Although working with these entities falls under the domain of “folk conjuring”26 or trolldómr (“witchcraft”), he believes land spirits and house wights should be part of general heathen practice. He gives instructions on how to communicate with local wights, as well as how to detect whether or not you have cofgodas living in your home, and if not, how to attract them and create a hearth altar and a spirit house for them.
The multiverse has always been my favorite feature of Norse cosmology, and I was captivated by Kirkland’s detailed exploration of the nine realms on the cosmic World Tree of Yggdrasil. For shamanic journeying, the fiery hellscape of Muspelheim and the icy wastelands of Niflheim are no doubt the least hospitable, but I was surprised to learn that one of the most dangerous realms to traverse in spirit is Midgard, our physical realm. Kirkland claims that this is because Midgard is the crossroads of the nine realms, and entities that do not belong here in Middle Earth sometimes get trapped and lash out at humans. The World Serpent Jörmungandr is the guardian of Midgard, and keeps many entities out, but earthbound spirits may stay trapped within. Kirkland therefore recommends that beginners avoid traversing the middle realms in spirit, which also include Ljósálfheim, the domain of the light elves, and Svartálfheim, the realm of dwarves and dark elves, until they have gained more shamanic experience.
While it may be dangerous for beginners, guiding earthbound spirits out of Midgard is part of the job description of a seiðr-worker, and Kirkland gives detailed guidance on how to handle the dead. “Unfinished business” is the stereotypical reason why ghosts are believed to linger, and I was surprised that Kirkland says this is “relatively rare,” since it requires a lot of willpower on the part of the deceased.27 More common reasons for a spirit remaining in Midgard are confusion about being dead or addiction to substances only found here in Middle Earth, requiring the hungry ghost to attempt temporary possession of the living in order to get their fix. In haunted pubs, for example, restless spirits may lurk in bathrooms, waiting to hitch rides with drunks relieving themselves in the stalls, which is a creepy thought, especially if one is prone to blackouts. It definitely makes one think twice about engaging in mind-altering substance abuse, for the sake of spiritual hygiene. While entheogens have their place in shamanism, Kirkland does not suggest using them to achieve shamanic states.
Western society’s denial of death and Christianity’s suppression of spirit workers has exacerbated the problem of earthbound spirits. Since there are few spirit workers, Kirkland warns readers that Midgard is overpopulated with wandering ghosts, and practitioners will be in high demand for the role of psychopomp, guiding trapped spirits to their proper afterlife destination. He gives instructions on how to do so with the assistance of a valkyrie, a female psychopomp who works for Óðinn. In the rare case that a seiðr-worker comes across a draugr (a restless spirit attached to a corpse, which is the Nordic equivalent of a zombie), there are instructions for dealing with that problem as well.
Seiðr Magic is a wonderful blend of rigorous scholarship and creative heathen reconstruction. Kirkland’s lucid, honest prose always clarifies which practices are based on historical evidence and which insights have come from the unverified personal gnosis of modern practitioners. This book is a boon for those looking to recreate a traditional Norse magical practice that is as authentic as possible given the archaeological evidence currently available to us. Whether one feels a calling to practice seiðr or not, this is a fascinating read for anyone interested in Norse shamanism, spirit work, and heathen spirituality.
Goal of the year? Attune to abundance and get my finances aligned. So, you can only imagine how thrilled I was to discover The Wealthy Woman Oracle Deck by Taylor Eaton, a money mindset expert that has coached hundreds of women to create more wealth in their lives. Her method includes utilizing client’s Human Design charts to maximize their potential. She has tons of information and free resources for those looking to clear their money blocks on her website.
The title of this deck is what really first caught my attention. It feels like gaining financial security always requires chasing something—a new job, more clients, that promotion, and so on. But Eaton’s assertion that there’s a wealthy woman within me already was something new in itself, which instantly reframed my mindset. What might I discover from looking inside myself for the prosperity I seek?
“Whether you are just beginning your journey to wealthy or want to amplify the abundance you already have in your life, this deck is your invitation to connect with the wealthy woman within you.”16
This 44-card deck has two types of cards: archetype cards and awareness cards. The archetype cards focus on a single woman, who embodies the energy of the archetype, while the awareness cards are more general guidance about what needs to “be shifted, cleared, or activated in order to increase the flow of abundance in your life. 28
Eaton provides brief guidance on how to use the cards, but she more offers the space for readers to find their own relationship with the deck. She does note she’s a fan of single-card pulls, so I’ve been enjoying doing those regularly for guidance every few days. I’ve gained a lot of insight by pairing the archetype card with an awareness card; I’ll separate the cards into each category and pulling from the respective piles. The combination directs my attention towards a focus while also providing me with the archetype energy I can tap into to become more aware of what come through in my reading.
The guidebook is also divided into two sections for each category of card. You can tell which type of card you’ve pulled based on where the name of the card is located (on the bottom is archetype, and on the top is awareness). The cards are arranged alphabetically, making it easy to navigate.
The guidance for each card is immensely insightful. There’s a few sentences that give a quick description of the card, a longer message, and then a final few sentences to bring it all together. Eaton’s perspective on wealth through a feminine lens focused on alignment, flow, and prosperity gives each message and gentle yet empowering feeling that leaves the readers open to new channels of wealth.
I’ve been trying to figure out what I’m supposed to do for a career because it seems like I’m at an age where I should have it all “figured out”. Up until this point, I’ve always pieced together a living doing multiple jobs: freelance writing and editing, tutoring, astrology and tarot consultations, substitute teaching. I’ve enjoyed my varied lifestyle and the freedom it gives me. But increasingly, I feel a pressure to have a “real job”, a predetermined career path based on the expectations of others who feel I should be seeking more security at this point in my life. The archetype card I pulled for guidance about what my career path should be was The Key Holder. The guidebook reads:
“You, and you alone, hold the key to your own abundance. You do not need to waste your time or energy following the prescribed path that others have laid out. You do not need to look to others to tell you how you should go about calling in the wealth you desire.”29
Then the awareness card I pulled was Receiving Mode. Part of this card’s messages reads as follows:
“The more you are in the receiving mode, the more you consciously choose to become the version of you who receives abundance—including financial abundance. Money flows to you more easily, more quickly, and in greater amounts.”30
This message was so validating! The two cards together gave me confidence to believe in myself and have more faith that the right opportunities will continue to come my way, even if it doesn’t look like a regular 9-5 job, by remaining open to receiving. I don’t need to plan everything out; the opportunities meant for me show up when I am open to receive them.
As for the cards themselves, they’re exquisite. The gold foil on the sides gives them a luminescent shine, and the quality of the cardstock ensures the deck will hold up well during shuffles. Plus, the artwork done by illustrator Stephanie Wicker-Campbell is truly transcendent. The essence of the women on the cards shines through, attuning the reader to their frequency. All the women look like they’re in a state of divine connection. From sacred surrender to embodied confidence, their faith shines through, inspiring the same in the reader.
There’s this beautiful mixture of celestial and earthly energy embodied in the cards too. They are soft colors—lots of tan, pink, and white tones— that invoke a feeling of ease and gentleness. The stars twinkle above, while lush flowers bloom; a sense of grace is present throughout it all.
Overall, The Wealthy Woman Oracle is a must-have for those seeking to open their channels of prosperity and abundance. If I had to sum it up in one word, it would be luxurious. This deck contains the financial wisdom that is not taught yet is essential to transform one’s relationship to wealth. This deck is a wonderful first step in cultivating the wealthy woman within through connecting to your soul’s path, strengthening your faith in your personal path to prosperity by following your intuition. I can’t recommend it highly enough!
Runes embody the cosmic forces that created the universe and their mystical vibrations permeate all of nature. The word rune, derived from the Gothic runa, means “mystery,”31 and in Nicolette Miele’s debut book Runes for the Green Witch: An Herbal Grimoire, the twenty-four Elder Futhark runes become energetic keys that unlock the secrets of herbal medicine and magic.
Miele is a rune worker and herbalist based in Pennsylvania, and she is also the proprietor of Handfuls of Dust Apothecary. In her online shop, she offers rune readings and handmade products, such as rune sets and ritual oils. Her line of Rune Wisdom ritual fragrance oils supplements this book well, as each blend is infused with runic energy and corresponding crystals and herbs.
“Through runes and plants, which complement each other beautifully, we will honor the wild spirit that resides in each and every one of us,” Miele writes.32
Just as the title suggests, Runes for the Green Witch combines runic mysticism with herbal witchcraft. Like most runic reference books, this work is separated into three parts, dedicated to each Aett, or group of eight runes. There are twenty-four chapters, one for each Elder Futhark rune.
Each chapter begins with an introduction to the individual rune, giving its historical and divinatory context, as well as some of the author’s personal insights into its magical uses, followed by a list of herbal correspondences for the rune, along with their magical and medicinal applications. Miele also provides lists of additional correspondences, including tarot cards, zodiac signs, planets, moon phases, crystals, chakras, and cross-cultural deities that she associates with the runes on an archetypal level.
While I like the idea of having a long list of magical correspondences for each rune, many of the author’s miscellaneous associations did not resonate with me. For example, Miele identifies the zodiac sign of Aries with Uruz, the mighty aurochs, and I feel that Taurus the Bull would be a better fit. I also found the Queen of Swords, traditionally the widow or divorcée in tarot, to be a strange association for Berkana, the mother rune, while the Empress made perfect sense.
The deity associations felt tenuous to me as well. I see gods from different pantheons that share similar characteristics as being part of the same archetypal current, but being unique personalities in their own right, so I am hesitant to conflate them unless there is historical precedence for doing so. In my personal practice, I prefer to just let the runes be runes, whose verdant powers are nourished by the rich soil of their native Norse mythology, without imposing foreign spiritual systems on them or conflating them with tarot, astrology, or chakras. However, I think these correspondences might be useful to someone new to rune work who finds cross-cultural comparisons helpful.
In keeping with the title of this book, the plant correspondences are where Miele’s runic wisdom and wise woman herbalism truly shines. “The subtle communication between humans and plants relies on primal intuition—something many humans today have to work harder to access,” 33 Miele says. She recommends building intimate relationships with individual plant spirits by consuming their essences in teas, soaking in bath water infusions, or burning them as incense, and keeping a journal of the emotional and psychic impressions received. Ansuz, the rune of communication, can help us learn to listen with our hearts to the subtle voices of plants.
Reading this book encouraged me to incorporate runes into my tea-drinking rituals. Miele associates raspberry leaf with Perthro, the rune of the womb, which reminded me of when I found out I was pregnant with my first child. I drank raspberry leaf tea sweetened with honey to strengthen my womb. Perthro is a rune of mystery and initiation, and giving birth for the first time was an intense rite of passage and an initiation into the mysteries of the mother goddess.
Miele praises raspberry leaf as a nurturing and protective plant ally for women and children. “This lunar herb exudes compassion and seeks to comfort those who are working through traumas, especially traumas from childhood,”34 Miele says.
Inspired by Miele’s insights, I decided to include both raspberry leaf and the rune Perthro in the ritual honoring my most sacred time of the month. I drank raspberry leaf tea as a tonic to relieve menstrual cramps and infused the brew with the spirit of Perthro. With my index finger, I traced the Perthro rune in the air over my steaming cup of raspberry leaf tea and intoned the name of the rune, then imbibed the gentle, soothing potion.
Rewilding is a common thread that runs throughout Runes for the Green Witch, which Miele defines as “the restoration of land to its natural state.”35] The rune Uruz embodies this concept the most, as it is a rune of instinctual urges and primal energy. Uruz represents the aurochs, a species of wild cattle that was hunted into extinction, and the last aurochs bull died in 1621.
So how can rune workers rewild themselves with the atavistic energy of Uruz? On a psychological level, human rewilding involves unraveling our societal conditioning and reconnecting with the nakedness of our authentic selves. As Miele says, Uruz “takes us back to factory settings.”36 By meditating on Uruz, taking breaks from technology, and spending more time in nature, we can foster a deeper connection with the green realm and reconnect with our primal instincts. Uruz is also a rune of physical strength and healing, and Miele associates it with medicinal herbs like eucalyptus and echinacea, which support the immune system.
After reading Miele’s chapter on Uruz, I felt guided by this runic spirit to do more research online, and I was astounded to come across an article stating that scientists are working to resurrect the extinct aurochs through rewilding! Since some European cattle breeds are descended from aurochs that were domesticated in ancient times, their genetic coding has survived, and can theoretically be reactivated through back-breeding. By resurrecting the aurochs and other extinct species through rewilding, scientists might be able to restore some of the biodiversity lost through the irresponsible hunting practices that have compromised earth’s precious ecosystems. Rewilding is also less risky than attempting to clone extinct animals, since it involves selective breeding of living populations.
My practice is very animistic, and I love that Miele treats the runes as living spirits to whom offerings should be made. “Offerings are immensely important within magickal practice as it shows we’re not just in it for the taking,”37 Miele writes. I wholeheartedly agree with this statement, and I noticed that my connection to the spirit world was enhanced when I committed to a consistent practice of providing offerings on a regular basis. In a shadow work ritual involving the torch rune Kenaz, Miele advises the reader to light a candle as an offering, then “call out to the spirit of Kenaz and request its guidance and protection while you journey to the abandoned depths of your soul.”38
Prompted by Miele’s advice regarding offerings, I decided to make offerings to runic spirits when I drew daily runes. The second day of reading this book, I drew Othala reversed, or murkstave, as my daily rune. Reversed, Othala represents “displacement, lack of security, loss of possessions, enduring family trauma, family conflict, or homelessness.”39 Estrangement, poverty, alcoholism, and domestic violence have been manifestations of a generational curse that I have experienced, and I asked the spirit of Othala to help me heal my ancestral trauma.
As I lit a candle and made an offering of milk and incense, I felt compelled to sing the rune’s name, which reminded me of the magical Norse practice of galdr, a shamanic form of cantillation. While I meditated on the rune, I felt that the spirit of Othala was telling me not to dwell too much on what has been lost. Instead of concentrating my energy on a legacy of generational trauma, she told me to shift my attention to focusing on breaking ties with that cursed inheritance and creating my own legacy. She asked me, What do you want your legacy to be?
During this meditative conversation, I realized that the spirit of Othala felt distinctly feminine to me. Then I remembered that I was working with an Anglo-Saxon rune set and Othala’s Old English name is Ethel. It dawned on me that Othala is a female spirit named Ethel, which means “ancestral land” and “noble” in Old English. I imagined her to be a noble ancestral spirit, or a faery queen. This may have been a flight of fancy, but I like envisioning Othala as a faery queen named Ethel, and I think I’m going to work with her under that name from now on.
Today, Ethel is a feminine name, but in Old English, it was used as a prefix for both male and female names to indicate noble birth.40] As a spirit of noble ancestry, I felt that she was communicating to me that ancestry transcends bloodline. The earth is our mother, and we are all related. The seemingly isolated family problems we experience are actually human problems that concern a lot of people in the collective. I feel this rune can help you get in touch with your innate nobility, and your divine birthright. We all have a divine spark within, and Othala/Ethel can help you to recognize your nobility and more authentically embody your Divine Self.
What does it mean to be noble? The Latin word nobilis means “well-known,” so to be noble means you are worthy of being known, recognized and acknowledged for your deeds, and remembered.41 This all ties in with legacy, and being worthy of remembrance is a form of immortality. Reversed, Othala reminds me of a burial mound. It looks like a buried diamond, marked by an X. Othala asks, What do you want to be known for in this life? How do you want to be remembered when you die?
After meditating on Othala/Ethel and channeling these messages, I finished reading the chapter on Othala in Runes for the Green Witch. Miele associates the following plant allies with Othala: “Avens, Babyberry, Blackberry, Coriander, Vervain, Vetiver, Witch Hazel.”42
“The plants of Othala represent ancestral connection and the energies that we wish to invite into our homes and families,” Miele says. “These plants aid in magickal workings regarding our heritage, protection of home and family, tradition, and the breaking of generational traumas.”43
I planted some berry bushes last year, so I already have blackberries growing in my garden that I can use to work with the spirit of Othala this summer. Witch hazel is an ingredient in one of my face washes, so I’m thinking about possibly incorporating Othala into my skin care routine.
Runes for the Green Witch: An Herbal Grimoire has enlivened the runes for me in ways I never before imagined, and it will help you deepen your connection with the twenty-four runic spirits and their herbal allies too, if you’re willing to get your hands dirty. With spring just around the corner, this book will be a great inspiration for a runic garden theme! I will definitely be referring back to this herbal grimoire while I’m buying seeds and planting intentions.
Stephanie Donaldson’s The Mindful Garden: Serene Spaces for Outdoor Living joins the list of items that bring a sense of peace and serenity into my life along with Palo Santo sticks, the flicker of a votive in a small metal holder, and Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks.
Donaldson offers ways for all of us – from the suburban gardener to the urban dweller with very little outdoor space – from the experienced to the novice – to create our own haven, a retreat, a place to de-stress. The book contains stunning photographs by Melanie Eclare that made me want to sell everything and move to my husband’s country of birth, England, and recreate the spaces in the book.
Luckily, Donaldson writes some words of caution, “…before making any changes it is always wise to separate the realizable dreams from the fantasies.”1 I stopped making flight reservations and settled into the book to be guided to ways that I could create my very own place of peace in my outdoor space. For as Donaldson writes, peace is a “central element in the creation of a successful mindful garden.”2
I hadn’t really ever considered the mood that I wanted to create in my outdoor space. I mindlessly go to the garden store and picked up random plants and garden accessories without any real plan. But this season, I’m becoming more intentional with how I space my backyard.
Donaldson asks the reader to consider the tone that one wants to create to support calm versus stimulation, simple rather than busy. A space where one removes rather than adds to. And she asked me a question that no one had asked me, which is what do I want from my garden? What appeals to me? What centers me? How novel!
Upon her advice, I considered how I want the garden to be used and how I want it to look. Do I want a space for meditation or contemplation? Do I want to add water features (many of which can be added for a nominal cost without running electricity)? How does the garden look in different light – from early morning to dusk? What type of seating do I want? What materials appeal to me? What style suits me – symmetrical or balanced?
She guides the reader in how to consider the use of color (recommending a subdued palette versus complimentary colors). Suggestions are offered in creating barriers with the use of things like stones, fences, shrubs, and trellises. And to consider scents – what plantings offer scents that calm versus stimulate.
The book offers so many suggestions that any of us can use to create a mindful space. The photographs will automatically bring a sense of calm, and there’s ton of them throughout The Mindful Garden. However, what I really liked about the book was that Donaldson was aware that we all don’t have acres of land and limitless funds to create a serene space. We can use a ceramic bowl to hold a small battery-operated foundation to create a slow flowing water feature. She showed a water feature using glass bricks filled with pebbles on a rooftop without a “plant in sight.”3
We might want to do some small tweaks to bring calm into our space or we might plan something a bit more ambitious (but again, she reminds us, doable). Consider your location (it’s challenging to have a wildflower meadow on your city lot), consider aiming for creating a space that won’t need constant attention (such as weeding). You might find out, after a few changes that Donaldson inspires, that you suddenly feel peaceful in your space.
“If you feel happy in your garden and there is nothing to change, then trust that feeling. You already have your mindful space…”36
Overall, Donaldson is a wonderful guide for bringing serenity into your life, beginning with your outdoor space, in The Mindful Garden. This book allows you to discover relaxation, peruse the pages, see what inspires you, and then take those steps to bring what you need and want into your life. You can do it with whatever space and budget you have available; Donaldson will show you how.
From accusations of shapeshifting and spirit flight to keeping the company of bestial familiar spirits, the testimonies recorded during the European witch trials bear an uncanny resemblance to ancient and universal shamanistic practices. In his classic work Witchcraft and the Shamanic Journey, author Kenneth Johnson posits that European witches were indeed practicing a form of shamanism, “the world’s oldest spiritual path.”1 This view has already been well articulated in Eliade Mircea’s Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy (1951), and the scholarly works of Italian historian Carlo Ginzburg, such as Night Battles: Witchcraft & Agrarian Cults in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries (1966) and Ecstasies: Deciphering the Witches’ Sabbath (1989), but Johnson builds upon historical evidence for the purpose of reconstructing ancient shamanic practices for modern witches.
Johnson is a professional astrologer and the author of several books, including Mythic Astrology (1993), which he co-authored with Arielle Guttman, and Jaguar Wisdom: An Introduction to the Mayan Calendar (1997). Johnson is originally from California, but currently resides in Mexico. He also spent a decade in Guatemala, where “he was initiated into the indigenous Mayan priesthood as an aj q’ij (keeper of days) in November of 2017.”38Witchcraft and the Shamanic Journey is his personal favorite among his published works.
I read a previous edition of this book, published by Llewellyn under the title of North Star Road (1996), and I didn’t realize this was the same book until I started reading it. It was nonetheless a pleasure to revisit this superb work, as it contains a wealth of information and was one of the most influential texts in my transition from mainstream Wicca to the more shamanic practices of Traditional Witchcraft. This new edition, published by Crossed Crow Books, includes spiritual exercises inspired by Johnson’s tutelage under Russian shamans. It also has a foreword written by Nicholaj de Mattos Frisvold, author of Craft of the Untamed (2014) and Seven Crossroads at Night (2023), and a preface by Robin Artisson, the author of An Carow Gwyn: Sorcery and the Ancient Fayerie Faith (2018) and several other works on Traditional Witchcraft.
Witchcraft and the Shamanic Journey is interspersed with beautifully written fictional vignettes that capture glimpses of shamanic witchcraft practices throughout Europe, such as “Greenland, AD 1000,”43 which features a priestess of the Norse goddess Freya practicing seidr; “Northern Italy, 1600,”44 which dramatizes the spirit flight of an Italian benandante, or “good walker,”45 who protects the harvest by fending off evil spirits with a fennel stalk; and “Scotland, 1662,”46 which glimpses the trial of Scottish witch Isobel Gowdie.
In the introduction, Johnson provides a brief historical survey of the environmental and cultural factors that led to the witchcraft trials, “a holocaust that, we should remember, took place not during the so-called Dark Ages, but during the more ‘enlightened’ age of the Italian Renaissance and the early years of the scientific revolution.”47 In the tumultuous 1300s, the Black Death, crop failures, peasant revolts, and the uprising of radical religious movements, such as the Cathars and Waldensians, contributed to a widespread fear of “an epidemic of witchcraft.”48 Inquisitors believed heretics were members of a diabolical cult, “formed about 1375, which called upon demons who often bore the names and attributes of old pagan divinities, and which met by night in ceremonies called Sabbats.”49
These so-called witches anointed themselves with flying ointments made of hallucinogenic herbs and took flight in spirit, either astride animals or riding broomsticks, riding the night winds to the Sabbat where they danced in orgiastic rites with a horned devil. Johnson suspects that there could have indeed been a witchcraft crisis cult, which arose in response to the drastic decline of medieval society. By returning to traditional shamanic beliefs and blending them with folk Christianity, members of this hypothetical cult may have been attempting to end “aristocratic dominance through magical social revolution.”50 One of the most fascinating theories Johnson presents is that the medieval dancing plague was the shamanic dance of a crisis cult.51
The ancient spiritual practice of shamanism involves the practitioner entering trance states and traversing the spirit realm, from the heavenly heights of the gods to the Underworld of the dead, in order to bring back knowledge and healing wisdom to the benefit of their community. Although the word “shaman” originated in Siberia, Johnson claims that shamanic practices are the spiritual foundation upon which many world religions were built.
In “Part 1: Otherworlds,” Johnson explores the shamanic view of the cosmos.
“According to the cosmovision of the shaman, the North Star is the axis around which all things revolve,” Johnson says.52 “When shamans depart upon their spirit journeys, they often take the road to the North Star.”53
According to the Buryat people of Siberia, the sky is a great tent punctured with stars, and the North Star is the central pole which holds up the heavens. The stars themselves are a herd of galloping horses tethered to the polestar. In various cultures, the axis mundi, or world axis, is envisioned as the central pillar of the cosmos, embodied in the World Mountain, the World Tree, or even the Maypole. Using this axis, the shaman can navigate the three realms of Heaven, Earth, and Underworld. When depicted as a tree, the branches are imagined to reach up to the abode of the Sky Father, and the souls of unborn children roost in the boughs, as well as an eagle, the primary totem of shamans, and the “Bird of Prey Mother,” who lays the eggs from which shamans are born. The roots of the tree burrow deep into the Underworld, where a great serpent dwells.
Through comparative mythology, Johnson provides compelling evidence of similar shamanic beliefs throughout the world, citing examples of several World Trees, such as Yggdrasil, the World Tree of the Vikings; the great ceiba tree of the Mayans, which grew from the back of a crocodile; the Kabbalistic Tree of Life; and the Underworld cypress tree of the Orphic mysteries. The World Tree even appears in the witch trial of Joan of Arc (1412-1431), as she was accused of dancing around a “fairy tree”54 when she was a child, suggesting the survival of ancient shamanic practices in early fifteenth century Europe.
Variations of the World Mountain also appear in many cultures, from megalithic monuments, volcanoes, and Mayan pyramids to the abode of the Greek gods on Mt. Olympus. In the witch trials, the World Mountain appears as the home of the witch goddess. In the early 1500s, an Italian peasant accused of witchcraft named Zuan delle Piatte confessed that Venus had whisked him away to the Sabbath upon black horses, and he had visited Herodias in the mount of Venus. In 1630, a German witch confessed to traveling in spirit to visit the goddess Holda in a mountain called the Venusberg.
“All our images of the Goddess in the Mountain or Tree are ultimately metaphors for the kundalini or ‘serpent power,’ a feminine energy both sexual and spiritual that has its origins at the base of the spine and, during spiritual practice, travels up our own internal World Tree or Mountain to the crown of the head—at which point we experience enlightenment,” Johnson says.55
Just as the shaman’s tent is mobile, so is the center of the universe. The moveable axis mundi, or World Tree, corresponds to the upright spinal column unique to human bipedalism. The skull, which is the spirit house of human consciousness, is elevated to the heavens, and the earth goddess or Fairy Queen slumbering at the base of the spine is the kundalini serpent.56
According to Buryat mythology, the first shaman was born from the union of an eagle and a human woman, “which, symbolically, tells us that shamanism is ‘born’ from the union of the enlightened consciousness which dwells at the top of our own internal World Tree with the feminine potency that sleeps at its base.” 57
“Though one may be born to a shamanic vocation, one attains power and mastery only through initiation,”58 Johnson says. Shamanic initiation may manifest as being called by spirit voices and having a vision of death and dismemberment, followed by a rebirth experienced during a physical illness or a bout of madness, which we would perceive in modern times as a psychotic break. In European mythology, the Norse god Odin is the most obvious shamanic figure, as he was wounded by a spear and sacrificed himself to himself on the World Tree. There are also Welsh legends of Merlin in which he was once a warrior who went mad and lived in the woods like a wild animal after a traumatic experience on the battlefield. The Orphic myth of the death and dismemberment of the Greek god Dionysus is another striking example of shamanic initiation. As a child, the Titans murdered him and cooked him in a cauldron, which echoes the inquisitors’ grotesque fantasies of witches have cannibalistic feasts, involving the boiling of unbaptized babies in cauldrons and the use of their fat in flying ointments.
“The Old Bone Goddess,”59 with her cauldron of death and rebirth, is the one who resurrects the shaman. She is the “Bird of Prey Mother”60 of the Siberian Yakut shamans. When the shaman’s magical powers have ripened and are ready to be activated through initiation, she dismembers him and feeds his body parts to demons. Then she reassembles his bones and resuscitates him.
I wonder if modern society’s disassociation from traditional shamanic practices can cause such initiations to manifest through traumatic life experiences, rather than just dream visions. After I performed a formal self-initiation ritual, I had initiatory dreams and visions, but my waking life also catastrophically fell apart, and it coincided with my Saturn Return. I lost everything, from material possessions to family members, and experienced frequent psychic attacks by a shadowy demonic entity that appeared to be attached to an abusive boyfriend. When it finally withdrew, several months after I escaped that toxic relationship, I heard it tell me that it was sorry for what it had put me through, and I never felt its presence again. It wasn’t until I read this book that I realized that the ordeals I experienced were part of an initiatory dismemberment and I came to terms with the fact that the Dark Mother to whom I was devoted had allowed those horrors to happen to me as part of the process.
Wicca, with its sugar-coated love and light Mother Goddess, did not adequately prepare me for the brutality of my shamanic witchcraft initiation, and reading the previous edition of this book, North Star Road, revealed the harsh truths of my spiritual path. I share what happened to me as a cautionary tale, because I initiated myself not fully understanding what I was getting myself into. I thought I was adequately prepared after studying Wicca for over a decade, rather than the customary year and a day, but the witch’s path is riddled with rose thorns, and true wisdom comes through suffering.
Witchcraft and the Shamanic Journey fills in the gaps of knowledge that are missing in mainstream pop culture witchcraft. Johnson elucidates how ancient shamanic practices infuse the folkloric witchcraft of medieval and Renaissance Europe, and are the backbone of witchcraft today. This is an essential text for any serious practitioner who has been called by the spirits and seeks to reclaim their shamanic roots.
Are you feeling the shift in your life? As many begin to awaken to new frequencies and dimensions, it can be immensely helpful to lean into cosmic assistance. Starlight Frequencies Oracle: The Knowledge You Seek is Seeking You by Leah Shoman is a deck designed to bridge the current reality with the New World being formed, leading the way towards 5D consciousness with love rather than fear.
“This time is powerful. The veil between fear and the truth is thin and you are being called to be the seeker. You are the being called to cut through this veil and illuminate your light upon the shadows.”45
Creator Leah Shoman is a spiritual writer and tarot and oracle deck creator. Other works of hers include Wild Lands Tarot, Crystal Rituals by the Moon, and Divine Codes Oracle. She also recently launched Sacred Scribe Publishing which publishes items that open doors of consciousness, leading the collective to new levels of spiritual exploration and visionary prowess.
This deck is unique because readers are intended to “interpret and decipher the transmissions for yourself.”46 Shoman describes how these cards were downloaded directly from Source, containing multi-layered light codes within each one that will make themselves known when the timing is right. All the aspects of the card, from title to color to number have specific intentions embedded within, and each reader’s experience will be different, based upon what it is their soul is meant to receive at the time of the reading.
I will admit, this threw me for a loop at first. Not to say I’m a huge guidebook person–I like to follow my own intuitive guidance when it comes to readings–but the limited framework of each card made them a bit of a mystery to me at first. While there is a sentence or two written on each card, which is exactly what it says in the guidebook too, there’s no fast and easy answers with this deck. You really need to spend some time connecting with the card, taking in the imagery and reflecting on the brief message being revealed.
What stands out the most is the visual aesthetics, making it a more meditative deck for me, where one must open up to receive the messages from a higher channel. The box is nice and sturdy with a magnetic latch that keeps the cards nice and secure. The words on the box are written a glistening, silver foil that gives the deck a lot of shimmer and shine. Opening the deck, readers are greeted with the message “Now child, crack open & awaken” on the box’s inside cover, while the bottom of the box is an image of a gorgeous swirling galaxy, filled with hues of pinks, purples, and blues.
The cards are likewise edged with silver foil, as well as the foil creating shining stars on the back of the cards, giving the deck itself an iridescent feel. The imagery on the cards is an eclectic mix of collage. The imagery woven into the cards ranges from Egyptian pyramids to rose buds and doves. It’s a mixture of spiritual symbolism and nature imagery (crystals, shells, flowers, etc.), though these too have their own meanings to convey, which make each card filled with messages to decode.
There’s a real mystical feel to the deck, combining the cosmic world with the natural world. Rainbows flow through mountains while the cosmos glistens in the background; a white rose blossoms in the mind of a star-filled silhouetted figure with rings around their head, similar to an atom or halo – it’s up to decode what you see and find meaning for it yourself!
My two favorite cards are Expansive Growth (08) and Illumination (24). Expansive Growth features snakes slithering around a ceramic vessel filled with flowers with an infinity symbol on it. The background reminds me of the natural rock arches in Utah, though the scene on the card looks very other-worldly. The message “You are experiencing an infinite loop of expansion.”47 makes me think about how we are always evolving, yet there’s a cyclical nature to our growth.
The card Illumination features a huge orange slice in the sky above a glistening body of water. The orange slice has yellow flowers surrounding it, giving the appearance of a radiant sun. The pop of bright color gives me a wave of hopefulness and inspiration; I can imagine the refreshing tangy taste of the orange on the card, awakening my senses as I gaze at it. The message on the cared, “Shine your light upon those who cannot see.”48 feels empowering, invoking overflowing positive feelings.
These are just my interpretations, of course! Readers will find their own secret message within the imagery on the cards. Shoman’s artistic eye for details makes this deck an on-going exploration for seekers, as there’s always a new dimension to be discovered. The ethereal nature of this deck breaks through stagnant patterns, serving as a channel for Source to come through and make necessary alignments.
Overall, I recommend Starlight Frequencies Oracle for those who are looking to expand their intuitive connection and attune themselves to new realms of consciousness. Creativity naturally awakens from working with deck, opening doors of perception to new realms. Shoman’s work is a perfect mixture of guiding readers in seeking higher knowledge for growth while holding space for them to go deeper and see the beauty hidden within.
When I first received this book, I thought it was going to be another one of those self-help visualization books where you write affirmations to yourself and look yourself in the mirror to tell yourself how wonderful you are. However, The Magdalene Frequency is….something different. Deeper. More concentrated. It’s not about telling yourself you’re good enough. It’s about becoming the best version of yourself all the time. You become your best partner. Who wouldn’t fall in love with that?
Full disclosure: I know next to nothing about the lore surrounding Mary Magdalene and much less about the teachings that have been developed as a result of her influence. I thought she was simply a bit player in a religious book that I personally have shied away from for most of my life. Part of my reason for wanting to read this book was to find out what I was missing. I struggle with books that are heavy with religious overtones and undertones, and this book has plenty of those. But is it worth the discomfort? YES.
An expert in esoteric psychology and the expansion of consciousness, as well as a researcher and professional counselor, author Adele Venneri decodes the mythology and stories around Mary Magdalene and presents a whole new frame of reference. She offers the idea that Mary Magdalene (or Myriam as she is often referred to) is actually an ancient frequency of the soul that provides a blueprint for both accessing that frequency and working with it.
So what exactly is The Magdalene Frequency about? In the introduction, Venneri explains:
“In the pages of this book you will not find the story or the pseudo story of Mary Magdalene that during the centuries has been made up and altered, depending on the historical context or on the needs and interests of those who were writing. Mary Magdalene is a controversial figure, concealed and vilified by the occult power of the church with the goal of keeping hidden not only the secrets about who she really was, but also hiding the secrets of the history of humanity.”48
This is more of a spiritual journey that the reader takes with themselves in an effort to find their own specific resonance within the context of the universal framework surrounding the frequency. This isn’t something to be taken lightly; the work encompasses a great deal of personal introspection as well as practical reformatting around previously held beliefs.
Thirteen chapters delve into the mysteries surrounding Mary Magdalene. From the first chapter that details the author’s personal encounter and subsequent journey with the frequency to the final words that bring the book to a radiant closure, the information is presented in a way that encourages questions and rewards patience. There is an undercurrent of an invitation to go deeper if the reader chooses to, and that’s where the discomfort creeps in.
To be clear, this is not a book for someone who is casually interested in the esoteric vibrations of the universe and learning how to use those vibrations to better themselves. This is some really intense information that for some might not be easy to grasp. I found myself looking up terms and unfamiliar words only to find myself standing at the top of a rabbit hole so deep and dark that had I jumped in, I would still be going in circles in order to understand this book.
Would I recommend The Magdalene Frequency to others? Yes, with the caveat that they have a pre-existing desire and thirst for the knowledge embedded in these pages. If you don’t know the topic and aren’t prepared to do the work needed to process the information contained in these pages, then I would respectfully invite you to pass.
