Ode: Yule has been celebrated and Car is hungover. Welcome to A Day Without Trees, the inaugural episode of 3 Pagans and a Cat. (all laugh) Car: That was perfect Gwyn: And it’s true. Car is hungover. Ode: Yeah. Car: Car’s better now. Ode: Car’s better now. Car was hungover this morning. Car: Yes. Very much so. Gwyn: Oh my goodness. Car: Or still drunk, one or the other. I couldn’t tell. Ode: Car was metabolizing alcohol. Car: Yes. Gwyn: That’s right. After much celebration. Ode: Uh-huh. Car: Alright, so, now we’re gonna do introductions, right? Yeah? Ode: Yup, we’re gonna do introductions. Car: And I’m first. Ode: Yes, you are. Car: Alright. So, I’m Car, and I am new to this exploration of paganism, having grown up in an organized religion for many years. I’m currently into the Celtic path and Druidry as it fits my background, being Irish by heritage. Gwyn: My name is Gwyn and I am actually married to Car. I am an eclectic Green Witch. I’ve been on the path for, well, since childhood really. I was also raised in a organized religion, and practiced that religion for most of my life and adult life, but I did practice witchcraft for eight years, took a break, and have got back on the path finally, thankfully, and have been on the path of the Green Witch for about a year. Ode: You may call me Ode. I am the child of Gwyn and Car. They raised me in an organized religion. (all laugh) Ode: But I abandoned it quite some time ago and was non-religious for a long time. I am currently stitching together a syncretic Heathen tradition that works for me, that’s gonna incorporate probably some of the witchcraft I learned from my mother, and any druidry I learn from my father. I am not and never will be associated with the Asatru Folk Assembly because they’re white nationalist trash, or with the Asatru Alliance for the same reason, or with the Troth, but only because I have some theological disagreements with the Troth. They’re not white nationalist trash. (Gwyn and Car laugh) Gwyn: Okay then. Ode: Listen, you gotta get the stuff out of the way at the beginning. Car: Right away, yeah. Gwyn: That’s right, alright. If you are pissed off about what Ode just said, you know, keep it to yourself.(laughs) Ode: Well, if you’re pissed off about what I just said, I don’t want you. You’re either from the Asatru Alliance or from the Asatru Folk Assembly in which case… Gwyn: Fuck off. Ode: Yeah. Keep it to yourself. I’m not interested. Or you’re from the Troth, but it’s okay. I know you guys aren’t trash. I just disagree with you about some theological points. Gwyn: There we go. Now we’ve got that done. (all laugh) Gwyn: The PSA has been completed. Ode: Yeah. Now we’re gonna talk about our Yule, ‘cause it has just recently gone by. Car: Yep. Gwyn: That’s right. Ode: Well, to a certain extent it’s continuing, so. Car: Yeah, so we started with the Celtic tradition which is the 12 days leading up to Yule, and lighting candles all of that time, and… Ode: ‘Cause we don’t have a Yule Log. Gwyn: No. Car: Yeah. Gwyn: We have a very long wooden, I guess, what, candle holder? Ode: Yeah, it’s for holding tea lights. Gwyn: Yeah, for holding tea light candles that I’ve decorated with greenery. Ode: That holds nine tea lights. Gwyn: Yes, holds nine tea lights, so it has been standing in for our Yule Log. Ode: Mm-hmm. So we started with the lighting the tea lights every night at sunset from the 8th until the 20th. And then on the 20th of December we celebrated Mother’s Night which is a Heathen tradition. Gwyn: Which was, I’d never done that before and it was incredibly moving. Ode: Neither had I. (all laugh) Ode: But I did some research and I wrote some hails to Freya and Sigyn, the two mourning mothers, and a hail to our disir, I invited them to our feast. We had pizza. (laughs) Gwyn: Yes, we did. It was a great feast. There was sausage. Ode: There was sausage on the pizza to symbolize the sacred boar. Gwyn: That’s right. Ode: We did that specifically, ‘cause we didn’t have, you know, a boar. (Ode and Gwyn laugh) Car: Not handy anyway. Ode: Not just lying around the kitchen. Car: Yeah. Ode: So we had a little feast and I had, because both of my grandmothers are alive and therefore not counted among the disir, I had both of my parents talk about their memories of their grandparents, their grandmothers, which was interesting. I heard some new stories. I heard about my father’s single memory of his one grandmother, which was that he was allowed to sit on the green chair and eat crackers, and he was the only person on earth who was allowed to do that. Car: (laughs) Yeah, right, yeah, yup. Ode: And I heard about a farm where my mother’s grandmother went fishing and made the best grilled catfish that has ever been created. Gwyn: That is the truth. She was an amazing cook. Ode: They shared those stories with us and then we did some hails and we sang some songs and I got verklempt… (Gwyn and Car laugh) Ode: … unexpectedly and had to sing some songs while crying. (laughs) It was all very dramatic. Gwyn: It was beautiful. It really was. Ode: So that was Mother’s Night. And then the next night we had Yule. Car: Yes. We did indeed. Ode: The Winter Solstice. Car: We did indeed have Yule. Gwyn: Yes, we did. It was a little bit broken up because I had to work, and so as soon as I got home it was… Car: Candle-lighting. Gwyn: It was sunset. So we did candle-lighting, and then Car and I had to leave for an appointment that had, that could not be rescheduled. So we were gone until, well I guess we got back about quarter to eight? Ode: You got, almost, yeah, 7:45. Car: 7:45. Gwyn: 7:45. Ode: And while they were gone, I made sure the ham didn’t burn. (Ode and Gwyn laugh) Gwyn: Yes! Car & Ode: And made some potatoes. Gwyn: Ode made the feast. It was wonderful. Ode: Yeah. So they got home just as it was finishing, so the timing on that was primo. Gwyn: Primo! So we feasted and we sang “Deck the Halls,” ‘cause let’s face it, it is a Yule carol. Ode: Mm-hmm, yeah. Car: Yup. Gwyn: It has all the proper elements of Yule in it. It’s wonderful. So we sang that. Ode: It’s got holly, fire, what else do you need? Gwyn: Exactly. (Car and Ode laugh) Ode: Let’s see, what else? Gwyn: Talks about the New Year. Ode: Yeah, it does. Talks about the Wheel turning! Gwyn: That’s right. It does. If you’ve never looked at all the verses of “Deck the Halls,” go for it. It’s perfect. It is the Yule carol, and we’re gonna sing it every year. Ode: Mm-hmm. (Gwyn laughs) Ode: It helps that we all know that one. Gwyn: True. Car: Right. Ode: Unlike the, well, that’s true. (Car and Ode laugh) Ode: Unlike the Heathen songs I sang on Mōdraniht, which are the, you know, they’re sung to the tune of familiar carols, but they have, you know, all these new Heathen words in them that neither of my… Gwyn: It was quite challenging. Ode: No one in my family can pronounce. Gwyn: (laughs) Well, we did our best. Ode: They tried. They tried very hard. Car: I didn’t. Ode: To be fair, I probably am not pronouncing them correctly either. That’s what happens. Car: I didn’t mispronounce them. I just didn’t pronounce them. Gwyn: You just listened. Ode: You just didn’t sing. Gwyn: Did you deck the halls with us? Ode: He did deck the halls with us. Car: I did. I did deck the halls. Yeah. Ode: Yup. Gwyn: And then we opened… Ode: So that’s the advantage of “Deck the Halls,” is that we know that one. Gwyn: Yeah, that’s familiar. Ode: Nobody’s gotta learn that one. Gwyn: That’s the nice thing, yeah. Car: Although we did have to read the lyrics. Ode: We did, yes. Gwyn: Yeah, well, I knew all but the third. I didn’t, I knew the first two verses. Car: Gotcha. Gwyn: But I didn’t know the third one. And then of course we opened our Yule gifts and then we did a small ritual and… Ode: Which, you might wanna talk about, ‘cause that was your ritual. Gwyn: Yeah, it was very basic. I wasn’t really sure what to do. This was our first Yule as a blended pagan family if you will, with our different varying paths. And so basically what I did is I did a small candle spell, really, where the ritual involved having everyone say what they wanted to release from the previous, you know, from the outgoing year, what they were looking forward to in the coming year, and then we all made our intentions, or we all cast our intentions onto the candle, which I then lit, and we let it burn down. So it was very simple, but… Car: Ode stayed up all night. Ode: I stayed up until 6:30 in the morning when Gwyn got up again and took over for me, watching the tree candle, and let that burn down until dawn, so I stayed up with it until 6am. Gwyn: Yeah, we lit that at sunset on Yule, and it burned until the sun rose-- Ode: Until 9am the next day? Yeah. Car: So actually after the sun rose, but… Gwyn: Yeah. Ode: Yeah. (laughs) Gwyn: After the sun, well, the light was in the sky. Car: When I finally put it out. (laughs) Gwyn: But the idea, yeah. (laughs) But the idea behind that obviously is to welcome the sun through the dark night, so. Ode: Yeah. So it’s good. We were originally planning to do a much more involved, druid, ADF style ritual. Car: Yes, yup. Ode: Which we ended up not doing because Car was not feeling very well, and I just wanted to point out, like, just because you are planning to do something for your ritual, or for your religion, just because you’ve made that plan, doesn’t make it immutable, and it doesn’t make what you replace it with any less valuable. Gwyn: Exactly. Ode: Your devotion and your practice and your tradition are not predicated on perfection. Car: Right. Ode: The fact that you’re doing it at all is valuable. So even if it’s not, even if it doesn’t come out perfect the first time, it’s still worth doing. Car: Right. Gwyn: Right. Car: Right. Agreed. And then we called this first ever podcast the… Ode: A Day Without Trees. Car: A Day Without Trees, and the reason for that is that today is the day without a tree in the Celtic calendar, tree calendar. Ode: So, we’re recording this on December 23rd. Gwyn: I was just gonna say, we should probably say what day it is. Car: Well it’s the same day every year, so people could’ve figured it out. (Gwyn and Ode laugh) Car: The Celtic Tree Calendar is 13 28-day months, and then there’s one day left over, December the 23rd, and that is a day without trees. And it’s also in the Celtic path, that is your year and a day. So the year is 355 days, and your day is… Gwyn: Wait… okay. Ode: Is December 23rd. Car: Is December 23rd, which is 356 days, right? 65? Gwyn: 365. Car: How many days are there in a year? (all laugh) Gwyn: I was sitting over here going, I think you’ve missed a few. 300, I was going, maybe it’s different in the Celtic path? Car: No, no, no, I skip those days.Those are the days I, I just kinda wipe from my memory. Gwyn: You hibernate? Car: Yeah, I need 10 of those a year at least. (all laugh) Gwyn: Okay, so let’s-- Car: Yesterday was one of them. Gwyn: Let’s fully establish, 365 days plus one. Car: Yes! Ode: 364 days. Gwyn: Oh, okay. Ode and Car: Plus one Gwyn: Plus one. Got it! (Car laughs) Gwyn: No, but he said a year and a day. Ode: Math is, listen, listen. Dear podcast, listeners. Math is not our thing. Gwyn: No. Ode: We will fuck up math a lot. Car: True that. Gwyn: So please forgive. Car: True that. (Gwyn and Ode laugh) Car: Yeah, please don’t write in and be like… Ode: Hey dumbass, here’s how many days are in a year. (all laugh) Gwyn: We know, we just can’t express it clearly apparently. (Car laughs) Ode: Because, so, the day and the year thing is you’re supposed to start new projects? Car: Yes, yup, yeah, so you start a new project on the 24th. So for me, I’m starting the dedicant path of the ADF. Ode: Mm-hmm. Gwyn: Which is the druid path. Car: Yeah, it’s the druid path, yup. And the ADF is one group that does that, and the one that I’ve searched through and found fit best. Ode: What is the A, D, and F stand for? Those words I can’t pronounce? Car: Right, yes. Our Own Druidry is what it stands for. Ode: Ahn droicht fanerflfelelfuhth? Car: That’s the, yes. Gwyn: Very good. Ode: Yeah, thanks. Gwyn: I think. Car: (laughs) So, but it’s at ADF.org if anybody’s interested in seeing, you know, where they’re at. Gwyn: What do the druids do? Car: (laughs) Right. Ode: If you’re interested in following along with Car on this journey. Car: Yeah. Gwyn: That’s right. Car: Yep, so tomorrow I will start on that path of the dedicant, and then I have choices after that, so next year I can choose to go into a guild or go into a bunch of different things, so there’s a bunch of different options as part of that which is kinda dope. Ode: I think it’s very cool that you have, like a structured, organized, like, path to follow. I’m over here just like, awkwardly shoving puzzle pieces together, like, hey did these fit? Do they? I dunno, IDK. (Car and Gwyn laugh) Gwyn: Well as a solitary eclectic, I’m like, yeah? Ode: Yeah, you’re like… Gwyn: That’s what I do! Ode: If they don’t fit, just saw some edges off and tape them together. Problem solved. Gwyn: There ya go. Just make ‘em fit! (Car and Ode laugh) Gwyn: What’s the problem? (laughs) Ode: Anything fits if you try hard and believe in yourself. (Car and Gwyn laugh) Gwyn: That’s right. That’s called magic. (Gwyn and Ode laugh) Car: Wow. Wow wow wow. Gwyn: You’re welcome. Ode: Yup. We’ll be continuing our Yule candle lighting for me, because my Yule doesn’t start until Mother Night on the 20th. We’ll be continuing that until January 1st, and there are some interesting things happening in January that we thought we should talk about. Gwyn: Mm-hmm. Absolutely. Ode: You may be familiar with the most recent supermoon that happened this December, the Cold Moon. Well there are two more coming up immediately, both of them in January. January 1st, the Wolf Moon is gonna rise. It’s going to be a supermoon, it’s in Cancer, which coincidentally is ruled by the moon, so I would think that would make it a double extra supermoon. And then January 31st, there’s going to be another full moon, colloquially known as a blue moon, and that one is also going to be a supermoon, this time ruled by Leo, which is the ruling house of the Sun. Gwyn: And… Ode: Oh, yeah, and January 31st’s blue supermoon is going to experience a total lunar eclipse. Gwyn: So it’s going to be very auspicious. Ode: It’s gonna be a very busy moon. Gwyn: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Ode: It’s got a lot going on. Gwyn: Yeah. Car: It does, yeah. Gwyn: Many witches and Wiccans believe that doing any kind of working, magical working, spells, you know, these, it’s a very auspicious time, a night of power, when it’s a supermoon, let alone a supermoon that is an eclipse, you know, that has even more strength and power behind it. So there, it should be an interesting night. Car: Yeah. Ode: I’ve got some information about the assorted moons. I don’t know a whole lot. Car: Somebody studied. Ode: I studied. Gwyn: Oh, well. Let’s face it. Ode: It’s my way. Gwyn: Ode is our researcher. (laughs) Ode: That’s what I do. Which is why it’s a good thing I’m the one on the like, there is no path, read your books and figure it out tradition. ‘Cause that’s all there is, is read your books and figure it out. So I did some research. I don’t know a whole lot about working with the moon in like a traditional witchcrafty way. So if Gwyn would like to jump in at any point while I’m reading off this information I have uncovered, that would be very welcome. So the first supermoon, which is on January 1st, is commonly called the Wolf Moon, Old Moon, or Ice Moon, depending on where you get your information regionally, I think. So there are correspondences for the Wolf Moon that I have found: black and white and silver are the colors, to the surprise of absolutely no one. (all chuckle) Ode: Gemstones corresponding to the Wolf Moon are hematite, again, not a surprise. The only other stone I might expect is like, opals? Gwyn: Yeah, opal is, would be a good stone. Honestly, I’m not surprised about the hematite. It’s, I don’t, I’ll be honest, I don’t know a lot about the, you know, full moon rituals and esbats in my own practice, I don’t do a lot of moon rituals. You know, I will, if I am casting a spell, or if it’s something that needs that extra power, I might do a spell on a full moon. But usually if it’s something auspicious like what’s coming up, I’ll do a meditation. Ode: You time it for that? Gwyn: Yeah, I’ll time what I’m doing, whether it’s a ritual or a meditation or a spell. I time it and, you know, hematite, what else did you? And the color black, and you know, these are protective, these are, you can, you know, use these for protection spells, for banishing spells, for letting go of things that are harmful in your life. Ode: Sticky. Gwyn: Sticky in your life, and you want to shed those things. You know, that would be a good moon to focus on those things. Ode: Here’s something I wonder: I wonder if because, you know, the moon is related to the tides, and tides are partially influenced by the poles, and so on and so forth, I wonder if hematite is considered a moon-related gemstone because it’s commonly believed to be magnetic? It isn’t actually magnetic, except in very, very rare instances, it’s got very low iron content, but it’s frequently thought to be magnetic, and it is frequently sold as magnetic. So I wonder if that’s where this association comes from. Gwyn: That’s very possible, because, you know, we talked about this, and we had talked about maybe discussing it at some point this evening, that the moon is in many traditions considered a feminine energy, connected to, you know, the women’s mysteries, and the lunar cycle is connected to the menstrual cycle and that kind of thing. Ode: Which is interesting because… Gwyn: So yeah, I would think that would be a correlation… Ode: Although I don’t have any evidence for this, and have never looked it up, my personal feeling about hematite is that it’s a masculine stone. Gwyn: Yeah, I get more of a masculine vibe from it personally. Ode: Uh-huh. The moon is feminine in a lot of Wiccan and witchcraft traditions, and in a lot of religions. In Heathen religion, in Norse and Germanic traditions, it is masculine. It’s represented by, personified by Mani, who is chased through the sky by a wolf, one of two wolves, depending on whether you agree with Sturluson or Grimnismal, either Skoll or Hati, and he’s the brother of the Sun who is feminine. So… Gwyn: I am just, I decided, you know, I’m gonna look this up. Ode: Mm-hmm. Gwyn: And hematite is a stone of magicians and exorcists. It enhances mental activity, balances yin-yang energies, so you’ve got that male-female correspondence there, and emotions, dissolves negativity, the force and the power of Mars is concealed in this stone is what… Ode: Mars is traditionally considered masculine. Gwyn: Yup, so that allows the wearer to influence other people. Yeah, it makes sense to me that this, actually makes sense to me that this masculine stone would be associated with what, at least in my tradition would be considered the feminine energy of the moon. Ode: You think it’s creates a sort of balance? Gwyn: Yeah! A yin-yang, a balance, you know, and again, it is good for repelling negative energy, it’s protective, it’s good, you know, for banishing those things in your life that are harmful or unhelpful. Ode: Cool. Well, I’ve got some other correspondences. Got some trees: birch and hazel. Daddy, you know anything about those trees in particular? Car: Mm, no. Ode: No? Not-- Car: Not yet. Ode: Alright. Gwyn: He’s still learning. He's still learning. Ode: He hasn’t started the path yet. Car: Exactly. Ode: It’s associated with Inanna, who I think is a Mesopotamian goddess? Gwyn: Yes. Ode: And Freya, who’s one of mine. The herbs thistle and marjoram, as well as generally nuts and seeds, and with the element of air. Those are the Wolf Moon correspondences. And I think it’s interesting that the Wolf Moon is correspondent with air because what I have read is that the full moon generally is correspondent with water, and this particular supermoon is also correspondent with water because it’s the supermoon in Cancer, which is a water sign ruled by the moon, so you would think this would be an especially moony supermoon. Gwyn: Mm-hmm. A moony supermoon? Ode: A moony supermoon. A lunar, an ultra-lunar supermoon. Gwyn: An ultra lunar supermoon. (all laugh) Gwyn: (laughs) Oh my god. Ode: Cancer is considered an introspective, intuitive, emotional, eloquent, and clairvoyant sign, and is often considered enigmatic and mysterious, so perhaps on that particular supermoon, focus on psychic development. Gwyn: Yeah, divinations. Ode: Mm-hmm. Gwyn: Spirit communication. Ode: Mm-hmm. Yup. Gwyn: Those types of things. Ode: The Wolf Moon is also, as always in winter, useful for spiritual development and physical decluttering. Gwyn: Again with the repelling of what’s negative, letting go of what’s not, what isn’t useful. Ode: Yup, because although the sun has returned triumphant by January, the nights are still very long. It’s normal to be lethargic, and sort of inwardly focused. There’s no point in trying to speed up your cycle. This is natural. It’s the right time for you to be… Gwyn: Introspective. Ode: To be introspective, and homebound, and focused on yourself and cleaning up or developing your personal space. Gwyn: Now of course we do have to say that that is if you are in the Northern Hemisphere. Ode: Yes! The Southern Hemisphere is a whole different sitch. Gwyn: That’s a whole different situation. Ode: Which I am not qualified to comment on as I have never been to the Southern Hemisphere. Gwyn: So if you are a Southern Hemisphere pagan or witch, enlighten us on-- Ode: Yeah, let us know. We’ve got nothin’. Gwyn: We got nothin’. (laughs) So we would love to know, ‘cause it’s actually Summer Solstice for them. Ode: Mm-hmm. Yup. Gwyn: Whereas it’s Winter Solstice for us. Ode: We have lived in the Northern Hemisphere all our lives, and we have lived in wintery climes most of our lives, so for us winter is a hibernation period. That may not be so for other people. Gwyn: That’s right. That’s right. Car: Right. Ode: The other thing I read about the Wolf Moon is to consider the communal nature of wolves. People have sort of differing opinions on wolves, sort of depending on where you come from. In Heathen traditions, wolves are very antagonistic, which I have, like, a struggle with, because I consider wolves very practical, resourceful, family-oriented animals. So it’s hard for me reading the Eddas and so on to interpret the wolves I’m reading about as aggressively as my ancestors would have. But something that’s consistent about wolves sort of across cultures is that they’re perceived as being transformative. There are traditions of people transforming into wolves through various methods across cultures all over the world. So consider the communal nature of wolves, maybe consider doing work about your family, about honoring your traditions or your elders, consider transforming into the person you want to be moving forward. January is a good time to start anything. Gwyn: That’s why so many people make resolutions. Ode: Mm-hmm. Yup. And actually Oath Day, which is the 12th day of Yule in the Heathen tradition falls on January 1st, so the New Year’s resolutions and Oath Day line up very neatly. Gwyn: Isn’t that interesting. Ode: (laughs) So that’s all I have about the Wolf Moon. Does anyone else have any further--? Gwyn: I just wanted to talk about that it’s also a good time, when you have a full moon, especially a supermoon or something like this, an eclipse, to create moon water. Ode: Yeah! Gwyn: I created moon water on the-- Ode: The most recent supermoon. Gwyn: On the most recent supermoon. Ode: The Cold Moon. Gwyn: The Cold Moon. Moon water is water that’s been charged with the energies of the moon, and it is a popular way to charge water to be used during ceremony or spell, working or to brew magical potions, and can be used for anything you’re directed to use your water for. Ode: Do you wanna go through how to make moon water? Gwyn: Yup! That’s exactly what I’m gonna do. While moon water is charged with lunar energies, and just so you know, I’m getting this information from a great site which is called Witchipedia.com. I love that site. Ode: Mm-hmm, yeah, Witchipedia’s very… yeah. Gwyn: I go to there all the time, so yeah, this is where I’m getting that article from. While the moon water is charged with lunar energies, it may also be charged with the energies of the zodiac sign the moon is passing through at the time. Ode: Which in January 1st is Cancer. Gwyn: Which is Cancer. Ode: And January 31st is Leo. Gwyn: Here’s the thing. The moon water that I created was while Mercury was in retrograde. (laughs) So that would be, you know, Mercury in Retrograde is usually from what I’ve been reading, it’s used to blame a lot of bad things. Ode: It’s the scapegoat? Gwyn: It’s the scapegoat. Exactly. Ode: To be perfectly candid, none of us know a great deal about astrology. Gwyn: No, at all. Car: Yep. Ode: Take everything we say about stars with a grain of salt. Gwyn: I know I’m a Pisces, it goes about that far. I still created the moon water with the intentions that it was charged with the supermoon’s energies and I’m just not worrying about the fact that it was in Mercury in retrograde. We’ll see how that goes. But anyway, to create moon water is very simple. You collect water from an appropriate source and transfer it into a glass or silver container. I chose, and do make sure that it’s been well washed and cleansed. Ode: Sterilized. Gwyn: Yeah, exactly. And I chose to use purified water, because I wanna be able to use it in a ritual where it can be-- Ode: Consumed. Gwyn: --consumed. If you’re not going to consume it, you can use other sources of water. Ode: Rain water. Gwyn: Yeah. Ode: Snow melt. Gwyn: Exactly. But if you are going to consume the water, do please make sure it’s purified water. And then what I did was, you know, I put it in that glass container, I put it in a window where the light of the moon would shine through on it, said the words of my intention for the use, and let it sit there throughout the full moon cycle. Ode: Have you ever done, like an infused water? Gwyn: No. I haven’t. Ode: No? My understanding is that you can do that with herbs and stones, but you have to be aware of what might leech into the water. Gwyn: Right, right. Ode: So, do with caution. Double check the toxicity of everything you’re using. Gwyn: And that’s the one thing that we all, I think, agree on is research everything. Ode: Oh god. Yeah. Gwyn: Research, research, research. Ode: Don’t assume it’s not a baneful. In fact, assume it’s a baneful. Gwyn: Baneful means bad. (Gwyn and Ode laugh). Gwyn: So. Ode: Mom, no. Baneful means toxic. Gwyn: True. Ode: Baneful doesn’t mean bad. Gwyn: Well that’s a good point. Ode: Baneful means you shouldn’t eat it, and in some cases, shouldn’t touch it. That doesn’t mean it’s bad. It just means it has a very specific use case. Gwyn: Good point, good point. Again, if you wanna read more about creating moon water, you can go to Witchipedia.com, and they have a search bar, and you can just put in moon water and find the article. Ode: So do we wanna talk about the blue moon? There’s not a whole lot out there. All I’ve been able to find is that it’s considered sort of a magical bonus round. Gwyn: Yeah, because, it’s a moon that occurs twice in one month, or one cycle of… Ode: Right, well, there are two definitions for blue moon. There’s the colloquial definition of a blue moon which started in the 1930’s, I wanna say? Which is that it’s the second moon, the second full moon in a month. There’s the traditional blue moon, which is the third full moon in a season, but that is harder for people to keep track of. So we’re considering the second full moon in January to be a blue moon because we use the modern calendar and not the traditional lunar-solar calendars of our ancestors, and therefore have to put up with months that are not all 28 days long. Car: Right. (laughs) Gwyn: And according to what I’m reading here, again from Witchipedia, the blue moon is considered by some witches to be twice as powerful or at least more powerful than your ordinary full moon. So it’s a good time to perform a spell that needs some extra kick. Ode: Right. Gwyn: Or some oomph behind it. Ode: And that blue moon will be the Leo supermoon. Leo is ruled by the sun, which is where the light from the moon reflects from, so that seems auspicious to me. Gwyn: Mm-hmm. Ode: Leo is creative, passionate, generous, cheerful, and confident. It is a fire sign, and I’ve been wondering about this. And I wanted to ask you. So I know that traditionally speaking, an eclipse is considered just sort of extra magical oomph, because it sort of shows you all the phases of the moon at once. I’m wondering if an eclipse can represent a reversal in the same way that a merkstaved rune or a reversed tarot card would represent a reversal of its traditional meaning? Gwyn: That’s a really good question, and I’ll be honest, I don’t know. That’s not something I’ve ever really researched or thought about. Ode: ‘Cause I haven’t been able to find anything about this while I was researching this, but it seems intuitively coherent to me, so I was wondering if you had any thoughts. Gwyn: Well, I’m looking, I have my computer here, so I can do fast, little searches. This is actually on a solar eclipse, and I found it on MagicalRecipesOnline.com, another really good site. A solar eclipse-- Ode: None of these sites are we sponsored by, by the way. Gwyn: No, no, no. We’re just, these are sites we go to. Car: There is no sponsoring. Gwyn: There is no sponsoring. If you’d like to sponsor us, feel free! (Ode laughs) Gwyn: No, a solar eclipse can, according to this article, be seen as a very powerful new moon. Ode: Mm-hmm. Gwyn: So… Ode: And new moons are traditionally… Gwyn: Well, new moons are traditionally a time of rest. Ode: Right. Well.. Gwyn: For most witches. Ode: Yeah, a lot of witches, I guess, don’t do magic during new moons. Gwyn: A lot of witches don’t do magic during the new moon, yeah. It’s just a time to, well, to rest and reflect basically. It’s also, I personally have used new moons though as a, if there’s something that I need to build, to ward, if there’s a spell or a working that I’m doing that needs to build toward… Ode: Start it on the new moon, and let it go all the way to waxing. Gwyn: Yeah, start it on the new moon. Exactly. As the moon waxes to full and then perform the spell on the full moon. Ode: Mm-kay. Gwyh: So sometimes I’ve done that. Ode: So you get, like a charging period. Gwyn: Yeah, yeah. Depending on what the need is behind the spell. Ode: So for a lunar eclipse, would you consider that transforming the supermoon into a super new moon? Gwyn: That’s, again, I don’t know. I’m looking up another article as we speak. Throughout the moon’s monthly cycle, and this is from Pagan Path, the moon waxes and wanes. At the new moon, the moon is completely invisible, and then of course at the full moon it is at its fullest-- Ode: Extent. Gwyn: --energy in phase. During a lunar eclipse, we experience, I guess what is called a micro-month. The moon is full, then partially or completely hidden, and then visible again-- Ode: Right, it goes through all the phases. Gwyn: within just a few minutes, and energy similar to a complete cycle of full, waning, and new/black, and then waxing, and full again. Ode: Mm-hmm. Gwyn: I guess, according to this, in addition to the cyclical energy, we’re aware of the earth’s presence and her shadow falls on the moon as she appears between the moon and the sun. This adds the unification of earth and lunar energy, reinforcing the sense of wholeness, completion, and cycles of a lunar eclipse. Ode: So here’s something to consider. The January 31st supermoon, which is the moon that’s going to have the total lunar eclipse-- Gwyn: Mm-hmm. Ode: --is in Leo. Leo is ruled by the sun. So this supermoon is going to be cut off from the ruler of its house by a total eclipse. Gwyn: Mm-hmm. Ode: I dunno. I feel like that has implications. I feel like, mm, okay, let me say this. If you’re gonna do some high intensity magic during January, do it January 1st. January 31st, I feel like is gonna be, it’s gonna be very busy, but I feel like if you’re gonna do magic on the 31st, you wanna go in with a very clear plan, and you wanna be very aware of all the elements at play, and decide for yourself how they’re going to impact anything you do. ‘Cause there are so many pieces on this particular board. Gwyn: I think that’s sound advice. Again, I don’t really have any particular views or opinions on that. I do think it is a good time to, if you do want to grow in an area, I think, but again, go with a clear intention. Ode: Yeah, have a very clearly stated intention. Gwyn: A very clear intention. Ode: There’s gonna be enough muddiness on sort of a cosmic level. Don’t add anything to that. Gwyn: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Ode: Go with very clear, defined, stated goals. Gwyn: And I think it’s also good to remember that even though the moon is going to be obscured during the lunar eclipse, you can still perform magic. That lunar energy is still there. You don’t have to see the full moon in order for that lunar energy to be available. Ode: Yeah, talk about how when you made the moon water during Cold Moon, our moon was obscured. Gwyn: Yeah. Ode: It was behind the clouds. Gwyn: It was. It was behind the clouds. There were times through that night that it came through, and it shined through. I did a meditation while I was, you know, creating that water, focused my intention on it, because really, it is the intention of the witch that really is the most important thing. The moon includes, you know, we’re including her energy into this, or we’re partnering with the moon, if you will, to enhance or to empower, but really, it’s the energy and intention and the focus of the witch that ultimately matters. Ode: When you say you’re partnering with the moon, you mean in the same way that you as a witch partner with spirit allies or plant allies, that sort of thing? Gwyn: Mm-hmm, yeah, that’s how I look at it. Other witches may see it differently, and that is the one thing I want to also add in this podcast, is that, you know, we are three different individuals on three different paths. We’re all-- Ode: Some of us still very much early on in those paths. Car: Very early on. Gwyn: And as an eclectic witch, I don’t follow any particular tradition. If I were to claim a tradition, it would be Green, the green path, and that is a new one for me. I’m really not a religious witch. I’m more of a secular witch. I really don’t follow a particular religion. So if you have a different view, a different way of viewing the moon, or different beliefs about the moon, please feel free to share them with us. Car: Yep. Gwyn: I mean, I am of the opinion of there is no one right way. Ode: Mm-hmm. Gwyn: It is all individual to the person who is on their path. Ode: Yup. Gwyn: You know. So. Car: I find this interesting, so we have a blue moon in January. Ode: Yep. Car: We also have a blue moon in March. Gwyn: Mm. Ode: Goodness. Car: And then we don’t have one until October of two thousand twenty. (Ode whistles) Gwyn: Wow. Car: So… Gwyn: So take advantage of those blue moons, peeps. Car: Yeah. Ode: Yeah, use those blue moons while you got ‘em! Gwyn: Use those blue moons. Car: You’re gettin’ two in one year, that’s a big deal. Gwyn: That is a big deal! Ode: There’s a lot of moon activity early on in this year, it seems like. Car: Yeah. Gwyn: Because I believe in signs, and-- Ode: Portents. Gwyn: --portents, I do think we need to keep our eye on what’s going on, not only spiritually and supernaturally, but just-- Ode: Physically. Gwyn: -- physically. Ode: Manifestly. Gwyn: Manifesting in our lives throughout this year where we live. Ode: Yeah, it looks like 2018’s gonna be a very busy, spiritually active year. Car: Mm-hmm. Gwyn: I think so too. Car: Agreed. Gwyn: I think so too. Ode: For our little family if for no one else. Car: Right, exactly. Gwyn: That’s right. Ode: We’re all starting paths. Car is starting a dedicant path. I’m gonna spend the next two years studying every rune in the Elder Futhark. Gwyn: Mm-hmm. And I’m gonna be learning more about the Green Witch path, and just, I wanna learn more about divination. I’m adept at the pendulum. Ode: Very. Gwyn: But I-- Ode: Outrageously, one might say. (Gwyn laughs, Car snorts) Gwyn: But I’m trying to develop psychically, I’m wanting to become better at reading tarot, and improve those divinatory skills. So that’s really my focus this year, I guess. Ode: Yeah, psychic development. Gwyn: Psychic development and divinatory skills, other than pendulum. Ode: Yeah. Gwyn: ‘Cause that’s kinda inherent. (Ode laughs) Gwyn: That just… Car: Happens. Gwyn: Happens. Ode: That’s her natural skill. Gwyn: That’s my natural skill. Ode: Alright, I think that’s everything we had planned to talk about. Car: Awesomesauce. Gwyn: Mm-hmm. Ode: Congratulations to us. I think we managed to get in under an hour. Car: Yeah, we did, yep. Gwyn: Hopefully! And hopefully we didn’t bore the, just the socks off of you. (laughs) Ode: And if we did, this podcast isn’t for you, it’s gonna be like this the whole damn time. Gwyn: The whole damn time. Car: Yeah. We are who we are. Ode: The only thing that might change is that I might ask even more questions that no one has an answer to. Gwyn: That’s right! And that’s, and I am gonna add that too. If you don’t know the answer, it’s okay. That’s why you-- Ode: That’s part of this process. Gwyn: That’s part of the process. You look it up, you ask other people, you get varying opinions, and then you find what works for you. Car: Yup. Ode: And then you argue. You argue a lot. (Car and Gwyn laugh) Car: There will be a lot of arguments in this podcast, yeah. Ode: There will be a lot of arguments. Gwyn: At least if you’re in our family, yeah. Car: Yeah. Gwyn: If you haven’t quite caught onto it, we’ve created our own little family coven really, and even though we’re all individual, you know, solitary practitioners-- Ode: Right, technically we’re all solitary-- Gwyn: Technically, we’re solitary practitioners. Ode: But we’re also sort of fusing out rituals together so that we can all practice together, and… Gwyn: It’s interesting. Car: Yep. Gwyn: We have a fun year ahead! Ode: It’s an interesting process, yep. Yeah, a very busy, moonful… Moonful, yes. Car: Moonful, I think you just made that up. Ode: Yes, that’s a word now. It’s a word now! Gwyn: Very nice. Car: Okay, cool. We’ll add it to the dictionary. Gwyn: Cool. Cool word. (Car and Ode laugh) Gwyn: A moonful year. Ode: Uh-huh, yep. (Gwyn laughs) Ode: Which begins, according to Daddy’s calendar, tomorrow. And according to my calendar, January 1st, ‘cause that’s the first full moon after the Yule. Gwyn: So thank you for listening to us ramble on and-- Ode: Babble. Gwyn: Babble. And we’ll see you next time. Ode: We are 3 Pah-gans, Pagans and a Cat. We’ll see you next month. Gwyn: 3 Pah-gans. Car: (in a Scottish brogue) 3 Pah-gans. Ode & Gwyn: 3 Pah-gans and a Cat! (all laugh)