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Making Stone Allies By: David Salisbury

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Making Stone Allies

Michael and I have been delving deeper together into the wonderful world of stone energy work. I’ve been a big fan of herbcraft for years as my personal expertise, but something has been calling me to expand, and make new friends from within the natural world. Energetically, stones work much in the same way plants do. Carrying the stone creates changes in your energy field (aura) that are associated with the properties of the stone carried. Further, you can “program” a stone with a specific goal or intent to add an extra kick to your work. When working with the stones, you’ll find that the longer you work with specific ones, the more potent the power is that they lend you. Here are some of the stones that I’ve been getting to know in my own personal practice lately:

Lapis Lazuli- In my work with The Goddess, this stone really helps me connect. In the myth of the descent of Inanna to the Underworld, Inanna had to give up her lapis jewelry (among other things) to gain passage to learn the mysteries of death. Lapis helps deepen the connection with the hidden world of the deep earth mysteries and the feminine divine.

Labradorite- A ‘higher consciousness” stone that expands our understanding of “the bigger picture”. I use this stone for ascension magick and work with contacting higher beings on both the etheric planes and the angelic realms.

Aquamarine- A lovely seafoam color stone that embodies all the aspects of the water element: love, compassion, understanding, healing, and intuition. Sacred to Venus, who was born from the seafoam washed ashore. The physical embodiment of beauty and grace. I charged this stone with blessed holy water, rolled in natural sea salt.

Onyx- Deep black, like the eyes of the fierce Crone Goddess. Onyx is extremely protective and is related to the primal survival instinct in the human body. I recently made a necklace of onyx beads, which I feel has strengthened the protective layer of my field. Onyx is a “return to sender” material and ensures that any ill will sent to you will be deflected back from whence it came. Charge your Onyx on the dark moon (tomorrow, April 13th) for maximum potency.

Clear Quartz- Probably the most popular stone for many years now. This is an all purpose stone that can be used the amplify the energies of any stone around it. I have a large clear quartz on the center of my altar to help me focus and direct energy with laser-like precision. Though I think you can charge this crystal anywhere, I find it most potent to leave it sitting in direct sunlight outside, which cleanses and charges it at the same time.

Rose Quartz- Michael and I exchanged heart-shaped rose quartz’ on Valentines Day. The Lovers Stone, brings understanding to couples and strengthens bonds. It also helps open the heart chakra to self-love and the love of divine beings.

Those are just a few, and I look forward to developing deeper relationships with my new stone allies. Soon I’ll start adding them in with my herbal charms, and we’ll really get the party going!

Keeping Your Eye on The Prize by David Salisbury

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Visualization is not a foreign word to anyone in the new age community. We see it pop up in instructions for meditation, pathworking, spell work, and a great number of other things. How many times have you heard the phrase “now I want you to imagine in your mind’s eye…” in a self help CD or even at yoga class? It sounds easy, right? Just imagine it in your head and POOF, you just practiced what is called “intentional visualization”, also called “creative visualization” or “mindlight”. Though people don’t talk about this very often, most people find that it’s not as easy as you may think.

Just as anyone with experience in meditation can tell you, it’s a concept that’s so simple yet can be a pain in the butt to get right if it doesn’t come “naturally”. Anyone can sit still and breathe, but can everyone keep their mind clear, their soul focused, and their brain-chatter quiet? Usually not. The same goes with visualization. If I tell you to imagine a bright red apple in your mind, what happens? OH, right there, you just did it! Now I want you to imagine the apple and only the apple. Now background, no thoughts associated with it, and no other meaning to it. Gets a little harder, doesn’t it.

For visualization to be effective and powerful, we need to do more than just “imagine it”. We had good practice with this by playing make-believe as kids, but as our hardened adult minds grew, our ability to see things in the mind, in the astral, shrank. Let’s try the apple again, but this time give it a little more “oomph”. When you see the apple, imagine how it would taste to you. Let your mouth salivate as if it’s right in front of you. How does it feel when you hold it in your hand? What does the crunch sound like when you take a big bite? By doing all of these things, we are engaging all of the five senses (plus our 6th) to bring the apple out of our mind and into the astral. And what happens in the astral, takes formation on the material. Speaking of that, don’t be surprised if you find you crave apples for awhile after doing that exercise! Remember that when we visualize, we are putting a thought into the universe, an energy that has a body. A prayer would be like the “soul” of the visual body. It helps move it forward and creates change in a tangible way much quicker. Next time you pray, visualize the intended outcome while you do so. See it happening in your mind like a movie. You can stop, rewind, and fast forward. Just remember to not let images of doubt, fear, or failure cloud your work or you’ll be putting road blocks up that your work will have to drive around before it can reach its goal.

Now that you have a basic understanding of the inner working of visualization, try it! If you find it’s difficult for you to imagine an image you’re not alone. Practice makes perfect. If you can’t clearly imagine the movie scenes, go back to the apple, or any simple image. It will come to you.
Meanwhile, remember to keep your thoughts in good order in your day to day life. Just as we can visualize things for our benefit, we can do so for our hindrance as well. When we imagine negative things, we’re essentially sending curses. And it would be silly to curse ourselves, wouldn’t it? When you see something negative, try thinking to yelling “cancel, clear!” and imagining a big red X. This can help cancel out your thought.

Do you have any tips or tricks for creative visualization? I’d love to hear them!
Blessed Be,

David

A Personal Story of a 10 Year Journey by David Salisbury

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The air was cool but fast, as it whipped through the woods on a clear early-December sky. The soft waves of the stream brushed up against the rocks. Some of its cold droplets fell on a collection of small cloth and paper nearby. The young boy took in the scents and sounds of the chilled woods around him. Inhaling deeply, savoring each cleansing breath, just as the book instructed him. As he found his place of center, looking upward he began the words. “I dedicate myself, in this place that is not a place, in this time that is not a time, between the worlds but in all the worlds.” Pausing to breathe again he continued, “I dedicate myself, with perfect love and trust, with honor and reverence, to the great spirit which animates all things: earth, air, fire, and water”. The boy uncapped a small vile of sweet scented oil and anointed his forehead, then wrists. “By the earth that is her body, by the air that is her breath, by the fire of her living spirit”. He let out one last exhale…”So mote it be”. The boy closed his eyes and felt the wind whip up, stronger, and with more intention blowing out the small candles of the circle. The branches of the tree’s whistled and sang. The woods were speaking. Everything was alive, vibrating with energy and life. Connected, in tune, and with purpose.

And so began my journey on the path of The Goddess, the path of the Witch. It is hard to believe that ten years has gone by since that December evening, the night of my “Dedication” to the Old Ways, as we call it. It is hard to say exactly what called me to this religion. I don’t think I chose it, I think it chose me. I didn’t know many others, save for a few who pointed me in the right direction when I wanted to learn. I just knew that there was something “more”. I was always fascinated with spiritual things. I prayed and attended Christian youth groups as it honestly did interest me in general, but there was no connection. Religion means alignment and connection, and I didn’t feel like I was aligning myself with anything. I would best describe my past practices and spiritual upbringing as “worshipping air”. There was no substance, no form for me. I craved more.

I was lucky enough to have a series of people  placed into my life at that time to point me in the right direction. Sure, Wicca was pretty widely accepted ten year ago but so much has changed. Information placed on the internet was usually sketchy and it was difficult to discern what information you could trust. Add to that the fact that I had to save up my $1.25 lunch money for books, and you can imagine my frustrations. School life made things very difficult. I even had a teacher in the 7th grade who confiscated a copy of “Teen Witch” by Silver Ravenwolf (one of my very first books) calling it “inappropriate reading material”. God forbid something teaching a youngster about personal responsibility and respect for nature be read in the classroom! Then the classmate taunting. Oh how cruel children can be. The death threats quoting scripture referring to Pagans deserving death poured in. It was more like a 90’s inquisition than a school. When I defended myself with words, I was put in detention from other kids claiming I had “threatened to curse them”. Yes, that really did happen once. But I persevered. I learned about metal exercises designed to deflect negative energy, to bind harm, and to heal my emotions. Over time, their words lost power and I regained my own.

As mother read more and became more comfortable with my new “thing”, I was able to start developing a daily practice and reach out to the Pagan community. For awhile I attended “Teen Wiccan Wisdom”, a Charlotte-based youth group for Pagan teens sponsored by Shamans of the Willow Moon Coven. Through them, I learned about disciplined study, ritual work, and using my religious beliefs to help me grow into a responsible, compassionate young adult.

Into high school the hardships varied and we’re less intense than middle school. I was able to handle things much better. I was starting to realize that the opinions of others didn’t matter to me and that my connection with myself and the divine was what needed to be made a priority. The “personal responsibility” aspect of the craft really came into play here. And through it all, I emerged with many different career ideas, ready to take on the world. The magick did help too. Memory augmentation charms for exams, spells of truth and discernment in dealing with tough relationships, things like that.

My understanding of magick now-as a daily art and science-is much different. I find now that everything is magickal and has very different sides. I no longer see the world as black and white and either “cruel or kind”. The experience of working with this energy has taught me that there are so many different layers and aspects to things. I know now that when seemingly “bad” things happen to me, it isn’t because something hates me or I did something wrong. I think of it in terms of the goddess Brighid. She forges the steel of being in her cosmic “flame”, bettering her skill and tools. When I am “thrown into the fire”, something is being transformed for the better in it. It’s that process of hardship that refines, that polishes away all the extra “stuff” so I can shine. That is probably one of the deepest and most valuable things that Witchcraft has brought me to understand.

The community has been kind to me. Through the years I’ve had the pleasure of learning from and being in circle with some prominent Pagan elders in our community like Starhawk, Dorothy Morrison, Christopher Penczak, Janet Farrar, Gavin Bone, and Jamie Wood. I’ve been on radio shows, had articles published, and am pleased to announce I’m working on a book (once I nail down a publishing agent). It’s been such a joyous experience and I can hardly believe how much I’ve learned and how much I’ve changed. As I go forward and past my 20’s, I’m looking forward to another 10 years of magick, mystery, and growth. Sure, I may burn some potions along the way and there may be times when I fall off the broomstick, but I know now how to get right back on it again.

I have so much to be thankful for. My life is so much richer and filled with so much more substance than I could have ever imagined. I feel and experience the divine in everything I do now. It’s in the subway on my morning commute and it’s in my dreams when I fall asleep. There’s a known Wiccan proverb that says “She [the Goddess] changes everything She Touches. Everything She touches changes”. And she has. May I always be changed, may I always be transformed, and may the world be a better place because of it. Here’s to 10 more years and beyond.

Blessed Be

Setting Our Intentions for the New Year

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One year is quickly coming to an end and a new one quickly approaches. What do you want out of life in 2010?  How do you want to evolve, change, or grow? Or do you like where you are?

Most of us go through our yearly check off list: Lose weight, give up bad habits, etc….

Make this year about being of service to others.  This year ask yourself what you can do to bring joy and happiness to others.  It can be something simple like helping a friend out that needs someone to watch their kids, or it can be as elaborate as a volunteering at a homeless shelter.

This is also a great time to turn inwards and to connect with ourselves.  There are those of us that tend to overextend ourselves and our energy.  We give and never receive.  Take time to heal, to grow, and to be in your own energy every now and then.  I’ve met one of the most amazing gurus while here in SC- My 4 year old niece.  She handed me a crayola marker, and told me I had to draw with her.  I’ll admit, it felt silly at first… then an hour into it I had forgotten about the world around me, and connected with inner child.  We can learn a lot when we let go, and just be.

 

Namaste to you all!  I hope you had a wonderful holiday!

 

 

 

Giving from the Heart This Holiday

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I was driving to the Celebration Center to do some writing, and I drove by a Best Buy at 5 PM and there was already a line forming outside- which means these people will be waiting nearly 12 hours to be first in line for the goodies of their choice.  I can truly understand the want to get the best deal, especially in a time where many of us are stretching our dollars.  Do not forget though that too often we overlook the gifts we have right in front of us.  I can be many of you only need to look around your house to see many holidays of yesteryear staring back at you in the form of dust collecting former gifts.

The gifts that we give from the heart tend to be the ones that are held onto the longest.  Simplicity often times last longer than extravagance.  When is the last time you gave from the heart?  What is something that you would like to receive that is not material?

Here are some ideas to get the creative juices flowing?

1) Write poetry for the people in your life.  Create artwork for them.

2) Donate to a charity in their name.

3) Give someone a journal

4) If you are giving a purchased gift:  Make the card yourself

5) Scan or copy old photos, write fond memories down in a journal

6) Offer to help with chores, offer to babysit for an evening, offer to cook a dinner

The list can go on, and on….

 

So, here is my gift to you for the holidays.  Every person that posts one of the following in the comment section below will receive a 15 Min intuitive reading from yours truly.

What are some of your ideas for giving from the heart?

What are some things that you would like to receive that are non-material?

 

Love and Light to you all,

 

Mike

 

The Flight of Time by Susan Zummo

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I used to think that time was linear. That it traveled in one direction, always at the same rate, unable to be influenced or disturbed by any thing in the Universe. Well that was before I knew about Einstein’s time bending theories and Jane Roberts Education of Oversoul Seven. How quickly time went from linear and static to geometric and dynamic. Physics and metaphysics no longer at odds with one another.

I say this because rationally I know that I have the same number of hours in my day as I have had since I was a child. And yet every time I look up from my computer another week (or month) has gone by and I’m left wondering where it went.

Last month I attended the Integrated Awareness conference in Atlanta with my teacher, Connie Newton, other I.A.’s and Perceptive Awareness Technique graduates and was completely in awe of the positive teaching and expansive energy I took away from the weekend.

To put it all in a nutshell, we will each need to make a decision as to whether to be of “service to others”, or “service to self” or remain inconsistent and “undecided.” The fruits of those choices will be experienced by us during the next 2 years and will intensify as time progresses. Everything I’ve seen and experienced has drawn me back to those choices.

Having stated that I firmly choose to be of service, I’ve been given the opportunity to put my spiritual money where my mouth is. I’ve been blessed to facilitate Soma Pi healing in pets, friends, children and situations. This month began our first mediation group for the purpose of increasing healing and light in our lives and our communities. I look forward to donating reading sessions for charitable organizations that bring hope and comfort to others. I’m constantly finding new opportunities to share my talents and skills with others in new ways. I’m not comfortable listing the paths I follow to service, because it’s not about what I do or how I do it. I only mention some of them here because I want you to begin thinking about how you execute your service and share your talents.

We must all decide if we will be in service to self, others or undecided. However the decision is not made by thinking but in the doing. Now is the time for actions to match words because the truth of who we are is being made manifest completely and fully for all to see. Look at the people in your life and events that are unfolding around you. They will tell you all you need to know about the service you’ve committed to and the company you keep.

 

Susan Zummo is a highly motivated and qualified teacher of higher awareness. She is a certified Perceptive Awareness Technique, Inc. (P.A.T.) facilitator, Integrated Awareness graduate, Soma Pi™ healing practitioner, Hypnotherapist, Reiki Master, Sound Healing Therapist and Interfaith Minister. With over 20 years of experience, Susan has been helping clients connect with their Higher Mind through Intuitive Counseling sessions, P.A.T. seminars and healing workshops.

Susan became a P.A.T. facilitator 8 years ago and has helped many students gain access to their intuition via soul contact. Her teachings have helped her workshop attendees to reinforce their belief in self and their connection to a higher source. Her workshop participants regard her as one of the most committed and positive spiritual teachers they have had the fortune to meet.

Susan’s professionalism and compassion are her trademarks. Most of her students come to her through the glowing recommendations of former students.

Visit Susan’s Website at:  www.susanzummo.com