Dear dirt, I am sorry I slighted you,
I thought that you were only the background
for the leading characters—the plants
and animals and human animals.
It’s as if I had loved only the stars
and not the sky which gave them space
in which to shine. Subtle, various,
sensitive, you are the skin of our terrain,
you’re our democracy. When I understood
I had never honored you as a living
equal, I was ashamed of myself,
as if I had not recognized
a character who looked so different from me,
but now I can see us all, made of the
same basic materials—
cousins of that first exploding from nothing—
in our intricate equation together. O dirt,
help us find ways to serve your life,
you who have brought us forth, and fed us,
and who at the end will take us in
and rotate with us, and wobble, and orbit.
Prayer to Hekate
I call to you, kind Hecate, watchful daughter of far-seeing Asteria,
Torch-bearing goddess, night-wanderer, pale and fair as the moonflower.
Hekate of the three ways, goddess of the crossroads, keen-eyed one, you see clearly what others overlook.
Hekate of the three realms, goddess who holds a stake in all the worlds, all within are yours to stir.
Gentle of touch and firm of hand, Hekate, leader of the ghostly train, the barking of dogs marks your passage, the shining of stars lights your path.
Hekate who is the companion of those who walk the bounds of light and dark, I praise and honour you.
Just got an incredibly generous job offer, so naturally I’m passing these vibes to you!
“I will be blessed with a generous job that works for me”
📥💸💻⏰💡🎊💡⏰💻💸📥
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USA Native Plant Resource Masterlist
Because Google is totally useless and won't help you with ANYTHING
- iNaturalist: Take photos of living things you see, post them, and the community will identify them for you. Data from iNaturalist is used in scientific research.
- Wildflower.org Plant Database: Enter search criteria and find some plants. Very useful if you're looking for plants with specific qualities or know what you have in mind.
- Native Plant Finder: This website is still in beta and is a work in progress, but it will show you plants for your area ranked by the number of butterflies that use them for their caterpillars.
- WildflowerSearch: AMAZING resource for identification and for learning about new plants. Shows you where plants are native/not native, TONS of search filters.
- Native Plant Trust: A New England organization, but probably useful to anyone.
- Northern Forest Atlas: Great images and identification resources for trees; has good pictures of bark, seeds, buds, leaves.
- FloraFinder: Another plant database site that's being slowly built up by a passionate nerd.
- MonarchWatch milkweed by USA ecoregion: Tells you what milkweed species you should plant for monarch butterflies.
- Native Beeology: Not plants, but a closely related subject.
I will add more and post an updated list as I find more.
Sometimes your gods know exactly what you need even if you don’t want it.
Haven’t made a comic in a while, but I’m still around for the most part.
Ways of worshiping and honouring Lady Nyx
( for a darling friend)
- wear a (dark) veil
- wear black
- wear symbolism of the night (ie: stars, moon)
- hone your psychic and divination + scrying skills
- say thanks or pray at dawn and dusk (one for her daughter Hemera and one for her)
- learn constellations, astrology and moon phases
- do shadow work
- set firm boundaries
- allow yourself to feel your emotions fully
- go to a rage room (she was a daughter of C/Khaos)
- harness your powers, whether that be in witchcraft or harnessing and learning your own strengths in everyday life
- wear her jewellery under your clothes/in shadow
- do rituals for her at night / under the stars
- crystals: agate, moonstone, rainbow moonstone, aquamarine, azure, beryl, selenite, black onyx and snowflake obsidian
- make her altar black
- paint your room/ceiling black with stars/constellations or use those glow in the dark stars
- accountability
- place the Justice card on her altar
- help a pregnant person / fight for reproductive rights and health
- black bird/feather/wing imagery or actual black feathers
- fertility spells
- eggs
- light incense: rose, sandalwood, rosemary
- pray in total darkness
- new moon rituals
- do your makeup
- have and uphold a beauty routine
- use moon water in your beauty routine
- make sure you sleep well
- meditate/pray before bed
- bull / horse / cat / owl imagery/art
- learn about death and death customs
- go to therapy
- traditional offering such as red wine, dark chocolate and dark berries
- symbols of her children: honour the day, skulls, symbols of death and sleep.
- (study her children ^)
- dedicate your divination tools to her or do one of your divinatory practices in honour of her
- mugwort tea (for prophetic dreams)
- keep a dream journal
- keep a symbol of Nyx under your pillow
- sing for her
- spend time outside at night
An Easy Spell for Healing and Moving Forward
Disclaimer: If you are healing from serious trauma, please use this spell only as a supplemental tool for professional treatment. If you are on any sort of medication, do not use this spell as a replacement.
What You Will Need:
- An Apple (for cleansing away negativity)
- A Knife
- A Sigil in Mind for Healing
Directions:
- Use your knife to carve your sigil into the surface of the apple. I used one of my own: x
- Once you have carved your sigil into the apple, begin to eat the apple. As you eat, think of the thing that has hurt you that you want to move past. Focus on how moving forward will improve your life.
- As you chew the apple, imagine you are crushing that thing that is bothering you. When you swallow, know that you are taking in the healing properties of both the apple and the sigil.
- Don't rush it! Take your time and try to eat as close to the core as possible before throwing the apple (and that thing holding you back from healing) away.
while i dont believe in a fixed gender or sex on the Gods, i do support a projection of sex and gender onto Their form in worship. the Theoi aren't human and therefore have no sex or gender, but the ways we perceive Them is influenced by our individual human ideas of these constructs.
lately, ive found myself viewing Aphrodite as intersex. i think for me, a feminine non-binary individual, it's a breath of relief to look at a divine feminine icon and see no ties to the female sex. im feminine and i love being feminine, but i am not female. no matter what i do, i cannot escape being viewed as female. i want to be able to wear short skirts and show my chest and to have strangers look at me as "human",,, not "woman"
i think it brings me a personal comfort. Aphrodite is the embodiment of femininity (to me) and to see Her free of the typical view of sex comforts me. im still putting forth effort to accept myself and break away from the female/male gender construct that was instilled into me as a child. but Aphrodite is helping me with that and is willing to adapt with me to suit my needs. i am thankful that feminity is on my side and supporting me every step of the way. i would not have made it this far without Her. Khaire Aphrodite <3
Nonbinary Moon in Ancient Greek religion and magic
Despite being associated in Ancient Greek culture mostly with femininity, in some primary sources the Moon and lunar deities are depicted as female and male at once. The Orphic Hymn to Selene describes the Moon Herself thus:
Female and Male with borrow’d rays you shine, and now full-orb’d, now tending to decline.
Mother of ages, fruit-producing Moon [Mene], whose amber orb makes Night’s reflected noon
(trans. Thomas Taylor)
Androgyny is a common theme in Orphicism, whether for deities such as Phanes - for whom being both male and female is one of the main attributes - or those usually depicted as one, binary gender. However, the nonbinary lunar doesn’t end with Orphicism.
[picture: a relief of Selene]
If you’ve been at least lurking in Hellenic Pagan side of Tumblr, you have possibly already learnt about Aphroditus, who became sort of trans icon here. What you might not know is that he was a lunar deity as well. The Roman writer Macrobius, who identifies her with Venus, describes him thus in Saturnalia:
There’s also a statue of Venus on Cyprus, that’s bearded, shaped and dressed like a woman, with scepter and male genitals, and they conceive her as both male and female. Aristophanes calls her Aphroditus, and Laevius says: Worshiping, then, the nurturing god Venus, whether she is male or female, just as the Moon is a nurturing goddess. In his Atthis Philochorus, too, states that she is the Moon and that men sacrifice to her in women’s dress, women in men’s, because she is held to be both male and female.
At last, the nonbinary Moon can be found in Greek Magical Papyri as well. The fragment below comes from a spell calling upon a syncretic goddess identified with Hekate, Selene and many others.
I call you, triple-faced goddess
Mene, O light-beloved
Hermes / and Hekate at once
Male-female child together
- PGM IV. 2608-2611
The word Mene means the same as Selene - the Moon, and was often used as an alternate name for the goddess. Possibly this fragment - syncretizing Hermes and Hekate, two closely connected but almost never equated deities - can be also linked to the mysterious Hermekate appearing elsewhere in the PGM.
Those are examples I know - if any of you know more, I’d love to hear about it. What we can see even now is that the nonbinary lunar, despite the obscurity, was a recurring motif that could appear in very different traditions of Ancient Greece.
Selene Offerings & Devotional Acts
Offerings
- moon imagery
- moon water
- silver
- glass
- white horse, bull, oxen and owl representation (statues, toys, plushies, etc)
- chariot representation (toys, images, etc)
- bull horns
- tiaras
- selenite, moonstone and clear quartz
- any white flowers
- wisteria
- evening primrose
- lilacs
- red or white fabric
- chai tea
- jasmine, lavender, rose and peppermint incense or essential oil
- feathers especially owl feathers
- period blood
- tea cups
- pearls
- glitter
- dew water
- mirrors
- any “flowy” clothes
- glass
Devotional Acts
- praise and compliment the moon
- blow kisses at the moon
- make anything (poetry, art, songs, etc.)
- go for a walk or drive at night
- keep track of the sign the moon is in and learn what they mean both in your chart and for charging and spell purposes
- keep track of the moon phases and learn what they mean
- sleep outside under the moon
- wear clothes or jewellery with the moon on them
- learn facts about the moon
- drink sweet and herbal teas
- wear light blues, silver and black
- grow or buy some white flowers
- wear some “flowy” clothes
- take care of your mental health
- learn to understand your emotions better
- study the moon patterns
- learn about different mental illnesses
- dance in the moonlight
- visit any body of water at night