natural magick – The Hedge Druid

Cornwall Winter 4 – Carn Brea with Mary and Michael

January 18, 2014January 18, 2014 Gwas No Comments

Hedge Druidry

Cornwall in winter can be stunning or cruel. Being the tip of the main island of Albion it is amongst the first to get battered by the south-westerly winds and rains. Recently this has caused devastation once again in Cornish coastal towns and villages. Luckily, I was at the tail end of a beautiful day for my visit to Carn Brea – a sacred hill near to St.Just and Land’s End and which overlooks the very finality of England’s land mass.

Up on Carn Brea

Parking is easy, and the walk is gentle. There’s one road up the side of the hill and from the car park there are only a few paths, all of which seem to go to the top. You really can’t miss this one. Neither could ships – the monks that once inhabited the hill’s long-gone chapel used to keep a beacon fire lit to act as a ward to ships.

I was aware from comments by people on this blog that the hill had some sacred connections. The hill has been found to have late Neolithic and Bronze Age remains. It was a pagan hill before it became a Christian one. Beacon fires are still lit on the summer solstice by the Old Cornwall Society. Good on them!

Carn Brea - Winter Solstice 2013 (2) — Marker point on Carn Brea, St Just, Cornwall

I was also aware that the hill featured in The Sun and The Serpent book – that now famous story of Miller and Broadhurst’s trek across the south of England following the Mary and Michael ley line, tracking the male and female energy leys as they crossed at certain sacred sites. Carn Brea was one such site. I was already thinking that I ought to test that, given that it was such a lovely day and I was on my own on the hill.

Fitzalan’s Lessons – Water Magick

November 2, 2011 Gwas 6 Comments

Ancient Sites, Hedge Druidry, Modern Druidry, Natural Magick

For several weeks I had been passing by Old Oswestry Hillfort in Shropshire on my travels to Wales and to some of the closer megalithic sites in North Shropshire. Every time I passed it my eye was caught by its level top and the sheer size of it. I loved the sight of its steep front, and wanted to see whether it had any energetic remainders or interesting energy forms in it. One evening I couldn’t contain myself any longer, and I got on my motorbike and rode down to Oswestry on the pretext of giving the bike a bit of a run to charge up the battery. Any excuse!

At the back of my mind I had another agenda too. I had wanted to find out whether I could really make use of The Fitzalan Shade that I had picked up from Clun Castle the week before (see previous post: Clun Castle and the Shade of the Warlock) – the spirit of a warlock with whom I had negotiated a bargain for knowledge sharing. Now was the time to test this out. Would the arrangement be up to anything at all, or was I wasting my time?

Guinivere’s Touch

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of this story, let me take you on an interesting diversion. As often happens in my unusual life when walking The Shining Path (I give this questing life many names) I go to places that have intuitively called to me. Afterwards when I do my research on the sites I find that they have some link to my spiritual progression that I had not expected. Such was the case with Old Oswestry. To me, it was that hill fort that I kept seeing and which called to me this year (even though I have been passing it for many years now). This year has seen a change in my Arthurian archetype. Last year I was completely bound up in quests for Merlin, culminating with his spirit merging with my own at Dinas Emrys.

This year I have been inextricably woven into the fabric of Arthur’s life – first at Tintagel, then at places such as Arthur’s Cave at Symond’s Yat, then Arthur’s Grave in Pembrokeshire. The sites have been never-ending, each linked to King Arthur and me seemingly destined to visit when my tasks and destinations have been dowsed and plotted on maps. Such has been the course of this year. How intriguing then that when I researched Oswestry Hill Fort I find that it too is strongly linked with the Arthurian myth. More weft for the rich tapestry.

Oswestry: The Welsh name means City of Gogyrfan. According to legend, Gogyrfan was father to Queen Guinevere and therefore father in law to King Arthur. This fort was said to be Guinevere’s birthplace. (source: Oswestry Town Talk)

Old Oswestry Hillfort sq — Ariel view of Oswestry Hillfort

Now I will tell you all about my first usage of the Fitzalan Stone and whether it truly does have magickal properties.

Missing a beat

October 25, 2011 Gwas 3 Comments

Celestial, Magick, Modern Druidry, Theory, Wheel of the Year

You may have noticed the lack of podcasts this year on Hedge Druid? There’s a reason for that. In the first half of the year the reason could be put down to a mounting pressure of “work”. Mostly this was spiritual work, and with all the good weather we have had in England this year then the Great Outdoors claimed a large part of my time, and this was reflected in the amount of time-consuming podcast work that I could do. Right, that’s my pathetic excuse out of the way. Now, what about the recent months? I did intend to re-establish the podcast once the weather got worse. It has worsened, but still I don’t feel inclined to get back into the studio to record and edit an hour’s worth of audio. Why not? I think there’s a deeper and wider reason.

I have been noticing that other pagan blogs have also begun to falter in their regularity and their commitment. Could it be that we all expanded too quickly, and pushed ourselves too hard to produce content? Possibly, but I think the real reason is due to a difficulty in maintaining momentum when this year has been out of synchronisation with itself. Let me explain.

The Moon, The Sun and The Earth sources

Last year our blogs flourished. Mostly these are blogs that are talking about magickal work, mystical happenings and spiritual progress. What general effect has happened that could account for the difference between last year’s ease and this year’s difficulty? Simple. It is the synchronisation of the phase of the Moon with the Celtic Festival dates. Last year the high points in the solar cycle were matched by high points in the lunar cycle. In other words, at the major lunar festival dates the Moon was also usually in its Full Moon phase.

The Celtic Wheel of the Year is a cycle that records the high points of the year’s energies. It tells the pagan watcher when the Earth itself is producing the most energy in its co-operative cycle with The Sun. In my experience, and I speak only for myself here, I do not use The Sun as my primary magickal power source. For me it is The Moon. Last year was therefore a “bumper year” in terms of the number of coincidences between the Solar and Lunar high points. Magick was abundant and easy. Motivation was plentiful, and so a great deal of work flowed, and many posts got produced. Blogs flourished that dealt with these subjects.

This year the story has been completely reversed, and how dispiriting must that have been to many of our pagan friends whose magickal sources are Moon-dependent? This year the Full Moon phases NEVER coincide with any of the Solar Festival dates in the Celtic Year. Only Spring Equinox came close. The result of this, goes my tenuous hypothesis, is that motivation has taken a battering. Magickal people must have found themselves either doing Sun OR Moon work, but never being able to being the two together.

Creating a ward at Alderley Edge

September 12, 2011September 12, 2011 Gwas 15 Comments

Ancient Sites, Dowsing, Glyphs and Wards, Natural Magick, Spirits

It was a fine English summer’s evening, in other words the sun was threatening to appear and it wasn’t yet raining. A good enough excuse for me to go and visit a local beauty spot and see what I could learn. “Every day”, as they say, “is a school day”. I obtained a meagre repast from a mini-market in Alderley Edge and pointed the car up the hill towards the Druid’s Inn car park alongside Alderley Edge forest.

My goal? Tonight, as I began to walk into the trees, I instructed the dowsing rods to direct me towards “something that will advance me on my spiritual quest“. Vague, yet promising. The rods twitched and I began to follow them ‘blindly’, trusting that some other forces understood the directive better than I did and would work on my behalf as they had done so many times before. As I walked I asked a quick question – “Would it be wise for me to put up some protection in the forest?” YES, said the rods. I was already doing it! Only positive helpful influences tonight, please!

I was brought into the forest by the usual path, even though I still don’t recognise it until I have reached the first high point! I was taken by yet another alternate route but the destination was familiar – a small rise covered in pine needles where the rods twirled around on a nondescript spot that I knew was probably full of powerful energies. Could I not sit on the nearby lovely mossy mound, I asked the rods. No, they chided, this was the spot to sit on. I sat.

At first I admired the view, wondering why I had been led to this place, and toying with the idea of ignoring this bit and carrying on. Three or four minutes later I was still wondering, when I realised that I could feel my “modern world” energies being stripped from me, and my senses attuning to the sounds and sights of the forest. I was hearing distant wildlife. I was sensing the movement of the gentle breezes as they played with the higher branches. I was feeling the flavour of the forest. I was attuned! Wonderful. NOW I could proceed.

Alderley Edge - Sept 2011 (1) — View through Alderley Edge from a magickal spot

After being cleansed and attuned I felt … really good. I didn’t want to move, but I forced myself onwards with this evening’s work – where should I go next? The rods began to lead me down a familiar off-road track through the dense forest and I was walking on to my next intriguing encounter.

Casting a druid circle

July 27, 2011September 11, 2026 Gwas 5 Comments

How To, Magick

Every so often I come around The Spiral of Life and find that I am re-joining a path that I have taken before, except that this time the path is at a higher level and offers more challenges and rewards than the previous time. That’s a rather grandiose way of saying that I have recently … Read More “Casting a druid circle” »

A guide to using incense

July 19, 2011September 11, 2026 Gwas No Comments

Incense

I’m always banging on about using incense. If you’ve read my previous posts recently then at almost any opportunity I’m lighting up and zooming off into trance. Now, as a Hedge Druid, why would I need these props? Surely, if I’m true to my cause I shouldn’t need anything except the sweet scent of Nature’s own aromas … Read More “A guide to using incense” »

Spring Ritual at West Kennet 2011

March 21, 2011September 11, 2026 Gwas 2 Comments

Ancient Sites, Incense, Natural Magick, Wheel of the Year

I have a few more posts about my adventures on the trail of the southern energy ley from Arbor Low to Christchurch. In this tale I begin by getting diverted from my intended destination of the village of Rockley due to the crap signs and bizarre diversions caused by the inevitable roadworks in the town of … Read More “Spring Ritual at West Kennet 2011” »

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