This post was written as part of my ongoing Witch School work, an intuitive witchcraft curriculum I am building behind the scenes, currently available to the paid tier as it’s created. I hope to share it more widely in the future, but for now I hope this snippet is of interest. Take care sweet summer doves xxx
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Where I am it is full Summer. Hot days, cooler nights but the feeling of the Earth warming all around me. Today I saw St John’s Wort blooming all over the place, I want to gather some to make an oil for pain. I have genuinely longed to live in a place where those bright yellow flowers grow freely, as many a herbal text has described, yet reality denied me. Now here I am. Here they are.
Two threads crossing.
Today I read something so arresting, I’d like to share it here:
This is what I believe:
“That I am I.”
“That my soul is a dark forest.”
“That my known self will never be more than a little clearing in the forest.”
“That gods, strange gods, come forth from the forest into the clearing of my known self, and then go back.”
“That I must have the courage to let them come and go.”
“That I will never let mankind put anything over me, but that I will try always to recognize and submit to the gods in me and the gods in other men and women.”
There is my creed.
D.H. Lawrence
Lawrence wrote this in response to Benjamin’s Franklins list of virtues; to Franklin I would reply with my Dad’s motto, “All things in moderation, including moderation.” There are times when fully immersed, deeply in, is the only way to go. We must allow ourselves to be full throated in our expressions, both mundane and magickal. But to project intentions out, first we must secure our foundation within.
In contrast to dry virtues, Lawrence summons up a kind of prayer, a making of imagery that gives us a brief sense of his inner world. But it is also a world we are invited to inhabit, just within ourselves. Instead of a list of do’s and don’ts, Lawrence describes a kind of inner knowing, a sense of a landscape that is familiar and vitally alive
That my soul is a dark forest.
I ask you. How did he know? I too envisage my essential self, living in a clearing cooled by the soft leaves that deepen green beyond the colour itself. A green that is alive, bursting with life yet serene and tranquil. Here, I feel safe and cared for. I can sit on the ground, quiet and alone, peaceful in my connection with the world. I can sit, and just take it all in.
Do you know how to find that part of yourself? The quiet part. The watching part. The part that knows. When you think about witchcraft and forests and dancing under the moon by the ocean herself, which part of you perks up? Do you recognise it? Can you have a conversation?
It is likely that part of you is used to not being heard, it might take some time to fully open up to you. You might have some apologising to do, you might need to offer care for the times they were neglected. That’s not something to feel guilty about, you were doing your best in the way you knew how, but now? Maybe you know better. Maybe you can offer more kindness, more friendship, more love?
Your journal/book of shadows is a good place to think through some of these ideas, but you can also speak directly to that part of yourself. It will take time to make the connection more fluid, but once it comes online, once it integrates and becomes a familiar path you take, you can access that sense of centered flow at will; a feeling of egoless certainty . A simple knowing.
In heat of summer, there needs to be time for drifting thoughts and new imaginings. Let these thoughts pass by like clouds, let them land lightly as you experience the shiver of the leaves talking. Dig your toes into the sand, let icy waves touch your feet. Invite your inner watcher to the party and let them soak it all in, as if for the first time. Remember how to delight, remember how to play.
As always, if you would like to share any of your discoveries, I would love to hear about it. I wish you time for musing and being, time for listening and feeling. For following whispers and intuitions.
Bright blessings my lovelies, love
Emmalina xxx