Gaea's

Archive for July, 2009

I read a quote today by Katie Couric that struck a chord deep within. I’ve always tried to stay true to my authentic self. I think sometimes people project things on you, but I’m trying to handle everything that’s happened to me with a certain amount of grace, dignity and good manners. You just can’t necessarily win all the time.

During my final year in school, my English teacher asked us to develop a quote that we would be happy to publish;  mine was similar to the quote above. I said that “I want to live my life with grace and dignity, elegantly dressed and that the first wrinkles I got, would be laughter lines”. I certainly have the laughter lines, but my dress sense is eclectic rather than elegant and I must say that I find being graceful and dignified a little challenging sometimes! Read the rest of this entry »

I recently received a chain e-mail about a Chinese proverb entitled “About Money”. The message says that the proverb originated in the Netherlands. Reading the comments about money prompted me to include the contents in a blog simply because the comments about money are worth thinking about.

1. with money you can buy a house, but not a home,
2. with money you can buy a clock, but not time,
3. with money you can buy a bed, but not sleep,
4. with money you can buy a book, but not knowledge,
5. with money you can see a doctor, but not buy good health,
6. with money you can buy a position, but not respect,
7. with money you can buy blood, but not life,
8. with money you can buy sex, but not love.

I would add to the above;

1. with money you can buy a holiday but not peace
2. with money you can buy status but not standing

What would you add?

Parshat Vaetchanan begins with Moshe pleading to be able to enter Israel. The Gemara (tractate) brings a question posed by Rav Simlai, who wonders why Moshe needed to go into Israel so much that he had to beg for it. He answers that there are many Mitzvot (commandments) that can only be performed in Israel, and Moshe needed to perform them. The Chassam Sofer, however, questions the wording of Rav Simlai. Who said Moshe needed to go into Israel? Couldn’t it be that he simply WANTED to?

The Chassam Sofer answers that Moshe saw an opportunity to do more Mitzvot, and although they weren’t in front of him (he had to go into Israel to perform them), he still felt the need to perform them, and did what he could to be able to complete them. In contrast, when was the last time we begged anyone to be able to do a Mitzvah? In fact, do we perform all the Mitzvot that we CAN? How many times have we even deliberately walked away from a chance to help someone? We should strive to be like Moshe, and work to appreciate, take advantage of, and especially LEARN about all the opportunities we are given, to do something good both for G-d , for each other, and ultimately for ourselves!

One of the difficulties of meditating by yourself or as a novice is not knowing whether you are doing the “right” thing or what the benefits should feel like. You may get to the end of the meditation wondering what all the fuss is about or feel irritated and stop without working your way through.

I would suggest that you work your way through this or any other meditation a few times just by reading it step by step and when you are familiar with the meditation, you will remember the process and can build up from the suggested minimum time of 10 - 15 minutes to around double that. No need to do the follwoing meditation every day, but I’d suggest once a week specifically to balance your chakras. Read the rest of this entry »

Amaethon (Welsh)

God of agriculture, master of magic

Arawn (Welsh)

God of the hunt and the underworld

Arianrhod (Welsh)

Goddess of beauty, full moon, magical spells, stars and the sky

Morgan LeFay (Welsh)

Goddess of death, fate, the sea and curses

Rhiannon (Welsh)

Goddess of birds, horses, enchantments, fertility and the underworld

Skatha (Welsh)

Goddess of the underworld, darkness, magic, prophecy, martial arts

The Green Man (Welsh)

God of the woodlands, life, energy and fertility

Badb (Irish)

Goddess of war, death and rebirth

Cliodna (Irish, Scottish)

Goddess of beauty and other realms

Creide (Irish, Scottish)

Goddess of women and fairies

Oghma (Irish, Scottish)

God of communication and writing, poets

Caillech (Scottish, Irish, Welsh)

Goddess of weather and seasons, sky, earth, moon and sun

Branwyn:

Goddess of love, sexuality and the sea

Bridget:

Goddess of fertility, feminine creativity, martial arts and healing

Cernunnos:

God of nature, animals, fertility and the underworld, also known as the ‘Horned God’

Cerridwen:

Moon goddess, goddess of dark prophecy and the underworld

Coventina:       

Goddess of rivers, abundance, inspiration and prophecy

The Crone:

Goddess of old age, winter and the waning moon. One of the Triple Goddesses

Eostre:

Goddess of spring, rebirth, fertility and new beginnings

Epona:

Goddess of prosperity, healing,  sustenance and nurturing and of horses

Latis:

Goddess of water and beer

Lugh:

Sun god, god of war, mastery, magic and good harvest

Morrigan:

Queen of Fairies and Witches. Also known as goddess of war, revenge, Night, magic and prophecy

The Triple Goddess:

The Maiden, Mother and Crone (Moon, Creator, Destroyer)

(see my previous blog entitled The Moon and magic)

Isis was a goddess in Ancient Egyptian religious beliefs. She was worshiped as the ideal mother, wife, matron of nature and magic. She is seen as the patroness of magick and spell-casting, having tricked the Sun god Ra into giving her his secrets. Isis is therefore the most powerful and frequently invoked goddess in formal magick. She was the friend of slaves, sinners, artisans, the downtrodden, as well as listening to the prayers of the wealthy, maidens, aristocrats and rulers. Read the rest of this entry »

Cancer (21 June - 22 July): Ruled by the Moon. Use Cancer energy for home, family, dreams, sea journeys, love, fertility, anything to do with comfort and protection.

Leo (23 July - 22 August): Ruled by the Sun. Use Leo energy for charisma, self-belief, showmanship and creativity.

5 July: Sacred to Maat, Egyptian goddess of wisdom and justice

7 July: Full moon

11 July: Sacred to the Greek god Kronos, Father of Time

13 July: Sacred as the birthdate of Osiris, Egyptian god of fertility and harvests

19 July: Sacred as the birth date of Isis, Egyptian goddess of motherhood and fertility

21 July: Solar eclipse

27 July: Sacred to Hatshepsut, Egyptian goddess of healing

All month: Be graceful and have fun

See my blog for more on the above.

In Parshat Devarim Moshe recounts placing “ministers over thousands, over hundreds, ministers over fifties, and ministers over tens..”(1:15). If there were leaders governing thousands and hundreds, isn’t it obvious that they would govern fifties and tens? What does the Torah add by including those specifications?

The Sforno says that there is an implied rebuke in the appointment of judges over Israel, because they could not stop bickering and arguing to the point that every group of ten needed its own personal judge.

While the Sforno implies that each person was overly concerned with his own property, in order for an argument to reach the courts, there also needs to be a lack of communication and an inability to reconcile differences.

If needless hatred begins with a lack of communication, then increased communication can remove the hatred and divisions that remain between us. With proper communication, we can not only properly mourn the Temple’s destruction, but we can also make our own best efforts to ensure that it is rebuilt!

Cards in the Pentacles suit usually depict discs of gold often with a pentagram or pentagon (5-sided symbol) inscribed on the disc. The symbolism associated with the pentacle is interesting as it suggests that, just as the design is used in Magick for protection, money or material resources can be used for protection. Pentacles are also depicted as shells, bread, wheels, clocks, crystals, rings or even shields. The characters in this suit are often shown in scenes of work or play.

The suit of Pentacles represents the economy and those who work within the industry including people in the banking, legal and broking professions. Pentacles can also symbolise people who wish to better their financial or material standing, those that understand how money works and those that respect the power that money brings. This implies being grounded in the material and physical world. Pentacles can sometimes describe other types of material resources such as physical capabilities and health conditions. Read the rest of this entry »