D is for the Dagda

Ready for another Celtic deity? I know I am!! :) While I would love nothing better than to devote all of my honour to the Scottish deities (yes, I'm Scottish & more), I just don't find a whole lot of them on the internet :( 

The Dagda (DOY-dah)

Old Irish: Dag Dia; Modern Irish: Daghdha, name means Good God

The Dagda is the chief father God (also called Allfather) and spouse of Morrigan (Celtic triple aspect Goddess) and leader of the Tuatha de Danaan. He carried a club that could kill 9 men with one swipe and restore them with the handle of the same. The Dagda dispensed bounty from an enormous cauldron (similar to Zeus’ horn of plenty). He also had a harp that could extend seasons, as well as play music that would put people to sleep, make them grieve or laugh.

The Dagda was revered by Druid priests because he bestowed wisdom on those who wished to learn.

There doesn’t seem to be an awful lot of information on this father God. Being as how the Celts were worshiping these deities way before there was a written language, it’s really not all that surprising! 

I keep thinking these will get longer and more in depth. I always laugh at myself when I look at how short my "great ideas for the blog" end up being!! :)

C is for Cupid

Yep, I went there!! I am so not a fan of Valentine's Day (like since I was in middle school), but since it's the season, I thought I would take a look at the man with the wings and bow and arrow!
Cupid is the Roman God of desire (Cupido: Latin for desire), affection and erotic love. In legend Cupid is the son of Venus (goddess of hope) and Mars (god of war).
The story of  Cupid and Psyche: When Venus became jealous of the princess, Psyche, because Psyche was so loved by her subjects that they forgot to worship Venus, she ordered Cupid to shoot Psyche and make her fall in love with the most horrid thing possible. While he was sneaking into Psyche's room to shoot her, he accidentally scratched himself with the golden arrow and fell in love with her.
Cupid visited Psyche every night, but told her never to try to see him. She, in curiosity and spurred on by her sisters, who told her he was a monster, tried to look at him angering him so that he left.
Psyche looked all over the world for him, until Jupiter the leader of the gods, gave her the gift of immortality so that she could be with her beloved Cupid. Together they had a daughter. The name Psyche means "soul".

Well, I really don't have anything to say or add after that!

C is for Crystals

I started to type, C is for cookie LOL!!!
Crystals are something I have always been attracted to, without really knowing why. Because I am an Earth worshiper, I decided to take Geology when I started college in January! It is proving to be the most difficult class I have, yet is the one I love the most! We just studied minerals in class and our labs have been centred around minerals, touching, playing with and getting to know the minerals and their habits and forms is a lot of good education and just plain, old FUN!!!
I've never really worked magick with crystals before, but I would like to learn! So, I am hoping that this blog educates, at the very least, me!
Quartz is the most abundant, silicate in our Earth's crust. It is composed of just 2 elements...Silica and Oxygen. That is all. To me that says a lot about why it is used in magick. It's a very simple straight forward mineral (not a rock...never a rock!), that comes in many colours, yet at it's core, it is still just silica and oxygen! Sounds like humans, eh?
Things I have learnt from the web on crystals and their uses in magick:
Cleansing, use in wands for directing power, to use when divining, to define a sacred space.
I even read that crystals can be steeped in water, like a tea. One charges the crystal with intention, places in a glass of pure spring water, and set it out in the sunlight, or moonlight (depending on the purpose). Give the 'tea' the full day or night, then remove the crystal and drink the water.

I really love this one and am going to give it a go (assuming I can find a crystal)!! Crystals have the ability to communicate with you and with other stones. Carry one with you when you attend a lecture or class; it will absorb the information and help you to remember what was discussed.

I know there is a lot more to discuss on crystals and I welcome your thoughts, experiences and guidance on using crystals in my magick!! I have another blog to post (bad witch, skipping a week) and homework to do!!

Brightest blessings :)