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Subscribe to this list via RSS Blog posts tagged in witches sabbat

Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Blood Sabbat

I have seen him stretch out his naked limbs on the altar.

I have seen.

I have seen the flash of blades descending.

I have cried out.

I have anointed my brow with his blood.

I have mourned with the others.

I have eaten the red bread and drunk the red drink.

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Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Flight to the Sabbat

My Kemetic Reconstructionist friend was newly back from his long-awaited trip to Egypt.

He was furious.

“Damn those security guards!” he growled. “Any time I tried to do anything, they'd stop me! Rrr!”

While not uniquely a pagan problem, it is a distinctly pagan problem nonetheless. With our holy places in the hands of the jealous, what to do?

We discussed the situation. My suggestion was that next time, he make the offering in his head. On the astral, so to speak.

The security guard sees an American tourist standing there impassively.

Meanwhile, the old gods receive their due service.

Ideally, the inner offering should always accompany the outer. But better one than neither.

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Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Teufelsrübe

 New this year at Black Mountain Seeds:

Giant German All-Black Turnip (Brassica rapa pernigra)

Long believed extinct, this legendary heirloom turnip from the Harz mountains in Germany has long been prized by cognoscenti for its sumptuous all-black flesh. 

Yes, unlike other so-called "black" turnips, the German All-Black has sweet, meaty flesh that is just as black as its skin! 

Just think: no more need to laboriously stain those turnip slices with expensive, carcinogenic dyes! Just slice and serve. (The skin is so tender, you won't even need to peel 'em.) No messy clean-up either.

These cylindrical, pleasingly phallic roots (up to 13" in length) will make prepping for your next Black Mass fiendishly easy. 

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  • tehomet
    tehomet says #

Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Meeting Maenads

Well, I can truly say that I've met the maenads now.

It was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life.

Let's do it again.

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  • Michele
    Michele says #
    Yes, let's do it again! The sooner the better!

Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Man in Black

 

Know him

by the crow's feather

in his cap.

 

"I am the man in black,"

he will say.

“Do you know who I am?”

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Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Easter Witches

In Sweden, the witch is a major symbol of Easter.

I kid you not. Swedish Easter cards feature pictures of witches flying off to the sabbat. Kids—these days it's mostly little girls—dressed as witches (with babushkas and painted-on rosy cheeks) trick-or-treat from door-to-door, collecting their goodies in, not sacks, but coffee-pots.

It's an interesting chapter in the long, twisted story of relations between the old ways and the new. Pull up a stump.

In Swedish witch-lore, Good Friday is the biggest sabbat of the year because, of course, "God" is dead and the powers of evil reign supreme. So keep those brooms, pitchforks, and billy goats locked up, or some old crone may nab one for her evening jaunt to the big shindig at the Blåkulla, the “Blue Mountain.” Keep a fire burning on the hearth and the windows shut tight, or the mirk-riders may steal your aquavit, cheese, and coffee (!) for their celebration.

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  • Steven Posch
    Steven Posch says #
    Well, one could hardly ask for higher praise than that. Thanks, Lizann; I'm glad you're enjoying the ride.
  • Lizann Bassham
    Lizann Bassham says #
    I so love all your posts, this one is particularly delightful!

Posted by on in Culture Blogs
A 14th Century French Witches' Dance

I can't remember who first told me that not only was this song sung and played at the witches' sabbat Back When, but that, in fact, it actually describes the uncanny goings-on there.

The reason for the song's witchy reputation is unclear. The sheer unreality of the scenario? The implied masquerade? The tune's leering allusion to the plainchant Dies Irae?

Well, whether witches capered to this tune in the old days or not, we certainly do now. In fact, we'll be singing and dancing it at the upcoming Midwest Grand Sabbat this year. With luck, the Devil's Piper himself will be there to play.

Of the many different versions of this song that exist, what follows is the oldest known to me, given in Medieval French, English translation, and singable English lyrics.

Grab your bagpipe and play along.

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  • Deborah Frankel
    Deborah Frankel says #
    I agree with you about the importance of sacred dance. The dance is a ring dance using grapevine step and a variant of a Faroe Isl
  • Steven Posch
    Steven Posch says #
    On further reflection, Deborah: is the dance is simple enough that it could be communicated verbally to those who haven't seen it?
  • Steven Posch
    Steven Posch says #
    I'm deeply convinced that there's nothing more important than rebuilding for ourselves a corpus of sacred dance. Please do drop a
  • Deborah Frankel
    Deborah Frankel says #
    Hello, Steven. When you gave a ritual workshop a few years ago in California (on the day before PantheaCon), I shared another Fren
  • Steven Posch
    Steven Posch says #
    600 years and still going strong. Now that's a song. Joie de printemps, Steven

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