Author Archives: runeworker

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About runeworker

Rootworker , Reader, and Sorcerer

Atheism and Magic

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Recently, on a elist that I am member of, in a discussion about magical ethics, the conversation turned to the idea of religion, faith, and their relationship to magic. In the discussion, the subject was brought up of how a friend was a declared atheist, but believed in ghosts, because in her twenties, she lived in a severely haunted house and experience that reality first hand. So, while she didn’t believe in God or gods, she did believe in ghosts, and spirits. This puzzled quite a few people, but it seemed perfectly reasonable to me. I also indicated that an atheist could also practice magic, and also not necessarily believe in God or gods. Quite a few people seemed puzzled by this.

The example I that used is my awareness of the magical practices belong to various Buddhists sects, while many Buddhists that I have met, have indicated that they are atheists. That is, they don’t believe in God or gods. To be perfectly honest however, I have never met a magical practitioner who is also a serious atheist. I also pointed out that someone can be an atheist, and belief in spiritual realities, while someone who only believes in material source, causation and reality, will most likely be an atheist as well, but being an atheist and being a hard materialistic empiricist is not the same thing.
As far as the Buddhist thing goes, I am a total outsider, and I really have no other claim then a few experience with friends and acquaitances who have identified as Buddhist. I have also never met anyone who was an atheist, and also practiced magic (of any kind per se). I myself, am not an atheist either, so for the most part, I am playing the devil’s advocate here. But this lead me to the thought and decision to ask the question. Is there anyone, or has anyone ever met anyone who was a declared atheist, but also practiced magic of some kind or another? I would really like to know, and I rather hope I can meet a person like this, because I really want to ask him and converse with him how he espouses his cosmology, and how magic works for him

August 10, 2010 – Berkana reversed

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Berkana reversed

Berkana is the letter B

Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem (from ragweedforge.com)

The birch bears no fruit; yet without seed it brings forth suckers,
for it is generated from its leaves.Splendid are its branches and gloriously adornedits lofty crown which reaches to the skies

Berkana reversed indicates that there is a lack of nurturing, of growth, and gentle sustenance within the day. Perhaps some harsh internal criticism is being applied, or the environment that is moved through today is being particularly rough, with very little gentleness or kindness involved. As Berkana is the rune of the feminine, it might indicate a lack of female presence or influence. For women in particular, it might be indicating that there are problems had within, and a need to find feminine strength and power, but also to look at the well being of breasts, womb, ovaries and vagina.

August 9, 2010 – Tiewaz reversed

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Tiewaz reversed

Tiewaz is the letter T

Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem (from ragweedforge.com)

Tiewaz is a guiding star; well does it keep faith with princes;
it is ever on its course over the mists of night and never fails
The dark moon comes with us this Monday, and today feels weird, or at least it felt weird this morning, moving into meditation. Of course, what occurs to me is the idea that the moon is being eaten by some cosmic beast, a wolf or a dragon that slowly devours the night candle, only to have it be reborn again, some how. In thinking about Tyr, I think of Fenris, and that somehow if he had gotten out, he would have devoured the moon, but perhaps the moon would have survived. The moon causes me to think again of the swastika, to think of the swastika as this celestial power, perhaps lightning or the sun wheel, or even the moon, identified by it’s turning and changing, over it’s 28 day cycle. A cycle where it is devoured, only to return again, a thin crescent that sheds just a glimmer of blue-silver light across the earth at night, which growns in strength, only to fade again, and be consumed by the wolf. Here I am in the belly of the beast, fully eaten, not a lick of morsel left that can sparkly or shine, and yet in these digesting depths the acids and bile are working a biological alchemy. Breaking down and perhaps emerge renewed, or at least to start as the prima material, so that the patterning, the weaving of who and what I am can be changed.

August 6, 2010 – Peorth

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Peorth

Peorth is the letter P

Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem (from ragweedforge.com)

Peorth is a source of recreation and amusement to the great,
where warriors sit blithely together in the banqueting-hall

Peorth, the rune of luck and chance, is shining for Friday. One of the things I notice, with the method I have made for creating bind runes (namely, doing a casting while focus on what I want to achieve, and put those runes together in an aethestically pleasing way (for myself), Peorth seems to show up a lot. It makes sense as the rune of luck, that from perspective of active shaping that magic is, one needs to seize upon luck, and direct it towards one’s desires, whatever those desires maybe.

August 5, 2010 – Eihwaz

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Eihwaz

Eihwaz is the long “i” sound, but is rarely used in written script

Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem (from ragweedforge.com)

The yew is a tree with rough bark,
hard and fast in the earth, supported by its roots,a guardian of flame and a joy upon an estate

A day of connections, new possibilities, and new contacts is the indication of Eihwaz for today. I recently acquired a new book, “The Encyclopedia of Natural Magic” by John Michael Greer. He gives an entry for the yew tree, and I particularly like his indication for magical uses for Yew. Mr Greer writes “Use Yew for protection from spirits, especially spirits of the dead. It is particularly useful in exorcism, and laying ghosts to rest.” Definitely also a fitting use for Eihwaz also, although I would say for both, it would work equally well, both in driving spirits away, but also calling them forth.

August 4, 2010 – Eolhx

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Eolhx

Eolhx is the sounds of “x” or “z”

Anglo-Saxon Rune Poem (from ragweedforge.com)

The Eolhx-sedge is mostly to be found in a marsh;
it grows in the water and makes a ghastly wound,covering with blood every warrior who touches it
Eolhx, the rune of protection, is the rune for this first Wednesday in August. It symbolizes protection, security, and sanctuary. Within the confines of an area marked by eolhx, one may find rest, peace, and quietness which allows one to cast off burdens momentarily, so that healing and regeneration, both physical and spiritual can occur

Reclaiming the Taboo

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A symbol that I am currently contemplating deeply is commonly known as the swastika. It is a symbol that has a long history, mostly good, until the 20th century, where in the hands of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist Party, it became associated with horrors and atrocities enacted in Nazi Germany. For that reason, many countries have banned the symbol outside of restricted usage for certain religions (primarily eastern, where the swastika has a much richer usage and benevolent symbolism that is much stronger then anything in Nazi Germany).

There are many variants on the swastika, mostly in stylistic depictions, and also vary depending upon the culture. It also has many names. Fylfot, Hooked Cross, Gammadion, Tetraskelion, Tursaansydan, manji, Mjolnir, thorshammr, Mundilfari, sun wheel, At one time, a Buddhist version of the Red Cross was called Red Swastika, and performed in actions similar to Red Cross of western countries.

One of the mistaken lore about the swastika, is that there is a reversed version, which symbolize evil. That is untrue however, as artifacts and usage up until mid 20th century used the swastika with it’s bent legs facing in both directions. Whatever way the legs are turned, the symbolism of the swastika, as a symbol of good fortune and luck, holds true. It was for the beneficial association that Hitler decided to use it, along with pseudo-philosophies about being Aryan, and the connection made by German nationalists both before and current with Adolf Hitler, which encourage him to use that symbol for the Nazi party.

Some of the two best sources I have found about the Swastika and it’s attributes are from Wikipedia, which had a detailed entry, with fascinating links at the bottom leading to other variants.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika

Another interesting source was ms Catherine Yronwode and her Lucky Mojo website

http://www.luckymojo.com/swastika.html

It was from studying these websites that I decided to work with the swastika a little bit, embracing the it’s attribution of Good Fortune, and using it in a spell for myself to encourage and stimulate good luck. Not in any specific area of influence, but in the sense of any event moving odds in my favor.

To that end, I seek to reclaim this taboo symbol that has been rejected, at least for myself. While I don’t plan on showing it openly in any large way, because it seems like too much effort to explain to every person I see that I am not a Nazi, or Anti-Semetic, and it has nothing to with that, it is unfortunate that this symbols has been so tarnished by the misuse. I think with time and exposure, the idea can be taken back, and the symbol can be reclaimed and used openly again in the Western World, without misinterpretation.

Last moment addition
a blog devoted to images of the swastika