Although we generally lean towards arcane cocktails of subtle and complex composition on this site, we admit that there is a time and place for beer. The ideal time and place is Oktoberfest in Germany. Beginning as a celebration for the wedding of Ludwig I of Bavaria in 1810, this has grown into a worldwide…
Category: gods
The Time of the Singing Moon
Like a circle in a spiral, like a wheel within a wheel – Mabon is here again, a time when light and dark balance before the winter draws in. The late harvest festival, it coincides with the Chinese Moon festival or the Time of the Singing Moon. To celebrate Mabon at home, you should gather…
The Last Frozé of Summer
Open all three of your eyes. Face south between 8.30pm and 9pm on a clear night this weekend. You’ll see a celestial triangle of three bright stars – Lyra, Cygnus and Aquila – also known as The Summer Triangle. starry starry night As the end of summer approaches, this trio culminate and reach their…
Bread & Salt
Now that the festival of Lammas is here, we can plan a Bread & Salt rite which you can integrate into any picnic or summer social gathering to celebrate the harvest with your friends and family. This is the traditional time to make and eat Lammas Loaves which represent the body of the earth Goddess…
A Midsummer Meal for Mithras
Midsummer celebrations vary a great deal. In the Sakha Republic, they tie a horse to a pole and dance around it, or bet on reindeer races. In Portugal, you can hit your neighbour on the head with a plastic hammer, which amusing habit I think should be much more widely practised generally. In Norway children…
Dream A Little Dream of Me
“Is all that we see or seem, but a dream within a dream?” – Edgar Allan Poe “I love sleep. My life has the tendency to fall apart when I’m awake, you know?” – Ernest Hemingway Hey there all you cool cats and kittens – let’s make a Love Dream! This is a spell to…
A Frigga Blót with Runes & Lagoons
Today is the day of Frigga’s Blot – much more than just the wife of the All-Father Odin, she is the goddess of prophecy & silence, wifehood & motherhood. She is a sky goddess, responsible for spinning and weaving the fates. To celebrate Frigga this Friday, a domestic setting is appropriate, as she is closely…
Flora & Faunus
Sex! Now that I have your attention, we can explore the festival of Floralia, which is held between April 28th and May 3rd, symbolizing the renewal of the cycle of life, and kicking off our Beltane celebrations. It is celebrated with flowers, drinking, hunting, games, and sex. See, it didn’t take me long to get…
The Green Man Cometh
The Green Man is a mysterious chap. A nature deity, he is usually depicted as an anthropomorphic form composed entirely of lush, green vegetation; his face sprouting leaves instead of hair and branches streaming from his mouth. Interestingly, though he appears to be obviously pagan, the Green Man peers out from the architectural details of…
Nice Weather For Ducks
It’s raining a lot in London at the moment. I don’t know why anybody would be surprised by this, because April is famous for April showers. But people constantly comment and complain about it, and quite honestly, as you prepare to leave for work to the sound of gusts of wet wind crashing against the…
The New City Witches Cocktail Coven 