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…
Category: symbols
The Divine Fool: Zero & Hero
The Fool is many things and none. The Fool is the jester, the joker, the trickster, the clown, the simpleton, the naïf, the hero. The first card in the tarot deck, the Fool’s number is zero. A blank slate.
The Golden Lamb AKA The Sweetest Sacrifice
This Easter holiday when making your ritual offering to the gods of Spring, why not create a golden lamb in effigy, and eat it? I’m sure the deities involved would be pleased with this sweet sacrifice. Eating a lamb cake is perfectly in line with the traditional method of distributing edible portions of sacrificial animals…
Rabbit Rabbit Rabbit
As the festival of Ostara approaches, let us consider the Easter Bunny. He’s a funny old stick. Represented in early folk culture as a stern old-timey Germanic Easter hare or Osterhase, he would judge people annually to deem them worthy or not of his colourful bounty of eggs – not unlike Santa Claus at Christmas….
Ultra Violence with Ultra Violets
As I stand packed in with a throng of folk whose average age is 65-70, mixed flowers are being thrown madly in all directions. A Gallic rave remix of popular tunes (Le Lapin Jive?) is blasting over a powerful sound system, a light icy drizzle is falling and everybody’s blood is up. A carnation hits…
Shoot a Flaming Dragon Bomb
The Chinese Dragon is the highest-ranking creature in the Chinese god/animal hierarchy, representing power, majesty, dignity, fertility and wisdom. When he makes his appearance in effigy during Chinese New Year, he symbolizes the spiritual aspect of our existence and brings good fortune to all aspects of our lives. To celebrate the dragon at this time…
The Two of Cups: A Love Spell Cocktail and Truffles for Valentine’s Day
As Valentine’s Day draws near, our thoughts turn to love, romance and flowers. The Two of Cups is the tarot card that represents an ideal relationship between two people where there is balance, respect and genuine love. Parfait Amour (“perfect love” in French) is a violet-hued liqueur that tastes like a Victorian love potion combining the essences…
Predicting Possibilities With Pancakes
Mix a pancake, stir the pancake Pop it in the pan Fry the pancake, toss the pancake Catch it if you can See the pancake, what shape does it make? Gaze into the pan Show us, pancake, what is our fate? Speak! all-knowing flan.
Celebrate Imbolc with Snowmelt Milk Punch
Imbolc is celebrated at the beginning of February, marking the midpoint between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. The word “imbolc” is believed to mean “ewe’s milk” as this is the time of year when the sheep were giving birth and producing milk, the first stirrings of new life in the midst of winter,…
Purify yourself with pearl for a perfect Imbolc
The first cross-quarter day following Midwinter this day falls on the first of February, and marks the first stirrings of Spring. It is a time for self-reflection and purification in anticipation of the new season. This is the festival of Imbolc. And it’s your time to be a Pearly King or Queen.
The New City Witches Cocktail Coven 