A Spiritual Lifestyle Journey
Salve is a very old word that exist in several Germanic languages. It derives from the old English sealfe (healing ointment), Old Saxon and High Germanic salba (ointment), and West Germanic salbo (oily substance). An excavation of the etymology of the Indo-European root of the word, selp (fat) and it’s connotations with Greek elpos (fat,…
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Last year, I learned that Canadians don’t celebrate with fireworks on new year’s eve. In Scandinavia, fireworks and champagne is the standard new year salute and it is such a natural part of my life that I had not even considered that other western countries might not have this tradition. In truth, I didn’t even…
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Christmas and Yule are my favorite holidays. I celebrate them together, honoring both the Christian and the Norse elements of my cultural heritage. Modern pagans refer to the Sabbat held at the winter solstice as Yule, an old Anglo-Saxon word meaning wheel, as in the wheel of the year. The same word exists in old…
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A modern earthbound spirituality seeks to rekindle the relationship between man and nature that was obliterated by the emergence of industrial and later technological society. People of older civilizations encountered the forces of nature in every aspect of their daily life and they interpreted this experience religiously. Trees became powerful spiritual symbols in many ancient…
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Pagan literature is a vast universe. Some books are written by scholars or teachers of a certain path who are both knowledgeable, critical, and pedagogical. Other books are not as enlightening. For example, I am not a fan of “spell books” that aim to instruct you in the “how to” of magic without giving any…
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In late September we celebrate Mother earth in her full maturity: it is the height of the harvest and the land is abundant with crops. In Ancient Ways, Pauline Campanelli reminds us that the English word mother comes from the Latin mater, which shares the same linguistic root as the words material and matter. The…
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Dear reader, A few months have passed since I last updated the blog. This year has been quite busy, even though it feels like nothing happens in this very odd situation that requires us all to simply sit back and wait for the world to start spinning again. I spent the summer months of 2020…
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As the global quarantine continues, it is truly heartwarming to see how the world comes together on social media and be reminded that bad situations tend to bring out the best in people. So many bloggers, youtubers and instagramers now use their platforms to offer compassion and positive energy. As I watch and read about…
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A few weeks ago, when I began to study the history of the Spring Equinox celebrations, I wad thrilled by the thought of a second “new year”. For me, Ostara came to symbolize the idea of a bonus start, a second chance to get the routines in order, start working on all the new projects…
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The morning is arguably the most important part of your day, because all that happens in the first hour after you wake up, externally as well as internally, sets the tone for the rest of your day. There is nothing worse than waking up feeling stressed, anxious and drained of energy. A mindful morning ritual…
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