A Guest Post from Stone Witch Bhen Rudha
Hello friends!
I am Bhen Rudha (Ven ROO-ah) and I have been asked to talk a little bit about Garnets for you all. Why me? Well, I got my first piece of Quartz when I was 9, and have been collecting, studying and using semi-precious gemstones in magic since. Some like to call me the resident Stonewitch. I like to make jewelry with intention. Stones put together with magical purpose… (Like this “Kindred” piece, made of Garnets, Rose Quartz and Crystal Quartz)
So here’s a little information about Garnets, as collected by my Priestess, Ardriana Cahill. (She gave me this awesome book of information she found over the years. It’s my stone bible really.)
Garnet is actually a group of minerals. Almandine has the most colors. Pyrope is usually red. Spessartine, orange red or browns, combined they are Malaya. Phodolite is purplish red or pink. The rare Uvarovite is dark green. These are just a few. Garnet got its name from granatum, the pomegranate. Folklore: Albertus Magnus related this stone to blood magic. In the matriarchal age, it was sacred to the Goddess Isis, and was believed to be solidified drops of her blood. Garnet was associated with the Goddess Persephone and thus, the afterlife. Magic: Witches give garnets to friends and family as the Karma Stone. Given to kindred, it insures safe passage to the Summerland and makes sure that loved ones will meet in the next life. Carry garnets to protect travelers against accidents and after dark. Garnet is the stone of passionate love and desire. Enhances bodily strength, endurance, and heightens sexual awareness. Ancient Warning: a stolen garnet brings catastrophe on the thief until it is returned. Garnets hold a special place in my family’s tradition. You give them to those you want to see again (whether it be in the afterlife, or the next life, or however you feel it shakes out). Basically what you are saying is, “One life isn’t enough to love you,” (thank Mom). Most of my family has a network of garnet giving, ensuring that we'll all meet up next time too (we're Irish...any excuse for a party!).
(This is a Desire design I created for my older sister. There’s layers of attraction and passion in the Red Tiger’s Eye and Jasper, but the Garnet’s are there to help make the relationship deeper, more, a meeting of hearts and not just bodies.)
When I was younger, and just started going to The New Pioneer in West Yellowstone, MT, to buy stones, I would play in the little stone box looking for chips of garnet and peridot. These pieces are tiny, and sometimes I would struggle to tell the garnets from the amethysts, because of how purple they are (I'm pretty good at telling them apart now, hehe). I still have those chips, and count myself lucky to have them even though the large tumbled faceted pieces (like in the first pic above) have gotten more common. I don't have many pieces of garnet, but those that I do have are special to me for one reason or another. My best friends have them from me… when we claim someone, we don't tend to let them go. And for you geeks out there… my favorite character in Steven Universe is Garnet, who is so perfectly named. She is a stable fusion of two gems who very much love each other. She’s also strong, and passionate, and protective. How cool is that? I hope you enjoyed this little bit of stone wisdom. May it serve you well, Blessed Be Bhen Rudha
Photo: An opened pomegranate by Anton Croos https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:An_opened_pomegranate.JPG
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en
The Magic of Garnet
Powers: love, desire, sexuality, protection, strength, endurance, grounding, purification, manifestation, prosperity Associations: Isis, Sekhmet, Persephone, planet Mars, Fire element, Imbolg One of the very first pieces archaeologists discovered were in a necklace of beads worn by a young man dating back to 3000 B.C. One of the largest garnets is said to have belonged to the King of Saxony, measuring over 460 carats. A portrait of Plato was engraved onto a garnet stone. The garnet once represented the Sun in Spanish astrology. Noah was said to have illuminated his ark with a finely cut and glowing garnet. Garnets engraved with a lion were said to be an effective talisman for protection, strength, courage, and healing.
● the most ancient of talismans
● believed to be a favorite stone of Dragons ● represents primordial fire, the creation of the world out of chaos ● Indian mythology calls garnet the ‘Kundalini fire’ (fire of eternal metamorphosis) ● Hinduism and Buddhism sees garnet as a holy stone that enlightens the soul and gives wisdom ● known for its utilization of creative energy ● dreams of garnet signify the solution of a mystery ● excellent for manifestation ● promises spoken over a garnet are said to never to be broken ● helps one realize and enjoy the pleasures of earthly incarnation ● said to be a victory stone, a stone of success ● a stone for building up your self confidence ● protection from evil and harm during travel ● believed to protect against vampires ● sends negative energies back to where they came from ● soldiers and warriors wore to protect them against death and injury ● placing garnet under your pillow can help prevent bad dreams ● help brighten dark souls ● brings hope to people who need it ● helps a business to be successful ● helps the wearer to become popular and helps with friendships Reversing Gossip & Slander Spell
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Reversing oil
Reversing incense Pie Pan Small mirror Rosemary herb |
3 small Garnet stones
small Red candle, cleaned small Black candle, cleaned Red string Small heavy cloth bag |
Bhen Rudha is one of my very favorite people. She is a local witch and Priestess here in the Las Vegas pagan community. She shares in the vision of a friendly, loving, accepting, pagan community, as a whole, and strives to bridge the boundaries that always seem to crop up. I am extremely proud to call her a friend and kindred spirit and I know I am a better witch and person for knowing her. If she is willing, expect more guest posts from her.
~Atheona Improvise! Adapt! Overcome! |
Click on the picture or on this link to open the PDF for download:
SPELL JOURNAL WORKSHEET PDF DOWNLOAD |
“a religion that uses it's own set of symbols, its own mythology, and it's own personal disciplines to develop the individual mentally, spiritually, and emotionally, and to put the follower in harmony with Divinity and it's manifestations, and that is followed willingly and not forced upon anyone.” |
Where can I find a group of people to study with?
It's very easy to answer, yet I still get asked often enough that I thought it might behoove me to answer it here in a post. Besides the obvious: Google, Witchvox, Facebook, and even Twitter... the resources on the web are endless. During the year between August and November is Pagan Pride Festival Day around the world. If you're serious about finding like-minded people to get together with you may want to arrange the day off so you can attend. Most Pagan Pride festivals offer community booths for area groups to engage with the public. |
This is your starting point. Define your basic philosophy about divinity. Develop your beliefs about life and death and the wheel of the year. The majority of pagan religions recognize the wheel of the year/ the cycle of life in some way. Most pagan religions are also very in tune with the nature around them or the idea of nature itself, some even putting it as high as god / goddess. Make sure you're comfortable with these types of ideologies. It's okay if after reading everything you have gotten your hands on to be still on the fence about some ideas and beliefs. There are so many different beliefs out there that just many overlap and are so congruous with others that you can still be unsure.
Photo: Wiccan Syzygy by Camocon |
Find A Teacher Spell
Items needed:
-optional: small, orange or yellow, natural fiber cloth with red, white, yellow, or orange string -optional herbs: orange peel, dried and/or orris root and/or vetivert |
"The Goddess of Love, Aphrodite was furious with Helios (the Sun) for exposing her love affair with Ares to her husband Hephaestus. To avenge herself, she made Helios fall in love with the sea nymph, Leucothoë. Helios disguised himself as Leucothoë's mother to gain entrance to her chamber. He then united with her.
Leucothoë's sister, Klytie, had fallen deeply in love with Helios. The jealous girl revealed the affair to her father, who then buried Leucothoë alive. By the time Helios discovered the punishment of her father, she had died. Unable to awaken his beloved with light, Helios swore to revive the girl and make her rise to the sky. He covered her in the nectar of the Gods. The body of Leucothoë melted away and filled the soil with its fragrance, and out of the earth arose the frankincense tree, for this land of Persia burns with the sun, and therefore frankincense is associated with the Sun. When Helios refused to forgive sister Klytie, she died of sorrow so her father changed her into the heliotrope, a flower which follows the sun." http://www.hellenicgods.org/frankincense |
Some believe Frankincense is the most powerful and useful incense for “fumigating sacred space in preparation of any ritual” as it purifies and raises the energy of the ritual space.
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Clearing Incense
3 parts Frankincense 3 parts Copal 2 parts Myrrh 1 part Sandalwood Burn this incense to clear your home of negative vibrations, especially when household members are arguing or when the house seems heavy and thick with anger, jealousy, depression, fear and other negative emotions. Leave the windows open while burning this mixture. from blessedbe.sugarbane.com |
Winter Solstice incense
4 parts frankincense 1 part juniper 1 part cedar enough frankincense oil to bind from A Wiccan Formulary and Herbal By A. J. Drew
Blessing Incense
1 part carnation petals 1 part rosemary 1/2 part frankincense enough carnation or frankincense or sandalwood oil to bind |
Reversing spells are simple. The objective is in the title. Utilize reversing spells to reverse the impediments stopping you from getting what you need. Buy or make a reversing candle. Anoint with a reversing oil as you empower the candle with your desire. Anoint it widdershins instead of deosil. Light it and let it burn.
Reversing oils & herbs: Lemon, lilac, pine, rosemary, rue, peppermint mix and match as you like. I like to add dried rosemary leaf and rue to the candle, too. |
LOVE
To bring love to your doorstep, tie three sprigs of rosemary together with red thread and place the sprigs under your doormat. To bring or keep love in the bedroom, place the bound sprigs between the mattress and boxspring. (http://herbalriot.tumblr.com/post/53191266546/magickal-uses-of-rosemary) If you haven't chosen a mate yet and have several to think about, name a pot for each one and plant rosemary in each pot. The one that grows the fastest and strongest is your best choice. (http://www.witchipedia.com/herb:rosemary) |
Witches Bottle
Gather Rosemary, needles, and pins. Fill a small jar saying these words as you work. Pins, needles, rosemary, wine, In this witches bottle of mine, Guard against harm and enmity, This is my will, so mote it be. Fill the jar with red wine apply cork or lid and drip wax from a black or red candle around to seal. Bury the jar in the farthest corner of your property or place in an inconspicuous spot in the house. It destroys negativity and evil. The pins and needles will impale evil, the wine drowns it, and the rosemary sends it far away. (The Magical Household by Scott Cunningham, page 107) Photo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witch_bottle#/media/File:Bellarmine_jug00.jpg |
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