Gestinanna

by Dr Anthony E. Smart

 
Sister of Dumuzi. The dying Dumuzi, tortured by nightmares, brought the dreams to his sister for interpretation.
Gestinanna realized her brother was under attack by demons. She tells him this and advises him to flee. Dumuzi flees, swearing Gestinanna to secrecy as to where he is going into hiding. The demons attacked Gestinanna to force her to reveal her brother’s whereabouts, but she remained silent. The demons, however, soon found Dumuzi, hiding in the form of a gazelle in his sister’s sheepfold. He was carried off to the underworld by them; Gestinanna then set out to rescue him.

Ahura Mazda

by Dr Anthony E. Smart

 
In Persian belief, Ahura Mazdah (“Lord Wisdom”) was the supreme god, he who created the heavens and the Earth, and another son of Zurvan. Atar, his son, battled Azhi Dahaka, the great dragon of the sky, and bound it in chains on a high mountain. The dragon was, however, destined to escape and destroy a third of mankind at the final reckoning, before it was slain. Ahura Mazdah was the god of prophetic revelation, and bore both Ahriman and Ormazd.

Cantharis (Spanish Fly)

by Anja Heij

 
The Cantharis vesicatoria, or Lytta vesicatoria as the beetle is called nowadays is widely known under its popular name Spanish Fly. Many of us know that this little creature is used in love-potions to stimulate sexual arousal. Be careful however, since cantharidine taken in large doses is poisonous; it causes vomiting and burning pain of the urinary track.

Reincarnation & Past Lives

by Anita Asman

 
We are all intrigued by our past lives, wondering what and who we were in the past. For the evolution of our soul, however, it is really not important “who” we were in the sense of a person (e.g. were we someone famous?), but in the sense of “who” we were as an essence. Therefore, the true questions to ask are “what have I accomplished in a past life”, “where lies my connection in this life to my past lives”, “what are the lessons I still have to learn, based on my past lives”.

Lakota Wisdom

by Amber Wolfe
One of the most beautiful, synchronous aspects of the current shamanic reemergence is that it coincides with the great expansion in human consciousness and potential. The shamans of old may have had to rely on harsh experiences of physical and psychic trauma to access and tune into other worlds beyond form. We, however, have now reached a place in human development that allows us to delve into the deepest wisdom
and purest form of energy.

Color Therapy – Magic or Medicine?

by Amanita
Reproduced from _The Bard_, Vol. 1, No. 2 – Imbolc 1980

 

Although occult tradition tells us that color was used therapeutically in ancient times for a wide variety of mental and physical afflictions, today there is scant remaining information on the subject. We find from what is left however, that the healing priesthood of ancient Egypt utilized “color halls” where they researched the science of light and color therapy. The Greeks as well, experimented with it, and believed that color was absorbed by the body through the eye. The seven hues of the visible spectrum were considered representative of the seven fold nature of mankind, and corresponded to the seven chakras in Ayurvedic (Hindu) medicine also.

The Vows of Guardianship by Abritha

by Abritha

The Guardians come in myriad shapes, and often mix the expected traits of two or three pure races. It would be foolish to expect us all to have identical agendas, powers, or practices.