This little lady is a mortician in Los Angeles, with a mortuary business called “Undertaking LA”. She’s the author of books on death, and she’s an advocate for “going green” with natural burials and a lot of what would be considered unorthodox alternatives. She’s hilarious, and charming, and an absolute delight to watch — yes, even with her subject matter.
Libra: ruled by Venus, projective/masculine, cardinal, air
Scorpio: ruled by Mars, receptive/feminine, fixed/water
Pagan Holiday:
Samhain
October 31
Samhain (pronounced ‘Sou-wen’) is a celebration that has a more somber side than the revelry of modern Halloween. It is a day of remembrance of your ancestors and for those family members who have passed over.
Pagan families may set an extra place at the supper table on this evening, to honor those loved ones who are no longer with them. The veil between the world of the living and the dead is thinnest on this eve, and this night is an excellent time to perform divination, or try to connect with those from the other side.
Incense: cinnamon, cloves, myrrh, patchouli, pine, mugwort, nutmeg Rituals/Spells: making besoms, divination, spirit contact, crone magick, working with dark energy, spells for new beginnings
Crafting Your Magic
Ancestral magic is cast with the Blood Moon. Do magic now to communicate with family members who have passed, to connect with your ancestors and your heritage. Magic surrounding divination is relevant, it’s the perfect time. Cast spells for justice and balance, and to overthrow anything oppressive which may be blocking your path to success. Ambition is highlighted, use magic to increase the potency of your own, or cast magic to contain ambition that may have run amok. This is also the perfect time to step into the dark shadows and take advantage of the vibrations found there. The gray witch revels in the magic of the Blood Moon and in this season.
Magickal Herbs
In the tradition of Samhain, we’re going to look at herbs used to call up spirits.
Mugwort
To bring forth protective & benevolent spirits, Mugwort is burned on charcoal with star anise, althea, and resin incenses like frankincense, myrrh, copal, or benzoin. Energy: feminine/receptive Planet: Venus Element: Earth Powers: strength, psychic powers, protection, prophetic dreams, healing, astral projection
Dandelion
The root, when dried, roasted, and ground like coffee, is used to make a tea. This infusion will promote psychic powers. This same tea, steaming and placed beside the bed, will call spirits. Energy: masculine/projective Planet: Jupiter Element: Air Powers: divination, wishes, calling spirits
Thistle
To call Spirits, place some thistle in boiling water. Remove from heat and lie or sit beside it. As the steam rises call the spirits and listen carefully; they may answer your questions. Energy: masculine/projective Planet: Mars Element: Fire Powers: strength, protection, healing, exorcism, hex-breaking
Wormwood
Wormwood is burned to summon spirits. It is sometimes mixed with sandalwood for this purpose. If burned in graveyards the spirits of the dead will rise and speak, according to old grimoires. Energy: masculine/projective Planet: Mars Element: Fire Powers: psychic powers, protection, love, calling spirits
Sweetgrass
Burn sweetgrass to attract good spirits, or beings, before performing spells.
(Strangely enough, I couldn’t find any correspondences listed for sweetgrass, other than it’s power to call in spirits.)
Disclaimer: Never ingest any herbs, or feed them to someone else,
if you are not absolutely sure they are safe!
Kitchen Wytchery
As the Kitchen Witch knows, natural magick can be found in certain foods, recipes, as well as herbs. In this section we’re going to put this knowledge to work.
We celebrate Samhain at our house big time. I’m going to include in this newsletter my own recipe for pumpkin pie & my ‘secret’ recipe for the large pot of hot apple cider that is a tradition at our house. The photos included are family photos of Samhains past.
My Pumpkin Pie:
1 16 oz. can pumpkin (about 2 cups)
1 13 oz. can evaporated milk (but sometimes I use sweetened condensed milk– it makes it more ‘chiffony’…is that a word?)
2 eggs 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 sugar
the spices:
Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and a dash of salt. Most recipes call for 1/2 teaspoon each, but I’m much more generous with my spices!
the crust:
I tried for years to learn to make a good pie crust, and I almost gave up out of frustration– then I found this recipe. It’s almost foolproof, no kidding.
2 and 1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup shortening 1 beaten egg 1 tablespoon vinegar 1/4 cup water
Mix the dry ingredients together and cut in the shortening, as usual. Then combine the egg and vinegar, stirring it up a bit, and add this to your dry ingredients. Add the water a dash at a time as you work it in, you’ll be able to tell when you get a good texture.
Edit: I bake this pie at 425 degrees for the first 15 minutes; then I turn the oven down to 400 degrees for the next 30-45 minutes, until it’s cooked enough to thicken the filling. I check this by sticking a clean butter knife in the center– when the knife comes out “clean”, I know the pie is done.
Hot Apple Cider
I have a *Huge*– did I say huge?– kettle that I use to mix up my cider. This sits and simmers all afternoon on the backburner of my stove, wafting a wonderful aroma throughout the house.
Ingredients:
5-7 large jugs of applejuice 8-10 bags of peach tea a handful of cinnamon sticks and a large metal tea ball filled with whole cloves and allspice.
You can leave a shaker of nutmeg sit on the counter & anyone who wants to add a dash of this spice to their mug of apple cider can do so. If you don’t like this cider full force, you can dilute it some with water to suit your own taste.
Our kitchen isn’t as organized as Rachel Ray’s or Martha Stewart’s, but we get the job done. Above are kettles of cider brewing in preparation for a Samhain evening.
Let’s take a look at the ingredients we just used from a magickal perspective:
Peaches— love
Nutmeg— one of the most popular uses for nutmeg is to assure fidelity. It’s also used for spells centered around luck, money, and health.
Cinnamon— spirituality, success, healing, power, psychic powers, lust, protection, love
Allspice— money, luck, healing
Cloves— protection, exorcism, love, money
Apple— love, healing, garden magic, immortality
Happy Samhain!!
The information for this blog post has been taken from:
When witches go riding,
and black cats are seen,
the moon laughs and whispers,
‘tis near Halloween.
~Author Unknown
October Moon Magick:
Blood Moon
Herbs: ginger, myrrh, allspice, basil, clove
Stones: alexandrite, citrine, lilac kunzite
Scents: pine, patchouli
Colors: dark green, brown, gold
Trees: yew, cypress, maple, oak
Deities: Astarte, Horned God, Lakshmi, Ishtar
Elements: Air/Water
Astrological Influences for October:
Libra:
ruled by Venus, projective/masculine, cardinal, air
Scorpio:
ruled by Mars, receptive/feminine, fixed/water
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Pagan Holiday:
Samhain
October 31
Samhain (pronounced ‘Sou-wen’) is a celebration that has a more somber side than the revelry of modern Halloween. It is a day of remembrance of your ancestors and for those family members who have passed over.
Pagan families may set an extra place at the supper table on this evening, to honor those loved ones who are no longer with them. The veil between the world of the living and the dead is thinnest on this eve, and this night is an excellent time to perform divination, or try to connect with those from the other side.
Rituals/Spells: making besoms, divination, spirit contact, crone magick, working with dark energy, spells for new beginnings
Crafting Your Magic:
Ancestral magic is cast with the Blood Moon. Do magic now to communicate with family members who have passed, to connect with your ancestors and your heritage. Magic surrounding divination is relevant, it’s the perfect time. Cast spells for justice and balance, and to overthrow anything oppressive which may be blocking your path to success. Ambition is highlighted, use magic to increase the potency of your own, or cast magic to contain ambition that may have run amok. This is also the perfect time to step into the dark shadows and take advantage of the vibrations found there. The gray witch revels in the magic of the Blood Moon and in this season.
Halloween, or Samhain, is the most important holiday at our house and the most fun. We go all out. I make a huge kettle of hot apple cider, my big red kettle full of chili, and I spend the day before baking pies, lots and lots of pies! The older kids invite their friends, and the neighbors know that it’s an open house. My husband moves our firepit to the front driveway and tends the bonfire all night long, with chairs gathered ’round the cheerful flames, while guests roast hotdogs and marshmellows.
My kids look forward to this night all year long.
Lady Amythyst’s Pumpkin Pie:
1 16 oz. can pumpkin
(about 2 cups)
1 13 oz. can evaporated milk
(but sometimes I use sweetened
condensed milk– it makes it more ‘chiffony’…is that a word?)
2 eggs
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 sugar
the spices:
Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and a dash of salt. Most recipes call for 1/2 teaspoon each, but I’m much more generous with my spices!
the crust:
I tried for years to learn to make a good pie crust, and I almost gave up out of frustration– then I found this recipe. It’s almost foolproof, no kidding.
2 and 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup shortening
1 beaten egg
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/4 cup water
Mix the dry ingredients together and cut in the shortening, as usual. Then combine the egg and vinegar, stirring it up a bit, and add this to your dry ingredients. Add the water a dash at a time as you work it in, you’ll be able to tell when you get a good texture.
Hot Apple Cider
I have a *Huge*– did I say huge?– kettle that I use to mix up my cider. This sits and simmers all afternoon on the backburner of my stove, wafting a wonderful aroma throughout the house.
Ingredients:
5-7 large jugs of applejuice
8-10 bags of peach tea
a handful of cinnamon sticks
and a large metal tea ball filled
with whole cloves and allspice
You can leave a shaker of nutmeg sit on the counter & anyone who wants to add a dash of this spice to their mug of apple cider can do so.
If you don’t like this cider full force, you can dilute it some with water to suit your own taste.
Our kitchen isn’t as organized as Rachel Ray’s or Martha Stewart’s, but we get the job done. Above are kettles of cider and homemade chili brewing in preparation for a Samhain evening.
Let’s take a look at the ingredients we just used from a magickal perspective:
Peaches– love
Nutmeg– one of the most popular uses for nutmeg is to assure fidelity. It’s also used for spells centered around luck, money, and health.
Cinnamon– spirituality, success, healing, power, psychic powers, lust, protection, love
Allspice– money, luck, healing
Cloves– protection, exorcism, love, money
Apple-– love, healing, garden magic, immortality
Samhain Memories
Four of my beautiful little Witchlings–
where does the time go??
My Samhain baby– I was busy giving birth
on a certain Samhain eve 14 years ago.
My “Isabella”, “Deadrose”, and #1 Son
A ‘pre-halloween’ party, the theme was the 1980s.
Our “Resident Elf”
(This Resident Elf is only two years away from being
a teen-ager now. Time goes so fast!)
“Isabella” and her boyfriend, Joe, at last year’s party.
(October 2010)
Preparations are finished– it’s time to enjoy!!
We build a bonfire in the driveway & gather round, or join friends in the livingroom/kitchen for hot chili, or gather on the backporch to play with ouija boards, tarot cards, chinese fortune sticks, oracle cards, and runes, while sipping hot cider at candle-lit tables.
A perfect day for divination.
Spirits ‘rise’ to the occasion. 🙂
Throwing a little light on the situation. I love my black tree!
Our very own “Harry Potter” (#1 Son)
October 2003
This young man has an associates degree in computer science now,
and is working towards his bachelors.
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Thank you so much for visiting my blog.
I hope you’re enjoying the Halloween blog tour.
On behalf of all the Real Witches out there,
Happy Samhain…
This newsletter is jam-packed with personal photos of Samhain’s past, my own recipes for pumpkin pie & hot apple cider, a *gorgeous* Samhain video, as well as the usual stones and bones, herbs and tarot, spells and ‘stuff’. It’s a boiling cauldron of witchy information and links to supplies and occult merchandise.The spell for this month…a ritual:
I ran across this blog yesterday from a Lady who is a little paranoid when it comes to witches, halloween, and pagan practices. Okay, so she’s not just a little paranoid, I’d label her psycho on the subject. I wasn’t taking her too seriously until it got so ridiculous that I felt I had to say *Something*. I had meant to leave a brief comment in the comment box and let it go at that, but my relatively brief rebuttal turned out to be too long for the comment box…so I’m posting it here, along with a link to this woman’s article. And I should warn you that if you go to this link, you’ll be leaving the world of reality behind. This woman hates and fears that which she doesn’t understand, or that which is different from her own beliefs…and just for the record, at my house we don’t hex or curse the candy that we hand out at Halloween to the kiddos, though she might be onto something here. 🙂
I figured anyone who thinks like this must have the attention span of a mud fence post, and I was going to have to talk fast to
make a point before she slipped off into her own lala land:
Rebuttal Comment: topic- Halloween
My goodness woman. Do you realize how many people you have offended in your clumsy attempt to justify your contempt for a sacred pagan holiday? As the local village witch, I can tell you that, for one thing, we don’t worship Satan- we don’t even believe in him. He is an invention of christian mythology, and you can keep him, thank you. I suspect the main purpose of his inception was to frighten people and thus give those in charge some leverage and control over the population. Second, and this is so off the wall it’s difficult to address without laughing or shuddering– ritual slaughter of animals, babies, etc. Many witches I know are actually animal rights activists and vegans. If you want to witness ritual animal slaughter, you’ll have to go to your nearest slaughterhouse- and then venture on over to McDonalds or some other fast food place where you can ingest the poor critter and add to your cholesterol level. Good grief. As far as witches harming babies, you’ve watched too many ‘made for tv’ movies. I’m the mother of seven biological children, and nope, I haven’t eaten neary a one yet– though I’ve had to ground a few now and then.
Spells? Hexes? Curses?…A spell is no more than a prayer with props. The spell I might cast for a particular intention is no different than the prayer requests you make to your god. Don’t tell me that there has never been a christian who hasn’t prayed for the downfall of a foe– that would translate into a ‘hex’ or ‘curse’.
Halloween– or ‘Samhain’…is a time to reconnect with the spirit of your ancestors, a time when the veil between the worlds is thinnest and communication is easier with the spirit world, an excellent time to practice divination, and the end of the harvest season– the beginning of the dark months and the season of winter. The pagan, my dear, seems to have a reverence for Mother Earth, her turning seasons, her creatures, and her spirit that you and yours lack. Watch us closely…and learn.
