Welcome to the latest edition of Spiritual First Aid! I apologize it’s been so long since my last column. Life has been a little hectic between my personal life, and with my new book being released and the many many side projects I have going on I have neglected the thing that gives me the most joy- writing. Some of these projects, you might know about, such as The Invisible College, the nonprofit I founded to aid the development and infrastructure of the spiritual communities we all hold dear. I also have some other new projects on the horizon that I’m going to keep silent on for the moment a ..read more

    Bright Blessings, Technically, reading the cards doesn’t have any ethics attached with them, but when you read cards for somebody else there are ethics. There are no hard and fast rules for what is right and for what is wrong when you’re a reader, and most of us decide for ourselves what we feel is correct. What it boils down to is how you feel about things. You may already have your own code of ethics for Tarot, and you don’t even know it yet. If you don’t consciously have an established code of ethics for your Tarot reading you can ask yourself a few questions. Once you have th ..read more

Why Set Matters in our Time Set, Sutekh, Seth; for Khemetic practitioners and those with an interest in Ancient Egypt, this name conjures up the fratricide of Osiris by his brother, whose name graces this very article. For those leaning on the Left Hand Path, he is the Pagan Adversarial God, who provokes change through harsh means. For me, personally, I view Set as much more than these limited definitions. Set is essential change, essential chaos. The Ancient Egyptians both feared and revered this deity of the dry, arid, desert, and for good reason. My personal experience with this D ..read more

Spring is in full swing for many in the northern hemisphere, yet we’re still weeks or even months away from having fruits and seeds to store. That’s why this is the season when many magical and medical herbalists reach for their store cupboards and the trusty dried herbs, fruits, seeds, and spices at their disposal. With that exact goal in mind, I’ve picked out one of my favourite cupboard spices for this issue of Notes from the Apothecary: Caraway, or Carum carvi. The Kitchen Garden Caraway, a member of the carrot family Apiaceae, is a biennial herb. This means it has a two-year growing cycle ..read more

The Last Quarter Moon The last quarter or third quarter of the moon is the beginning of the end; the final phase before waning all the way to the new moon. In different traditions, it can mean letting go, allowing things to diminish, or even feeling energy diminish within yourself. It can also be the gentle illumination needed for certain types of inner workings, or the reminder that shadow work is an essential aspect of growth, for many. What Does Last Quarter Mean? The moon’s quarter refers to how far along in the cycle of the moon we are. It’s not a reference to shape, as both the first qu ..read more

The Runes for the Green Witch An Herbal Grimoire By Nicolette Miele Published by Destiny Books Released date January 30th 2024 Contains 278 Pages This book has 24 chapters. Each chapter contains the Elder Futhark runes and their correspondences with plants, crystals, elements, deities, Moon phases, zodiacs, planets, tarot and chakras. For instance, chapter 15 talks about ELHAZ. It discusses the meaning of Elhaz, It was a beautiful poem, It stands for protection, Divine support and sanctuary. It also includes how to pronounce it, its history and translation. It then continues to talk about wha ..read more

Wishcraft Oracle  By Stacey Demarco Illustrated by Eliabeth Trethoff Published by Rockpool Publishing Published date November 1st 2023 There are 30 cards included and a 41 page booklet. Believe in the power of wishcraft. This is a very unique and inspiring deck. Everyone at one point of their lives have made wishes like when blowing out candles on their birthday cakes, blowing on dandelion seeds or even a shooting star. Oh these pictures on each card is absolutely beautiful. I have so many different oracle decks and honestly this is now one of my favorites. The images are magickal and br ..read more

Weyland’s Whey Beltane for Old People The Beltane Sabbat is, among other things, a celebration of union betwixt and between masculine and feminine energies.  This includes already established families (love and commitment) as well as the making of new ones (hubba hubba). Happy Anniversary, Sparkle It will never be long enough.  But eight years is a good start. Feliz Cumpleanos, Delinquent Yeah, we celebrate our little dog’s birthday.  Wanna make something of it? Music Review Keiko Matsui has made several absolutely incredible songs.  Love and Nothing Less, from her&nb ..read more

Beltane, AKA May Day, falls on the first of May. It is the festival that marks the midway point between Ostara and the Summer Solstice. In Celtic traditions, it also means the start of the summer season. Other Earth-Centered Religions have celebrated this rebirth of the Earth in many forms: The Germanic festival of Walpurgis Night is a boisterous and beloved celebration involving bonfires and much, noisy merry making; The Greeks would have celebrated Protomagia, Summer’s victory over Winter by making and hanging flower wreaths on their doors. and Vappu in Finland honors the Earth waking up wi ..read more

The Book and the deck are gorgeously illustrated. I love how the author/artist evokes a sense of folktale whimsy through both the book and deck with the individualistic and expressive artwork. Now to the book. Though well written and interesting, it was rather vague in certain areas. The biographies of the historical witches were well researched and presented in an engaging fashion, however. I would have liked to see him expand from the Eurocentric/American subjects he chose to include histories from multicultural settings. So we might learn history and archetypes from around the world and hav ..read more