Top: West Kennet Long Barrow, part of the the Avebury World Heritage Site in Great Britain, with Silbury Hill in the distance. While most of the meaning of the Avebury complex is lost to time, we know that the ancient’s beliefs about death and the dead were based on a more intuitive understanding of life. […]
Pagans, Heathens and Witchcraft
The old gods are still among us
IN THE STONE CIRCLES OF BRITAIN, to the holidays we celebrate without a second thought, the gods of antiquity still loom large in our psyche. For those whose path takes them from the straight and narrow, the world is a magical place.
From the olden days and up through all the years
From Arcadia to the stone fields of Inisheer
Some say the Gods are just a myth
But guess who I’ve been dancing with
The great god Pan is alive
Answering Glastonbury’s call
I’M SITTING OUTSIDE AT THE MOCHA BERRY CAFE, talking to Vickie Steward, author of one of the most eclectic blogs out there, about one of the most eclectic towns in Britain, Glastonbury. Normal For Glastonbury is the blog, and Vickie has the enviable job of documenting the goings on in this peculiar little place. A […]
Climbing Glastonbury Tor in search of the divine
“Avalon will always be there for all men to find if they can seek the way thither, throughout all the ages past the ages. If they cannot find the way to Avalon, it is a sign, perhaps, that they are not ready.” ― Marion Zimmer Bradley, The Mists of Avalon + + + I came […]
A Visit to Gog and Magog in the Glastonbury Zodiac, and A Spell For The Protection From Anger
I took off from the George and Pilgrim Hotel about ten in the morning. I was really kind of excited to be getting out of there. It’s moody and dark, which I love. But I needed the light. I had light for the first block I walked up High Street. It’s not that steep of […]
Searching for the sacred at Glastonbury’s Chalice Well, the pilgrim and the grail quest meet in a place of legend
Bubbling up from the base of Glastonbury Tor are two springs which arguably give Glastonbury much of its renown. The sacred, the myths and legends of what is often called England’s most holy ground has its epicenter in the flowing waters found here. It’s long been my belief that the truth of a place can’t be found […]
A Baptism at the White Spring of Glastonbury
IT HAD ALREADY BEEN A LONG DAY. A long walk through the Glastonbury countryside had taken me to the ancient oaks known as Gog and Magog. I was in Glastonbury nursing a broken heart, and the walk brought about a release of the anger at least. But my time in the Chalice Well Gardens had brought the loss […]
Deconstructing Glastonbury and the Author Finds Himself In A Pagan Ritual on The Tor
I WALKED THE FEW STEPS back to my room at Berachah Guest House from the White Spring. Glastonbury had worn me down, though after god knows how many days holed up in the George and Pilgrim Hotel, it was nice being out of the center of the village. Glastonbury isn’t large by any account. The center feels like […]
How the witch’s tree seeped into my consciousness
The Dance, Someplace in Britain by Cate Davies. Click to order a fine art print of this image I was very young, there was a full moon, riding with with my grandmother and grandfather to a small town in southwest Indiana for a harvest celebration. It’s small towns around there, German heritage, it was another […]
The Secret Life of Photographers and Trees
Tree I, Rural Carmi, Illinois, Click to order a print of this image I live in southern Illinois. The middle of nowhere. There’s not much in the way of dramatic subject matter to shoot around here. Once spot looks pretty much like the rest. The difference is in the small details. And in the weather. […]
The difference between Halloween and Samhain is in the stars and on the calendar
I know I covered this once before, but sometimes you need more details. A commenter asked if Halloween/Samhain isn’t October 31, as I had written, just when the hell is it? Good question. Let’s try and sort this out. Simply put, the difference between Halloween and Samhain is the way the date is chosen. Halloween is based […]
