Happy Birthday Ierai and Eure!

Happy Birthday! 

Being the oldest of seven siblings I like to celebrate birthdays with a theme, before moving to the UK I got my siblings a pendant of their special crystal. This is a special post to my twin sisters, as it is their birthday today. I think I will adopt this as a new custom so you'll better start looking forward to me barging about how much I love my siblings!

I think we are pretty privileged in a way, as we are all quite close to each other but in a weird way I have kind of envied the relationship they have within the two of them. When they were little they had the most crazy fights! They would bit and punch each other in a violent rampage, yet if five minutes later somebody dared say something even slightly or reminiscently offensive, the other sister would jump to her feet and confront the offender without hesitation. 

I think we have shared some of the most special moments of our life together. We have shared our first love stories and concerns, invented games and dreamed together and spent countless hours sheltered under our sheets while we talked and giggled way past bed time. 

We always though that when we grew up we would all live together in grandma's house. Those dreams kinda got crushed by life, I mean... we all know now that the future is uncertain, but no matter where we are or what is going on in our lives I am certain, we will always remain close.

I don't want to just wish them a happy 19th birthday, but also I want so say thank you!

Ierai Tubilda

Ierai, thank you for being the fire that lights up the darkness, you have always been the mature one. Every time I think of you I remember your beautiful writing, the days we spent singing and casting love spells by the olive tree and I can't wait to see what the future holds for us! You are confident, strong, cheerful and vital. 

You are on my mind every time I walk by an Oak tree, every time I smell or use the Rosemary on my garden, you are in the turquoise stones and in the colour orange. I carry your heart, I carry it in my heart. 

Eure Tubilda

Eure, thank you for being the wind that lifts our wings, you have always been the sensible one. I love your sense of justice and how you always try to bring sense to our group, like the time when you were the only one that told me off when I though it was a good idea to venture barefoot into the streets. You are empathetic, courageous and impartial, as well as a free spirit. 

You are on my mind every time the wind blows and the willows sway, and every time the lavender plants bloom. You are in the amethysts crystals and in the colour purple. I carry your heart, I carry it in my heart. 

I am very proud of the women you're turning to. Enjoy your last year as teens girls, it doesn't get any less awkward in your twenties anyways. But still... see you very soon!

With love, Darius.  

Sacredness, Magic & Religion.

For more than 99% of the time, mankind has been closely related to Nature, which, until the present era, was always considered sacred. It was believed that the various Gods worshiped by people were part of the natural environment, while the shamanic vision used to be the raw power of Nature. As Alick Bartholomew points out: "Many religions, such as Christianity, are a mixture of pagan beliefs and modern monotheism. We have created God in our image, naive conception that dilutes our responsibility and causes division and wars. In society there has been a vacuum that has undoubtedly contributed to the moral and values ​​decomposition we observe today."

The Creation Of Adam,
by Michelangelo Buonarroti

Religion and the search for meaning are an inert form in our human spirit and nature. After the scientific revolution of the Renaissance people like to believe that there is a clear divide between rational thought and religious or magical outpourings, but things are much more complicated because the vital need from which religions arise is a very powerful instinct. So much that even the most closed religious fanaticism arises from almost anything: motherhood, football, vaccination, vegetarianism... Even an avowed atheist movement like Communism was at bottom only a modified version of the old religious dream, of the end of time, that there is an argument and a thread of human history that lead, if not to salvation, to a perfect society.

Traditionally the search for meaning has been carried out on the tribal or mass plane. Mass worship remains the norm for religious groups. However, witches are inclined towards a more mystical and spiritual search in which the "great boss" version of the "creator" or "supreme intelligence" is transcended, allowing instead a personal connection with a higher level of Consciousness, that is, we put more emphasis on contemplation and meditation than on worshipping. Although most pagan groups retain or venerate certain deities, the Tubilda tradition does not worship any particular divine being, although at the beginning of our tradition the worship of spirits of nature and the seasons was of great importance. At present we decide to adopt a neutral position, instead of revealing ourselves to the mysteries of the beyond, we prefer to be present and to live, since, indeed, there is life before death.

We could consider ourselves naturists. We seek harmony with nature and live on the basis of balance and sustainability; To learn how to live sustainably, first we must know how Nature works and accept its laws. In fact, valuing the role of the Elements in our lives is key in witchcraft as it allows us to adopt a new spiritual vision of the universe.

The feeling of belonging has a great impact on the emotions and, therefore, on one's decisions. In my adolescence, my parents decided to divorce. The situation itself was not a major trauma, but that meant growing up in three different homes. My mom's, mt dad's and grandma's. Like everything, it carries its pros and cons, and one of these was the bewilderment when it came to finding the feeling of being, as I never put down roots to a particular home. Where do I belong? To which my grandmother replied serenely: "To the world. We all share a pulse with the whole. The cells receive their pulse from the brain, this gets its pulse from the heart, and heart from the planet Earth, which in turn receives it from the solar system and the latter from the galaxy and from the whole universe." 

Later on (in the field of quantum physics) was revealed that, indeed, at the cellular level our bodies react to the electromagnetic pulse of everything that surrounds us. I now live in another country, far from my three homes and the people I grew up with, and yet if I ever feel lonely or lost, I have nothing to do but close my eyes, concentrate on the beat of my heart, the firmness of the ground beneath me and the air around me. And then I know. And then I am at home, I rediscover my home in the midst of chaos of the world.

Despite the prevailing sense of uprooting and the illusion of separation with which many live, we must rely more on our instincts. Many of us, especially children, still have a vague memory of when we were integrally part of Nature. It's in our blood. We must explain to our children that the Universe is a single unit, that Nature is a whole. In times like these, when so many people care about their savings, their safety or their work, it is very beneficial to become aware of and adopt a broader vision of what life really is. Just to contemplate the starry sky, or of the natural elements, is a way of focusing things with more objectivity, because, compared to the unity of life, our own concerns are not so many. That is what the holism of witchcraft is all about.

My Recipes: Spinach Paradise.

Do you love Spinach? I do! They are great! Their season goes from March to June. Though we can find them available in our stores all year round. And the following is one  of my favourite recipes, plus it's excellent for non-green eaters, as even them love this recipe. Though sceptical at first...   

Bon appetite!

Spinach are well known for their nutritional qualities and have always been regarded as a plant with remarkable abilities to restore energy, increase vitality and improve the quality of blood. 

There are a lot of good reasons why this lovely veg has this great proprieties, primarily the fact that it is rich in iron, which plays a central role in the function of red blood cells which help in transporting oxygen around the body, in energy production and DNA synthesis. Spinach is also an excellent source of vitamins. Specially vitamin A, C, B2 and K. Folic acid, as well as being a good source of magnesium. 

I think it is worth mentioning that vitamin K is quite rare, it is vital for maintaining bone health and it is difficult to find vegetables richer in vitamin K than spinach. Others include broccoli and kale.

INGREDIENTS

A teaspoon or two of Rapeseed Oil. 

An Onion and a half.

A couple Garlic Cloves.

200 grams of Organic Spinach.

A handful of Raisins.

Some Walnuts.

And a few seeds: (I usually use Hemp, Sunflower, Sesame and Flax seeds).

Half a Lemon.

A drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. 

So how do you get this baby ready?

Well simply chop the onion and the garlic while the rapeseed oil is getting heated up on a saucepan. I prefer to cut them in a similar size to the spinach leaves, but it is really up to your taste. 

Once the oil is hot-ish turn the fire down and stir fry the garlic and onion till they are golden. Next step is to add half of the spinach. Make sure you wash them thoughtfully before cooking them. You don't want them to get very soft, just cook the long enough for them to change their texture. 

While the spinach are cooking sprinkle all over them a generous amount of raisins and part of the seeds and nuts. Make sure you've crushed the seeds in a mortar or you won't get their nutritional proprieties and you'll just poop them out due to their natural protective cover.

When the leaves have gotten that softer feel to them, turn off the fire completely and add the raw half of the spinach and mix with the content of the pan.

And finish it off adding the rest of the smashed seeds, the juice from half a lemon and a drizzle of Olive Oil.

Enjoy!

Reading the Signs of Nature: Divination.

Crows by Marion Rose 

  Have you heard the phrase: Everything happens for a reason? I am not sure till what point this is true, intuition and premonition are tricky sensations as we are pushed to mistrust them by the current worldview. Nonetheless I have come to learn to trust my intuition over the years. Interpreting the signs of nature and the universe, as witches and shamans have done for generations,  has turned out to be both useful and easier than expected.
  The divination arts have always caused a great controversy, specially since charlatans and fortune tellers go around deceiving people's trust. As witches we believe that the only thing that exists is the present. So what are we predicting then? The answer is something a bit bigger than what the future holds, it's about the destiny we have created with our actions, thoughts and feelings. Basically it's an energy that has already been created but that has not yet manifested in the present. 

   Everyday life is full of examples. Have you ever found yourself thinking about an old friend that you haven't seen in a long time and then, all of a sudden, you meet them or receive a phone call?
 As far as I know the "science" behind  all divination processes lies on what Swiss physiologist Carl Jung denominates as synchronisation, term that uses in his work over the I Ching (a traditional Chinese method of divination), conducted in 1949.

  The synchronisation process becomes aware of events in time and space, revealing a sense beyond mere chance. That is, a specific inter-response between specific events. (As tossing a coin in the air to predict the future like on the I Ching to create a pattern). Synchronisation is found in the heart of all divination techniques, Whenever you lay out a tarot deck, or interpret the future using runes, wax or viscera, a pattern is created which reflects an internal condition that is already forming, or is about to.
To read the signs of nature, and divination through experiences with animals works exactly the same way, with the advantage that is more organic and intuitive than other methods. At the time of your encounter, the pattern is appreciated through the habits and characteristics of the animal, the folklore and mythology as well as the circumstances that surround your experience; the health of the animal, your feelings about the experience as well as any personal idea or association that you might have about the animal.

Intuition plays a fundamental role in divination, especially that related to animals. Socially there are certain attributes traditionally associated with a certain animal such as loyalty in the dog, power in the lion or transmutation and change in the butterfly. But we should by no means limit ourselves to these concepts. We can use them as guides, as bases to develop meaning but, above all, let your intuition guide you.

Most of the time we overlook this signs, even once we've learned how to interpret them. We don't often pay attention to them or decide to ignore them... I went on a date last summer with a lovely guy, I was quite excited and on the middle of the day I found a dead dove on the street, I didn't want to believe it and completely ignored this sign, and guess what, our relationship didn't last more than twenty-something days... The Dove, universal sign of peace and love appears in the art and folklore of numerous spiritual traditions, religions and cultures. I am not suggesting that you put an abrupt end to any relationship just because you found a dead dove. Remember to take into account the context and holism of the situation.

Here are some pointers to help you understand the meaning of your encounter:
1. Consider your initial reaction (you attract animals according to your deepest beliefs about the animal, as well as your way of seeing and understanding the world and yourself
2. When did it happened? Day or night, the hour o the day, the season you are in...
3. If the encounter was in the habitat of animal (less rare) or in a different one (more significant).
4. How did you feel? Usually the emotions are the direct link of the meaning of your encounter.
5. The person or people with whom you were at the moment of the encounter.
6. What activity where you doing?
7. Symbolism and possible meaning of the animal:
TRANSFORMATION - Butterfly, Frog and Snake.
ROMANCE, SEXUALITY and LOVE - Horse, Swan and Rabbit.
MESSAGES - Owls, Dragonfly and birds in general.
LOYALTY and FAMILY LOOSES - Dog, Elephant.
CREATIVITY AND EXPRESSION - Spider and sparrow.
JOY, PEACE, FORTUNE and PROSPERITY - Dove, Hummingbird and Lady Bug.
INTUITION, MAGIC and SHAMANISM - Raven, Wolf and Fox.
SPIRITUALITY AND HEALING - Dolphin, Bee and Deer.
POWER - Bear, Lion.
INDEPENDENCE AND LONELINESS - Cat and Iguana.