Moonlight Tarot’s Question Corner: Mystical Answers to Mundane Inquiries

by Administrator, posted in Guest Authors, Tarot

By Angela Kaufman, Moonlight Tarot LLC

February 2013

This column is intended to provide messages from the Tarot to address modern problems experienced by everyday people. Questioners, also known as “Querents” submit requests to have their issue addressed in a complimentary three card Tarot Reading published as part of the Magical Buffet. The reading not only addresses the Querent’s issue but also provides education about the role of Tarot as a tool for exploration and empowerment.

As February’s cold dark days bring the desire for warmth and comfort, relationships are in focus. Passion and romance are on our minds, and in case we forgot, there is always Valentine’s Day to remind us of our desire to share our lives with others. This month’s Querent is a woman we will call Elizabeth. Elizabeth has concerns about her budding romance, a long distance relationship with a man who seems to hold some promise of development both in terms of commitment and attraction, but with whom she remains uncertain. Pursuit of this relationship will entail risks and she is proceeding with caution, and looking for guidance for the long term growth of this relationship, any potential obstacles. She would also like to gain a sense of where his intentions lie in this relationship. In honor of Elizabeth and the atmosphere of Valentine’s romance, this month’s deck is The Lover’s Tarot. Her reading reveals the Four of Gems, Queen of Gems and The Death card, reversed.

A quick word about the much feared “Death” card before we proceed.In all realms outside of carnival fortune teller scenes in pop media, the Death card is not literal. It portends significant transformations that may bring great loss or sadness in the course of their progression, but it is not a literal indicator of the end of one’s life.

Public service announcement aside, let’s return to Elizabeth’s relationship question. First, to examine the theme for this relationship in the near future, the Four of Gems. This card’s suit is unique to The Lover’s Tarot and in other traditional decks may be termed “coins” or “pentacles”. The Four of Gems indicates that this relationship grows out of a desire for security. Some of this desire is physical security in all its forms- the comfort of knowing each partner is there, the satisfaction of finding balance and harmony in a partnership and the stability of combining material resources, abilities, and assets. There is a sense of satisfaction and harmony in this relationship especially in tangible ways that each partner seems to provide what the other has been missing. There is a feeling with this card that this relationship is grounded in practical matters and it may seem that mundane issues such as money and property are of great concern. There is an equal stake for both partners but much of this relationship rests on material and physical security. The desire for stability is essential and so both partners may look to each other for such stability. There is a strong attraction but its primary focus is grounding rather than emotional. It seems this relationship will develop in a way that emphasizes problem solving, practicality and sharing resources. A possessive side may be developing in this relationship as well however. Be mindful of red flags that this relationship is becoming more about security than actual emotional attraction. Be mindful of the attraction to what it seems you could have together trumping the attraction of how it feels to be with this person. There is potential for harmony on a material/physical/ and practical level but this stability may also yield dependency, clinging to the status quo and resisting change. There will be a desire to hold on to property, money, physical routines and comforts that potentially interferes with the emotional bond or even emotional growth as a partnership. Be very cautious about the potential for possessiveness on both sides of this relationship. It seems the tendency will be to engage in battles of will and the significant other may come to regard Elizabeth or her belongings/property or money with a sense of entitlement or ownership. Be mindful of how resources and assets are dealt with in this relationship. It seems boundaries will need to be clear to avoid stagnation and prioritizing comfort and security over growth and emotional well being. The number four will also be significant as this relationship proceeds. Be on the look out for four types of material resources that become significant to this relationship.

Although potential obstacles emerge in the prior card, the next card specifically addresses challenges this relationship will face. This card also is from the suit of Gems, and it is the Queen of Gems. This suggests that a woman in the role of material provider, business manager, money manager or property owner may be providing financial security or assistance but in doing so is posing a challenge to this relationship. This is likely to be a woman of either dark hair and features or grey/white hair. This would be a woman who is mature, serious but also generous who has developed comfortable means for herself and often invests in others as a way to promote growth and material security. This person or her relationship to either partner is hindering this relationship. There is also a potential warning here for Elizabeth, that this relationship may be focused more on a desire by her significant other to be taken care of financially and that placing too much emphasis on the material assets or property is taking away from the romance in this relationship.

The final card is the Death card, and it is reversed. Being a Major Arcana card elevates the significance of this card. There is a large transition underway for both partners, although it seems particularly to impact the gentleman. This change is being resisted. It seems circumstances surrounding this man are forcing him to confront a significant loss and undergo a deep transition that will further his own growth and development, but he is resisting this change. With this card following the Queen of Gems, it seems as if a connection to the material support of this authority figure, or perhaps the abundance available through a workplace setting, previous relationship with a heavy emphasis on money, or generous business oriented family member, are keeping him in a situation where he is materially successful but not able to make changes to facilitate deeper personal growth- including full commitment to this relationship. It seems as if currents are pulling him in the direction of making a fresh start, committing to a substantial change primarily impacting his life, identity and values, but he seems to resist this change or to shut down rather than opening up to new possibilities, especially ones that he feels threaten his security. For some reason he perceives this relationship as requiring him to give up some measures of his own security or comfort in order to embrace transition and growth. It also seems that severing ties or commitments which seem largely financial in nature, with the Queen of Gems is perceived by him as a threat or at least as a very overwhelming experience and he is resisting this.

It seems that this relationship has the potential for development and growth but the focus stems from a practical need for security found in this partnership that could easily become dependency/possessiveness if not careful. Business or monetary obligations possibly related to a female authority figure pose an obstacle to the further development of the relationship and a major lifestyle change on the horizon for the gentleman in the picture is being hindered by his own resistance to embrace change that would affect his way of life, especially in terms of creating financial or material risk. It is important to bear in mind that both partners have choices to make. Evaluating this relationship for what is apparent and intuited and then deciding how much energy, time, patience are given to this relationship is a process for Elizabeth. Meanwhile, her significant other also has important choices to consider especially in regards to his ability to be receptive to the changing tides around him which seem to be setting the stage for transformation and initiation in his own life but which he is not currently embracing openly. Knowledge of these patterns can help ease into transition and take healthy risks to allow one’s self to advance personally, spiritually, and in a partnership. It should be noted however that if one person, say Elizabeth, awaits the receptivity and openness of her partner yet over time it appears he still remains unyielding, holding on to a way of life that he has the potential to outgrow both personally and for the sake of this relationship- then she may have to accept that this relationship is not moving in a direction that would allow for optimal growth as a partnership. Based on this information Elizabeth can discuss her feelings about the direction this relationship is taking and attempt to openly engage her significant other in a conversation about his fears, the potential for this transition and what is holding him back. Through this type of communication there is a potential to work through the insecurities that bring such resistance to change but it will require patience as it seems this person views this transition as very overwhelming. When a card like the Death card is reversed it suggests blocked energy and in knowing this, there are actions both the Querent or others involved can attempt in order to resume a flow of energy conducive to progress not stagnation. Communication and faith can be key elements to reversing the Death card which would bring an open acceptance of a new beginning, one paving the way for growth and development on a significant level.

Best of luck to Elizabeth, and thanks for participating in this month’s column! As always, no matter where you are reading this from all readings are for entertainment only in accordance with New York State law.

Interested in being the Querent in next month’s column? Contact Angela at Trionfi78@gmail.com.

About Angela: Angela Kaufman has been exploring divination through Tarot cards over a decade. She is a Certified Professional Tarot Reader and formed Moonlight Tarot in 2009 which would become Moonlight Tarot LLC in 2010. Angela uses the Tarot to assist clients in exploring personal growth and development, and in accordance with New York State Law offers readings for entertainment purposes. Angela began providing readings on a professional, “Moonlighting” basis in order to provide affordable readings to those seeking guidance, inspiration and fun. Angela is also co-author of the new book “Wicca, What’s the Real Deal? Breaking Through the Misconceptions.” (Schiffer Publishing, 2011). In 2006 she joined ISIS Paranormal Investigations and has accompanied the team on numerous investigations in private residences and businesses throughout the capital region, Adirondacks, Vermont and Massachusetts.

For more information on services offered by Moonlight Tarot LLC, visit http://www.moonlighttarotllc.com

Check out Moonlight Tarot on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MoonlightTarotLlc

For more related to Tarot and Wicca, check out: Wicca, What’s the Real Deal? At www.wwtrd.webs.com

This month’s reading was conducted using the True Love Tarot, Secrets of Mating, Dating and Relating by Amy Zerner and Monte Farber available published by St. Martins Press (2006). Copies of this deck are available at http://www.amazon.com/True-Love-Tarot-Monte-Farber/dp/0312337566

Life and Love Really Do Continue On

by Administrator, posted in Messages from Rebecca

I am the bearer of sad news for The Magical Buffet community. On February 13th David Pitkin passed away. Pitkin was the very first guest author to contribute to The Magical Buffet, and more recently he was one of the participants at The Magical Buffet of Authors event.

Pitkin speaking at Magical Buffet of Authors

David Pitkin is the author of numerous books such as “New York State Ghosts Vol. 1 & 2”, “Ghosts of the Northeast”, and “Haunted Warren County”. You can find, and buy, his books here and here. Thanks to his wonderful and prolific writing, Pitkin was often a guest speaker at book stores, libraries, and paranormal conventions.

David Pitkin was such a special man. I saw him at a book signing that had three people in attendance and speaking at a paranormal expo with 50 or more people, and he treated each group the same. Like each and every one of them was the most special person in the room. That’s how he treated every person, like they were the most important person in the room. He was charming to the Nth degree.

Pitkin and I sharing a special conversation

Pitkin would often sign his books with “Life and Love Really Do Continue On….” In David Pitkin’s case I have no doubt that it’s true. The legacy he leaves behind of quality ghost folklore and the magic he brought to the lives he touched will absolutely carry on.

David Pitkin had a long life of wearing many hats. You can learn more from reading his obituary here.

The Art of True Healing

by Administrator, posted in Books, Magic/Occult, New Age, Reviews

I love it when I’m sent reprints of old books to review. It gives me the opportunity to hold history in my hands. What are the odds that in my lifetime I would hold in my hands a copy of the 1932 book “The Art of True Healing: The Unlimited Power of Prayer and Visualization” by Israel Regardie? Let’s be generous and say, not good. Thankfully, over forty years ago New World Library co-founder and Publisher Marc Allen found that book in a store and kept it in good stead so that it could be shared now.

I’m not sure if Allen is as big a fan of Israel Regardie as I am, but it is obvious in his role as Editor that he does hold “The Art of True Healing” in high regard. And why not? The book’s primary focus is to instruct the reader in how to do The Middle Pillar Meditation. Readers of Regardie and/or the Western occult traditions are probably familiar with this exercise. For those of you unfamiliar with it, The Middle Pillar is an exercise where you work with moving energies throughout your body. I don’t want get too specific, it would be like giving away the book!

Believe it or not, I have been known to bust out The Middle Pillar. However I didn’t grasp it’s true potential as a tool for healing until reading this book. I certainly never considered it as a magical working you could perform on another person, but there it is, written in clear, concise language. And as always when I read Regardie I’m now inspired to retake up a regular practice. Allen chimes in at the end with some variant versions he’s come up with over his years of practice.

I highly recommend “The Art of True Healing”. It’s a wonderful introduction to Israel Regardie and a practical one at that. It has the pleasing introductory suggested price point of $12.95 and is in the perfect size for carrying in purse or coat pocket while studying. I’d also like to mention that obviously fans of Regardie, like myself, will want this book, but all my readers who work with energy for healing are going to want this book. Trust me. “The Art of True Healing” gave me new insights into subject matter I thought I already knew. That’s one of the best things I can think to say about this book.

Opening to Your Intuition: Building a Strong Foundation for Your Psychic Work

by Administrator, posted in Books, Guest Authors, Psychic

By Karen Harrison

The “trick” to being psychic is very simple: you need to be able to hear and listen to your inner voice clearly in order to receive the information that is being offered to you via your psychic senses. Learning to meditate teaches you how to quiet your thoughts and center your focus and concentration so that your inner voice can speak clearly to you—and so that you are ready to listen. In addition, the practice of meditation teaches you how to enter the alpha brain wave consciousness purposefully. In the alpha brain state, your focus and awareness is on your internal experiences—feelings, intuitions, and creative thought, because your electrical brain wave patterns are moving at a slower frequency or rhythm.

Scientists and physicians who study the human brain have discovered that it generally produces brain waves in four basic classifications: Beta, our normal waking consciousness state when we are focused on tasks and memorization, exhibits brain wave frequencies between 12 to 38 Hz; alpha, the brain wave state humans experience during meditation and times of relaxed creativity with a frequency between 8 to 13 Hz; theta, the brain wave state we experience in between waking and sleep when we are just coming out of our dreams with frequencies between 4 to 8 Hz; and delta, when the brain is in a deep sleep or unconscious mode with frequencies below 4 Hz. Hz is the abbreviation for Hertz, which is a unit of frequency measuring the change in state or cycle of a sound wave, alternating current, or other cyclical waveform, in this case the electromagnetic activity of the brain, of one cycle per second.

Being in the relaxed alpha brain wave mode of consciousness allows you to have a clear bridge of communication between the right hemisphere of the brain—the place of creativity and psychic sensitivity—and the left hemisphere of the brain—the place of logic, linear thinking, and perceptions. Meditation and centering allows for a clear channel of communication between the two halves of the brain, which will bring you clarity, insight, and understanding of the psychic information you receive.

Now, when I speak about your “inner voice,” keep in mind that you may get your psychic information in a different way than “hearing” it inside your head. Sometimes you may just get a flash of information and suddenly simply “know” something. You may have a vision that could be a complete scenario, or it may be simply a symbol or a face that you will need to work with as you interpret its meaning further. You may hear a quiet voice in your mind which gives you information. You may receive psychic information via your dreams. You may use a psychic tool such as the tarot or I Ching and interpret the cards or the throw of the coins. You may use a scrying mirror or crystal ball to psychically “see” scenes, images, symbols, colors, or numbers. You might employ a pendulum and use it to gain answers by the direction that it moves. There are many ways to obtain psychic impressions, intuit answers, and receive specific information that will help yourself or others.

When I use the term “inner voice,” I am talking about accessing that part of yourself that receives, interprets, and recounts information not obtained from your everyday material world or physical senses. It doesn’t matter the method by which you get the information or how it may be presented to you. The important point is that you pay attention and take note of the information that you receive.

Your inner voice is like any other part of you—the more you use it, the stronger and more skilled it gets at giving you information. The less you use it or pay attention to it, the more it atrophies and weakens. Everybody is a born psychic. You, me, everyone. It’s a natural ability and a part of what it means to be human. Some people are born with such a strong inner voice that they can’t help but hear it—these people, if not trained, may not be able to understand what they are getting, but the voice is strong. If they don’t understand why they are having these visions or why they can feel emotions and thoughts so strongly from others, they might work hard to shut it down, but it will always be there, ready to communicate again. Learning to hear your inner voice is like learning to play an instrument, becoming skilled at a sport, or mastering anything. What you have to do is acknowledge the desire and then practice the discipline. And then practice some more. The more you practice anything, the more skilled you become. It’s exactly the same with developing and honing your innate, human psychic skills.

The ability to meditate is essential to clearly hearing your inner voice. If you cannot quiet your mind, relax, center yourself, and focus, you will find that trying to access that inner voice and listen to what it has to tell you will be a frustrating experience. Sure, you’ll still be able to get the occasional psychic “hit,” but it will come sporadically, and I bet it will come when you are daydreaming or in that half-asleep, relaxed alpha brain state before you begin to drift into sleep at night or as you wake up in the morning. You will have a psychic experience at times when you are inadvertently in a slightly altered, quieter state of mind. If you want to use your psychic skills dependably and in a conscious way, you’ll learn the basics of meditation.

Sometimes when people hear the word “meditation,” they have the mistaken notion that they have to commit to a lengthy process in order to achieve a mental state of complete, total sublimation and control of the conscious mind. Not at all. No, you don’t have to chant mantras or be able to keep your mind absolutely blank for ten minutes or more. I’m talking about creating a meditative state of mind wherein you are calm, relaxed, and receptive. A state where you can focus on just one thing for a few minutes at a time, allowing your quiet thoughts to examine that one thing, consider it, and explore it. As you do this, your breathing will naturally slow, your body will relax, and you will feel at great ease. This thing that you are focusing on can be an image, a question, a feeling, a sensation, or a concept.

About Karen Harrison:
Karen Harrison has been involved with magick, the psychic arts, and occultism since early childhood. She earned a Master of Herbology from the Emerson College of Herbology in Montreal, and has worked as a professional psychic since she was seventeen years old. A third generation psychic, she has taught thousands of people how to open their own intuition and use that insight to enrich their lives.

Copyright © 2012 The Everyday Psychic by Karen Harrison Reprinted with permission from Red Wheel/Weiser LLC Available wherever books or ebooks are sold or from www.redwheelweiser.com or 1-800-423-7087.

Corresponding with Sandra Kynes

by Administrator, posted in Books, Magic/Occult, Reviews, Wiccan/Pagan

What to say about “Llewellyn’s Complete Book of Correspondences: A Comprehensive & Cross Referenced Resource for Pagans & Wiccans” by Sandra Kynes. Essentially my first reaction was; Holy shit! I apologize for the profanity, but that was truly my reaction when I pulled this hefty book out of its package. It must have been an extreme undertaking for author Sandra Kynes. There’s just so much information in there! It’s over 500 pages long!

Kynes new book is divided up into issues, intentions, and powers along with their correspondences at the beginning. Next are sections dealing with plants, minerals, animals, deities, astrological, and miscellaneous that are all cross referenced with each other. Not to mention the delightful index. The amount of information to be found within each area is amazing, even as Kynes is apologizing and acknowledging that more could have been added. Did I mention more than 500 pages?

She presented the information in these cross referenced sections to allow readers more options when working with correspondences. Kynes explains that the way these books normally work, the research creates a pin wheel. Her example is you look up love and you find that the Moon is associated with love. That would normally be the end. However the way Kynes has done things you look up love and you learn that the Moon has a link to love (as before), but now you’ll see that the Moon is associated with the Sapphire gemstone and perhaps that clicks with you more, or perhaps that is something you feel can reinforce what you’re doing. Kynes says that “We can bring correspondences to life by thinking in terms of a web. Doing so allows us not only to expand the links of attributes, but it also allows us to personalize the way we use magical correspondences.”

“Llewellyn’s Complete Book of Correspondences: A Comprehensive & Cross Referenced Resource for Pagans & Wiccans” is truth in advertising. And it’s true that it does have a definite Pagan/Wiccan lean to it, but it is certainly well researched and resourceful enough that any occult/magic user would find it a handy book to have on their shelf.

Geek Month in Review: January 2013

by Administrator, posted in Geek Stuff, Guest Authors, Science

By JB Sanders

And the apocalypse just rolls on by…

Heavy Metal — Old School
Anyone remember the old Heavy Metal magazine? Chock full of busty art, heavy-muscled heroes and aliens? Kind of psychedelic, back in the days when they meant that quite literally. No? Yes? Either way, check out some of the magazine’s great covers over the years. Special bonus: they had an HP Lovecraft issue (yes, with semi-realistic-looking mind-shattering monsters).

1970’s Covers

1980’s Covers

The Once and Future Mars
It’s firmly in the category of “artist’s rendering”, but it’s still wicked cool. See Mars as if it had an Earth-like atmosphere.

Digital Globe
It’s a villain-lair must-have, or an essential item in your Orbital Control Center: the digital globe. Interactive, capable of displaying any information you want up there digitally. You want earthquake zones? Sure. You want political divisions? Got that. You want to just change it up and show the Moon? No problem. Everyone is going to want one of these.

3D Printer Pranks
Keep this comic in your “for future reference” file, and pull it out when 3D printers go mainstream. Some really amusing (and Evil) pranks in there (also some pretty adult ones, so watch it).

Whistle It!
Did you know there’s a whole language entirely composed of whistling sounds? Or that it can travel up to 2 miles because of it’s acoustic properties? No? Me neither.

A Light Powered by Gravity!
It’s actually a device meant to replace the kerosene lamp in developing countries — still widely in use, and responsible for respiratory problems, fires and increased poverty (kerosene isn’t cheap). You hang the Gravity Lamp, fill it’s bag with rocks or sand, and get about 30 minutes of light as the bag drops. Brilliant!

Scifi Writers Start Your Star Engines
Astronomers and researchers have discovered that a giant burst of gamma rays hit Medieval Earth after the results of a giant cosmic event (either two black holes colliding or two neutron stars). The event occurred sometime in either 774 AD and 775 AD. What effect might it have had? All sorts of possibilities!

Space Travel Will Make You a Better Person
Really. Plus, all sorts of geeky space race references, some Contact (the movie) and a little Adventure Time.

Swimming in the Reactor Pool
Oddly enough, not a synonym for instant painful death. Apparently, water is a pretty darn good radiation shield. Not that you should swim in one, but if you do, definitely don’t swim really low. Bonus fun for the response from an actual nuclear tech at the end of the article.

Video Games Are Now Art
That’s it, case closed, debate solved, done. That said, fun overview of some really amazing video games over the years and what makes them particularly “artful”.

Make Your Own Pulp Magazine Covers
Via the web and a really cool bit of web programming. Also, the host site sells some seriously cool t-shirts (man, I wish I was getting some advertising dollars for this plug).

How Much is Real?
In TV or movies, not nearly as much as you think. Check out these YouTube videos of various green-screen and special effects composites, even in TV shows that you wouldn’t think had them. You think Monk didn’t use any special effects? Think again!


From 2012:

From 2009:

From Game of Thrones:

The Slow-Mo Guys Pop a 6-Foot Water Balloon
These guys do some really fun videos. This one is no exception. It’s simple, it’s slow-mo, and it’s awesome.

The Kitten Setting
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the world-renown scifi author John Scalzi (Old Man’s War, Red Shirts, etc), he’s a damn fine writer. He also has a blog that he’s been regularly updating for over a decade. On it, he permits comments from readers, but moderates himself — often with ruthless efficiency. He’s very open and forthright about doing it, too. He even has a name for it: the Mallet of Loving Correction. Well, now he has another setting on his Mallet: the Kitten Setting.

I’ll let him explain:

About John:
John’s a geek from way back. He’s been floating between various computer-related jobs for years, until he settled into doing tech support in higher ed. Now he rules the Macs on campus with an iron hand (really, it’s on his desk).

Geek Credentials:
RPG: Blue box D&D, lead minis, been to GenCon in Milwaukee.
Computer: TRS-80 Color Computer, Amiga 1000, UNIX system w/reel-to-reel backup tape
Card games: bought Magic cards at GenCon in 1993
Science: Met Phil Plait, got time on a mainframe for astronomy project in 1983
His Blog: http://glenandtyler.blogspot.com

Another 10 Questions with Deborah Blake

by Administrator, posted in Interviews, Magic/Occult, Wiccan/Pagan

1. What made you decide to write “Everyday Witch Book of Rituals”?
Mostly popular request! I’d begun to think I’d said everything I had to say about the modern witch’s practice, but people kept asking me for rituals. In addition, I’d always wanted to write a follow-up to my first book—Circle, Coven & Grove: A Year of Magickal Practice. One of the things I loved about that book is that it made a year of Pagan practice easy by giving you everything you needed to celebrate full moons, new moons, and Sabbats…but it was designed mostly for covens (witches working together) and I wanted to write one that was aimed at both solitaries and group witches, and had a little something added.

2. How do rituals differ from spells?
A spell is simpler—usually a kind of prayer or request or putting intentions out into the world (sometimes rhyming, sometimes not). They’re often fairly short; anywhere from two lines to twenty or forty. A spell is often used at some point during a ritual, although not always.

3. How does “Everyday Witch Book of Rituals” differ from one of your early books, “Circle, Coven, and Grove”?
As I said before, CC&G was a book for coven practice, while Everyday Witch Book of Rituals is aimed at everyone (although lots of solitaries told me they used the earlier book and loved it anyway). There’s also a lot more detail about why and how we do rituals, as well as rituals for special occasions like handfastings, Wiccanings (child blessing), eldering, passing over rites and more. And, of course, some sage advice from Magic the Cat.

4. What was the most difficult part about writing a book of rituals?
Trying to create rituals that would work for witches who were just starting out, while not boring witches who had been practicing for years. (I think I pulled it off. My readers will have to let me know.)

5. What do you hope readers take away from “Everyday Witch Book of Rituals”?
I hope they get a sense for what ritual can add to our lives in a spiritual sense, as well as how useful rituals can be to celebrate the magickal year.

6. What other books would you recommend for readers wanting to learn more about working with rituals?
There are lots of great books out there with rituals in them, and few that are focused entirely on rituals. If you are a beginning solitary, Scott Cunningham’s Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner is a good one to start with, if you like more ornate and complicated rituals, you should take a look at Raven Digitalis’s Planetary Spells & Rituals. Another couple of good ones are A Year of Ritual: Sabbats & Esbats for Solitaries and Covens, by Sandra Kynes and Dorothy Morrison’s Everyday Moon Magic: Spells and Rituals for Abundant Living (anything of hers is great, really).

7. Readers may or may not know that your cat, Magic, generally helps with most of your work. How much input did Magic have in this book?
She wrote a section on how to practice rituals with a familiar, which she considers to be the most important part of the book. Other than that, she did her usual fabulous job of sitting on the back of my chair and supervising me as I wrote. It is a well-known fact that I am not, in fact, capable of writing without feline supervision, which is why you will never find me typing away in a coffeehouse.

8. And as long as we have Magic’s attention, who is Magic’s favorite cat: Garfield, Sylvester, or Tom (of “Tom and Jerry” fame)?
Wait, I’ll go ask her. *sound of receding footsteps* *sound of cat sitting down at the laptop* “Don’t be ridiculous. Cats don’t eat lasagna. And they don’t get their butts whupped by teeny tiny birds or mice. None of these are on my favorite cat list. Puss in Boots, now, HE was a clever cat.”

9. Do you have any other projects that my readers can look forward to?
I am currently working on my seventh book for Llewellyn, tentatively titled “A Broom for Every Witch.” It is all about the different kinds of broomstick magick you can do, as well as everything you ever wanted to know about brooms. I’m having a lot of fun writing it, and can’t wait to share it with everyone (probably late in 2014). In the meanwhile, if people haven’t read my fiction, they can find my ebook, Witch Ever Way You Can, at Amazon, B&N, and Itunes. And yes, there’s a witch in it!

10. Parting shot! Ask us here at The Magical Buffet any one question.
What is your favorite thing to eat at Panera Bread? (And when are you coming to visit and bringing me some?)

I don’t think I can pick a favorite. There is a lot of stuff I like at Panera. When I’m forgetting calories at breakfast I go with a Cinnamon Crunch bagel, and I love when they have the seasonal Trail Mix bagel! Lately I’m in love with their version of the BLT which is bacon, lettuce, and tomato, but also avocado and turkey too! Seriously, you need to keep this girl AWAY from Panera! But when I come to see you, I’ll be sure to have some. Maybe later this month?


Deborah Blake is a Wiccan High Priestess who has been leading her current group, Blue Moon Circle, for many years. She is the author of six books on modern Witchcraft from Llewellyn Worldwide, including The Goddess is in the Details: Wisdom for the Everyday Witch, Everyday Witch A to Z Spellbook, Witchcraft on Shoestring and Everyday Witch Book of Rituals.. Deborah was a finalist in the Pagan Fiction Award Contest and her short story, “Dead and (Mostly) Gone” is included in The Pagan Anthology of Short Fiction. She is also the author of Witch Ever Way You Can, a paranormal romance featuring…of course…a witch. She is represented by agent Elaine Spencer of The Knight Agency.
When not writing, Deborah runs The Artisans’ Guild, a cooperative shop she founded with a friend. She lives in a 100+ year old farmhouse in rural upstate New York with five cats who supervise all her activities, both magickal and mundane.

Affirmations, The Power of Words

by Administrator, posted in Guest Authors, New Age

By Dr. Kathy Gruver

In learning to change our minds, I’ve found one of the simplest and most effective techniques is using affirmations. Some experts estimate that we have around 60,000 thoughts a day and that 50,000 of those are negative. That’s 80% negative thoughts, which translates to me as 80% negative results. It’s so easy, especially with what’s happening in the world today to let our thoughts go to fear, worry and fatalism. And it is important to acknowledge our feelings and note that we do have fear and concern, but when these thoughts start to rule our minds and become repetitive and distorted they can lead to illness and negative changes in our bodies.

Add to this that 60-80% of visits to the doctor are caused by stress. If we look at our life at this exact second, where is the stress? Seriously, look at this moment in time. What is wrong? Our thoughts, and thus our stresses, are often in the future and usually about something that we’re not even sure is going to happen. We talk about it, think about it and dwell on it even if it’s not guaranteed. We can’t often control our emotions, but we can control our thoughts. An easy way to do that is with affirmations, using positive language to program our lives.

I find this especially useful when negative thoughts interfere with our ability to fall asleep. Try repeating the following phrase, “I fall asleep quickly and easily, I wake up feeling refreshed.” These types of short phrases do one of two things. Either they program you to fall asleep quickly and wake up feeling refreshed or, at the very least, it shuts out the other thoughts that are running through your head. There is a physics axiom that states “Two solid objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time.” The same principle applies with our thoughts. We can’t be thinking two things at once. That’s what counting sheep is all about; it distracts us from those repetitive thoughts that plague us at bedtime. I’m not saying changing our thoughts and words is easy. On the contrary, it can be quite hard at first. Especially if we have been programmed to think negatively since we were young or are surrounded by negativity in our lives. But it can be done with a little practice and the results are phenomenal.

When working with affirmations there are a few rules of thumb.

Make them short.
Keep them in the present tense.
Make them positive.
And repeat often!

So don’t say, “I’m not sick anymore.” Rephrase your wording to, “I am healthy and well.” Saying, “I want to be rich,” puts the emphasis on the future and focuses on a current state of lack. Saying, “I am wealthy and abundant,” or “Money flows easily to me from unexpected sources,” creates a positive present scenario. I see my friends on Facebook all the time reiterating their illness by saying, “I’m not getting sick, I’m not getting sick.” I always write in and remind them to phrase it differently and say, “I’m healthy and well.” A few days later I see them remind their friends to do that. The power of social media can be healing.

So you can see that affirmations can do more than just attract good health. Here are some more examples.

I am wealthy and prosperous.
I am healthy and well.
My body is strong and resilient.
The universe provides for me.
I am divinely protected.
I have a loving and passionate partner.
I attract love and support.
Supportive, helpful friends surround me.

I could go on and on. The most important thing is to recognize situations where you tend towards negativity and decide to change your mind. Going in to situations with a negative attitude doesn’t benefit anyone and just makes life more unpleasant and more difficult.

Similar to affirmations is setting intentions. My Reiki Master, Diane Vaughn, always set intentions before the Reiki attunements that she provided. I didn’t really understand it back then, but now I am a believer in their importance. Often, when we set an intention for something, it becomes easier to achieve. She used to phrase them this way:

My intention is to co-create with the universe, true and complete healing for my body, mind and spirit. (Or whatever it is you are trying to achieve.)

She always started intentions, no matter what it was, with “co-create with the universe.” Then she wrote them down for me and asked me to repeat them throughout my day.

It only takes a few moments to do the intention process. Take note what areas you would like to change and create (co-create), and write them down. Remember to look at them often and as with affirmations, repeat often. The more we can expand our beliefs and consciousness, the more our worlds will expand with them. Again, affirmations and intention setting might be a new adventure for you but with some practice you’ll discover you have the power within YOU to create your world and your health.

About Dr. Kathy Gruver:
Dr. Kathy Gruver is the author of “Body/Mind Therapies for the Bodyworker” and “The Alternative Medicine Cabinet”. Both book are available on her website www.thealternativemedicinecabinet.com. There you will also find resources, her newsletter signup and health tips. Kathy maintains a health and wellness practice in Santa Barbara, CA.

10 Questions with Alicia Dattner

by Administrator, posted in Interviews, New Age

1. Tell my readers a little bit about the Online Spiritual Comedy Festival.

First of all, I’m thrilled about it. And you must know how much it takes for someone with as much equanimity and peace as me to be thrilled, so that’s saying a lot. It’s an international festival of comedians with a sense of Spirit and spiritual teachers with a sense of Humor who are coming together, online, to share what’s funny to us about being human. The festival is basically a series of shows in which I will interview these folks and they’ll share their humor, insight, and wisdom. It’s a unique concept to make it all online, all audio, and all free, and I am excited to introduce this new idea.

2. Why do spirituality and comedy mix?

Essentially, they come from the same place. I decided to call it The Spiritual Comedy Festival because no other set of words described it better. How I see spirituality is that it’s a contemplation of and awe at the great mystery of our existence. And when we truly contemplate this mystery, we can come into communion with its beauty, its absurdity, its “suchness”, and its divine perfection. At its purest, human spirituality is a communion with truth and spontaneity and the unexpected. And that’s what humor at its purest is also. They mix because when we leave behind our concepts and beliefs about what they are, they are actually very similar.

3. What do you hope the festival accomplishes?

I hope to bring more people into contact with these brilliant-hearted souls who weave humor and spirituality together and for this contact to make space for our audience to experience more love, joy, playfulness, laughter, and peace in their lives. And I hope that these qualities ripple out to everyone who meets the people affected by the festival, and to everyone they meet. I hope it adds more peace to the world. I also believe that it’s important for us to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable—again bringing seemingly opposite ideas together—and that for those of us who are suffering, we bring some laughter and ease to the pain. For those of us who are hovering safely inside our comfort zone, we give a healthy nudge outside. Even within our own beings, we have comfortable and afflicted parts, and we can address those inward parts with both nurturing and nudging.

This festival is about speaking truths that happen to be funny. So I hope we make some people uncomfortable, if it means they’ll grow through more telling of truth. And I hope we do it in such a funny way that even difficult truths feel good to hear.

4. There are over 15 performers lined up for the Online Spiritual Comedy Festival. Did you have any difficulty finding participants that were in sync with your idea?

Yes and no. There were several people who, in my mind, express the idea of spiritual comedy beautifully, but when invited, they declined. I have the sense that most people in the world of comedy just don’t see themselves as spiritual—or wouldn’t want their audiences to see them quite in that light because it makes them feel less funny. Soft. Serious. It might not be good for a comedy career. And the same for spiritual teachers who might worry that their sacred spiritual ideas could be made fun of. This could feel dangerous if they didn’t trust that this festival is coming from a loving place. But there were actually a whole bunch of people—those who decided to participate—who are playing this same exact game of bringing funny and sacred together. They all said yes. And I feel this festival has been divinely guided from the moment it started. Everyone who is supposed to participate has shown up, and I feel so grateful to be the conduit for this particular event to occur!

5. Do you think it will be difficult to do comedy online where you won’t receive that immediate feedback of laughter from the audience?

Yes—that’s why, with most of the shows, we’re going to open up some of the phone lines so that the guests will be able to hear their laughter. That was a really important piece for me to figure out—who wants to do comedy with no audience?

6. Can you describe how you discovered the comedy-spirituality connection?

I’ve been a comedian for, like, 15 years – and a spiritual being for, like, 15 million years. After a number of years of doing comedy, I went into addiction recovery (I couldn’t stop telling jokes. Kidding. I went into actual recovery.) When I tried going back to the comedy club after doing all of that spiritual, emotional, and psychological work on myself, it felt kind of… oogie. I don’t ever want to stop doing edgy and irreverent comedy, but the smell of beer bitterness in the club just didn’t fit for me anymore. I figured there had to be a better way, so I started creating one-woman shows and filling theaters with audience members who wanted to hear what I had to say. And eventually I discovered there were other people doing this same kind of thing.

7. You’re a certified laughter yoga instructor. What’s a Laughter Yoga session with you like?

A lot of Laughter Yoga happens in libraries and senior centers. It’s beautiful to bring that playfulness to people there. But sometimes I get the sense that the teachers are trying really, really hard to get people to laugh, and it can feel a little fake, or just uncomfortable. That’s the last thing I want people to feel in my class. So we begin with lots of meditation and relaxation. I believe joy is our natural state, and when we release the tension, our life force just flows and we feel it again. I like to rub people’s feet or neck to help them really let go, and sometimes even tickle them a little. As we relax more and more, releasing the tension through breath and sound work, we begin to make that “ha” sound… and eventually, somebody just “pops”, and suddenly we’re all giggling uncontrollably. It’s such a beautiful sight to watch people lose themselves in hysterical laughter, and to laugh even harder when they hear someone next to them laughing. Eventually, we gather together in the center of the room, and get to interact too. Sometimes we’ll do improvisational exercises in dyads that also encourage spontaneous laughter. My favorite part is watching people leave looking younger, lighter, happier, and re-filled with love. We underestimate how incredibly powerful an experience like this can be—and imagine if we could have something this nourishing in our lives on a regular basis!

8. What’s next for you? After the Online Spiritual Comedy Festival is over do you have any other projects my readers can be on the look out for?

Yes, I’ll be jumping back on stage with my new show The Oy of Sex, which is a comedic one-woman show about love and sex addiction and recovery. It’s a bit more edgy than the festival itself, but every bit as spiritual. I’m excited to premiere the show in San Francisco as well as touring The Oy and also my previous show, Eat, Pray, Laugh! around the country.

I’m also excited to be offering both online and offline workshops teaching people how to cultivate their own inner spiritual comedian!

9. Here’s a last chance to leave us with some parting Alicia Dattner comedic spiritual insight!

Many people think that enlightenment is an unreachable goal reserved for monks in the Himalayas. Many other people still believe enlightenment is a myth and that the present moment is as bright as it gets. And in my experience having traveled through India in search of the great truths, I agree with that. The big secret that nobody tells you about enlightenment: it’s not that hard, it’s for everybody… I was enlightened yesterday. For, like, a minute. The hard part is being enlightened around other people. Like roommates! “Ooooooommmm… Damn, you guys can’t wait ten minutes to turn on the blender?”

10. Parting shot! Ask us here at The Magical Buffet any one question.

What’s your favorite laughter-delivery mechanism for deep belly laughs? Comedy? Unintentional comedy? Tickling? Contemplating the absurdity of the universe? Puns?

Usually, it’s being a snarky, catty bitch amongst my friends. I also love cartoons for laughs. There’s obvious adult oriented ones like “Archer” or “Family Guy”, but I also get solid laughs out of some children’s cartoons like “Codename: Kids Next Door” or “Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil”.

About Alicia Dattner:
Spiritual Comedian Alicia Dattner has been touring the world, selling out her one-woman shows, Eat, Pray, Laugh!, The Oy of Sex, and The Punchline, and winning awards, including “Best Storyteller” in the NY United Solo Festival, “Best of the Fringe” in the SF Fringe Festival, and “Best Comedian 2011″ in the East Bay Express. Now she’s bringing together comedians with a sense of spirituality and spiritual teachers with a sense of humor in the world’s first Online Spiritual Comedy Festival Jan. 29-March 21, 2013.