Aaron at Florida Pagan Gathering Samhain – 2012

Greetings Faithful Followers!

The time is drawing near for the Florida Pagan Gathering Samhain Festival!  And I have once again been offered the honor of attending as a “headliner.”  That means I’ll be hosting three lectures/workshops over the course of the festival – in between sessions of drumming and generally cavorting like a heathen.  🙂

My last experience at the FPG turned out to be a deeply moving spiritual experience that took me back to my Neopagan roots – besides being one helluva lot of fun.  My fellow headliners were some of the top names in their various fields and practices, and I made more than one new lifelong friend while I was there.  I expect this trip to be no different.

So I am inviting each and every one of you to come and join me for this awesome event!  You can attend my workshops, ask me questions and then we can hang out in the various campsites and around the bonfire late into the night.  I dare say we will not be disappointed by the experience!

Here is the info on the Festival:

Samhain 2012 – Out of the Darkness

Oct 31- Nov 4, Camp Ocala, Altoona, Florida

Welcome to the Forest! Set up camp, commune with nature, relax, visit the vendors, attend workshops, and evening events.

Headliners

Andras Corban Arthen, Ann Moura, Dorothy Morrison, Aaron Leitch, and (locals) Mama Gina, Ashley Rae

Musical Headliners

Spiral Dance and (local) Gwyn Fae

This is a full-fledged festival – with an entry fee – so make sure you contact them to register today!  Then get your camping gear together and enjoy a few days out in nature away from the modern world.  Or, just come by for a day of lectures, food, shopping and fun!

Here is the info on the workshops I will be hosting.  Right now I don’t know exactly when these workshops will take place, but I’ll update this post as soon as I find out:

Working with Spirits and Ancestors

Working with lesser spirits (jinn, demons, familiars, etc) and the spirits of our ancestors are two of the most ancient forms of witchcraft.  (Properly called “goetia” – but not to be confused with the medieval grimoire of the same name!)  However, the practice fell into disrepute after the rise of the urban “city-state” in the Classical era – and was outlawed entirely after the rise of mainstream Christianity.  This resulted in a cultural break in our mystical Western heritage that has remained with us to this very day.  Even in Wicca and other Neopagan traditions, spirit-work is often frowned upon, and ancestors are merely recognized at specific times of the year.

 

However, that doesn’t mean the practice was lost to history!  Folk magickal traditions around the world have preserved these mysteries, and an ever-growing number of today’s Pagans and occultists are reviving these ancient and often misunderstood practices in our modern systems.

 

This workshop will focus upon *what* spirit- and ancestor-work really is, and *how* to go about doing it yourself to empower your spells and your spiritual path.  We will cover the benefits and the dangers, how to erect altars, build spirit pots, invoke the spirits, make offerings and more.

 

This will be an open discussion workshop, so bring your own ideas and opinions and be ready to share them with us!

 

Magickal Offerings

One of the foundational practices of the most ancient forms of magick was the Ritual Offering.  While this included the sacrifice of animals (and in some cases humans!) that certainly isn’t the whole story.  Offerings were made in many fashions – from food to toys to tools and weapons, to incense and fire and much more.  Such offerings were made to feed and empower the spirits and, in many cases, to provide the spirits with necessary tools to accomplish the magickal goals of the shamans who provided them.

 

Sadly, the art of the Ritual Offering was all but lost in the West after the rise of Judeo-Christiainity.  Sacrifice and offerings were declared a form of devil-worship, and misrepresented as a method of “appeasing” angry and vengeful spirits who would otherwise harm the humans who invoked them.  Even today’s modern occultists often hold to this erroneous idea.

 

This workshop will bust the myths about Ritual Offering, and explain its true meaning of magickal empowerment.  We will cover how to properly make offerings to various classes of spirits and gods, along with the “do-nots” and “why?” behind the practice.

 

This will be an open discussion workshop, so bring your own ideas and opinions and be ready to share them with us!

 

Making and Enlivening Talismans

Quite often, when a modern occultist says the word “talisman”, he or she is talking about a piece of paper with symbols drawn upon it.  But the art of Talismanic Magick is much broader than that!  And the power of a talisman goes far beyond the inscription of the right names, properly colored inks and the recitation of the right prayers.

 

In the Old Magick, talismans were living beings in their own right.  They were physical houses for spiritual entities who actively participated in the rituals with the magician.  And they weren’t just jewelery or inscribed disks or scrolls – they were also the magickal tools, the robes and regalia, the furnishings of the temple and more.  A true magician’s sacred working space is a thriving environment of spirits, angels and even gods who each play a vital role in the magick worked therein.

 

Likewise, magickal tools and furnishings are not merely “props” or objects we find convenient to use.  Each and every physical object utilized by the magician is a living symbol of something greater – either a reflection of something in the outer universe that the magician wishes to “draw down” into his or her temple, or an embodiment of something deeply personal and powerful to the magician – or both.

 

In this workshop, we will discuss these aspects of talismanic magick.  Plus, we will cover how to find and/or create your own talismans and “bring them to life” to work for you. 

 

This will be an open discussion workshop, so bring your own ideas and opinions and be ready to share them with us!

 

I hope to see you there!

Zorge,

Aaron