Good morning folks, Chris here with another post. Following up on yesterday's post, as we come to comprehend that the lessons are going to keep coming, it falls to us to keep up with them. I find that journaling does so, as it allows me to keep better track of what's going on and how this fits into the long game. 

It's for this reason that I send the results of comprehensive divinations done for clients via email. Being able to keep track of what was said a week, a month or a year earlier can help us to get a sense of continuity and track our growth. 

Just last night this came in handy, as a friend and I were talking about her cursing someone. She'd gotten a counter command from a reading I'd given her just last week, yet she's glossed over it when we'd originally done the reading. Being able to refer back to this just kept her from giving away her own strength by taking action in a situation where no action was actually necessary or advised. 

Do this with dreams, visions, divinatory results, important omens...record it all. This might not seem super important, but it makes a substantial difference as the days and years tick by. 

Writing is a means of processing data too, so as the days click by without end, it gives us a means of processing the passage of time and the lessons this time spent in our respective Towers have caused to crystallize within us each. To meditate and reflect through the act of recording data in this way allows us to double-dip a bit, using our natural growth as it becomes available to us while also providing us with inspiration for the future. If we're lucky, 2020 won't occur again, but the intensity of the lessons received will still act as a kind of "nostalgic touchstone" for catalyzing incredible development through magic. Second advantage is that anything we don't learn now, we can reflect on and come to understand later. As this occurs, we make the way open for the improvements tied to that growth!

Blessings,
-Chris 

Good morning folks, how are you all keeping? I've had a pleasant weekend here in the PNW. Last week was one of working with the landvaettir & conjuring to improve lives. While doing so, I've been in deep reflection; analyzing and taking stock of all that has been going on this year. 

2020 is very much unlike any other, as it's generally rather unlikely for all or most of our compatriots to be in crisis at the same time. Now that this has occurred and is occurring, we're each finding a greater and greater need to become self-reliant. As these experiences and the lessons tied to them flood our lives, it's only natural that we find ourselves a bit overwhelmed.

I'd like to provide a few tips to help you each survive and, if possible, thrive this year. My great hope is to make all this a bit easier for the lives I touch!

With that in mind, one of first things that comes to mind is the topic of mental resiliency. When it's all too easy to have a bad day, having good ones can be something of a substantial chore. Learning to influence and eventually the mental software within can be extraordinarily empowering, and it's a literal survival mechanism right now. 

If you're having a bad day, take a break from the screen and set your eyes on some manner of a horizon. I'd recommend going outside and looking out into the horizon if possible, but any act of unfocusing the eyes from the device you're working on is a necessary touchstone or making this work. As you do this, start with some manner of simple mantra...I'd recommend "this too shall pass", either chanted aloud or within. Take five minutes to do this, then return to your day. 

If you do this a few times a day and really get into this practice, it'll help your mindset and function.

This practice is a kind of five minute meditation; a refocusing exercise that alters the way the mind works in the moment. It is a kind of mental self-care, and that's good for us. 

Likewise, engage in self-care routines. Once or twice a week at the very least. Shower, comb/brush your hair and take some time to look after your needs. For those of you who are feeling depressed & apathetic, I know this will feel like work - that's a part of what makes this so important. Taking this time to check in with self will help you to develop a better understanding of what you need each day and as you get better at managing your own needs, you'll find that you stand in your own way less down the road, leading to a greater personal efficiency. 

Finally, I'd very much recommend doing nice things for others inasmuch as you can. Even something as simple as making tea for your spouse or roommate will do. If you can't do that, communicate kindnesses and try to connect with those who are still capable of doing the same. This leads to a chemical change within the mind and body that helps us to feel more comfortable and at ease, giving us a bit of "insulation" from the intensity around us. 

The year isn't yet over and we've got further to go & more to do. I hope these tips help each of you!
Be safe and be blessed. 
-Chris 

​Yesterday was a pretty rough one here. A friend of a friend reached out to ask if this friend of mine "would be ok if she committed suicide". This young lady had checked her dog into an animal shelter and she was ready to take that plunge....when I heard this, I was thankfully able to swing into action and intervene. This young woman is with us today and offerings have been placed to the spirits that helped her to stay. 

This has naturally inspired me to write today, as mental health is something of a crisis right now. Go figure, right? World's on fire, tangling with storms, droughts, plague, and a Charlie Foxtrot of Biblical proportions - it's not like we don't have reasons to be upset or a bit off-kilter!.....

......and that gives us plenty of reason to concern ourselves with our mental health and our connection to others. We are a social species, and we rely on that connection to those of our tribe (whether we are born into that structure or not), and so if you feel your mental health slipping, interact with others. Anxious? Buddy check. Afraid? Buddy check. Losing your shit? Buddy check. 

This is how we keep each other alive during all of this. This is how we come out of this intact. So please, take care of you. Take care of those next to you and let them do the same for you. I don't know you, but I care. If you're struggling, reach out and we'll see what we can do together. 

If you find that others are struggling when suicidal ideation, get them in touch with the Suicide Hotline or like equivalent. Take this seriously so that you and I don't need to bury any more friends and loved ones this year, eh?

Additionally, I've developed a mantra practice specifically for such intervention that I'd like to share with you. I've used it twice and both ladies still live: OM NAMO BHAGAVATE VASUDEVAYA. Chant that 108x for those who struggle and see them receiving the help they need, whatever it may be. Using this and following those we love into the dark with a torch can make one hell of a difference. 

I hope this helps you to help your friends and families. Much love. 
-Chris 

Hello folks, I hope you're each doing well today and getting on. My weekend involved a touch of psychonautery & spiritual development with help from a pair of plant spirits. This act of delving into the self, drilling down into my comprehension and challenging my views led to this shift in awareness that I'm attempting to process & working to understand more fully to follow.

While in this state of trance and deep meditation, I began to glimpse emotion-as-entanglement and the nature of that which unfolds around us each day. More specifically, these plant spirits and my own helped me to comprehend that the way that we feel about a series of circumstances and events can quite literally reorient us and change our perspective & how it relates to our core experience in unexpected ways. 

Your core experience is your core experience. That might be shared by or paralleled by others in some way, but it's your experience before it becomes anyone else's. My spirits have likened this to being like a fire at the center of a space. That fire might be tended by us, or it might be tended by others, but where we sit and how we approach it changes our disposition and what we see beyond the flames before us. 

If we look North, we might see the craggy, dangerous mountain paths atop which lies a wonderful reward. To the East, we might see a gorgeous beach populated by beautiful men and women, a vacation destination full of delights. To the South, we might spy an angry warband, full of piss & vinegar. To the West, new opportunities and unexplored mysteries. Each of these directions contain aspects of our lives and, perhaps more importantly, they each represent parts of our overall experience. 

What we choose to explore directly influences our experience, and so if we head into the difficult North, we find reward and challenges aplenty, changing our spot on the map. Changing where we next make our camp. So too is this the case if we rise to meet those warbands in open conflict or head to the aforementioned gorgeous Easterly beaches. Each of these travel destinations within our lives are a manifestation of our interests and our voyages of the mind, and so it is up to us what we explore and experience. 

Our day to day experience, mental health, spiritual growth, and the manifestations attaches to each are each interconnected extrapolations of this act of wandering. We are defined by our focus and how we carry it out day by day, and so the meat of this lesson lies in the understanding that it is important to choose carefully. What you choose to do each day will define you in six months, and that will then define you in twelve months, eighteen months, twenty four months and so on and so forth. Choose carefully how you interact with your life each day, as your view around the campfire directly influences everything to follow.

The more we come to realize that each direction around this campfire is available to us, the more capable of intelligent decisions we become.  Think deeply and reflect upon your life, and if one avenue is closed to you, instead of fretting, take a look at the others around you. Explore something else & enrich yourself experience rather than being like the goat constantly ramming its head against an obstacle.  Choosing instead to graze in the lovely pastures nearby or play by the river might instead be more rewarding.

Many blessings & thanks for reading.
​-Chris

The Universe is constructed of beads on a string, and so it is that each of these beads represent a basic function of that which makes up and defines the framework which has sprung up around us. Each of these building blocks are stepping stones, but more than that, they are moving pieces. When we come to understand them as such, we as witchy folk, sorcerers and magicians alike seek to direct and reorient them some. 

When we take this understanding of a Universe made of many moving parts, we can begin to understand that every situation we discover is constructed in a similar way: as above, so below. The Universe LOVES patterns. 

Just as water is made up of two hydrogen atom and one oxygen atom, a situation may have different "chemical parts". If we wish to influence the final shape, we must consider the individual moving parts and how best to ease, change, or redirect each of them according to our wishes. As we do this, we then can come to understand that certain materials reflect that basic nature.

Chaparral represents water and more importantly, its flow. Mugwort manifests as that which causes movement, inciting it to action. Frankincense clears obstacles by way of purification, binding you a thing and changing its shape. Hyssop sanctifies and makes productive. Dragon's blood glues together and makes a thing stronger by increasing its resilience. As you explore herbs and their innate qualities, you will too come to understand what they "bring to the party", so to speak. Contemplate every situation you greet using this awareness, breaking it down into its fundamental qualities. Consider fully the moving parts, including the ones that are necessary for your goals to be made manifest and the things that work against your goals and extrapolate what can be done to improve the flow according to your wishes. 

All magic functions in this way, so comprehending this lesson and putting it to good use will directly contribute to your success. 

It's good to be back!
Blessings,
Chris

.....and the importance of holding steady. 
When you're on the path towards growth, it can be a difficult road to keep to. Particularly as the world's going mad - it's easy to lose that sincerity and dedication we've cultivated within and go for easier gains. As depression sets in, it becomes especially comfortable to do the things that are just within our reach rather than reaching for anything for anything more. 

When things get hard, as they very often do, it's only natural to want to run the other direction and do the easy thing. Trouble is, that malaise becomes SO alluring and SO tempting, and it's a mental trap. It's easier to be sad and down about yourself than it is to keep moving forward, as growth requires personal involvement and personal evolution. My advice to you? Keep moving forward. Don't stop. Don't give up. Advance and vanquish. Don't become a failed attempt, and don't let yourself get lost within. 

When things seem hardest, we're often on the brink of something major. These major evolutions almost always bring additional boons and responsibilities, and so this process does eventually become its own reward. 

In this, I'm reminded of my studies of history. Sometime ago, I had a conversation that change the way I looked at personal development. The topic revolved around the order to hold and troop movements in ancient wars. 

Historically, most battles were skirmishes right up until they became wholesale slaughters. The difference between a skirmish and a bloodbath was very often decided by the order to hold. When these men were fighting in a formations like a shield wall, they were safe - they were covered left and right & they had support. It was only when they broke rank that the battle truly became dangerous for them.

I mentioned that here because this is now paralleled in life & history is yet again repeating itself as it often does. As we succumb to our personal struggles, we lose our capacity to hold. When we break formation and stop covering the men and women who are left and right of us, they falter too. All that's needed to break the line is one weak link in the chain. 

Do not be that link! Be steadfast, be resolute, and be brave. Yes, this is a difficult time for humanity. We've survived worse as a species. 

So instead of cowing to that which frightens us, stand up and face it. If you need help, ask for it. If others need help, provided within reason. We stand together, we stand strong… Simple as that.  

Be blessed,
Chris

Hey there folks! How's everyone keeping?
Today, I'd like to talk a bit about a basic mechanism that we all more or less take for granted & how that mechanism impacts the quality of our lives. There's a major life hack attached to this that we can only apply once our perspective changes. 

Cause & effect are basic tenets of our Universe. Every action has an equal yet opposite reaction (thanks Newton!), and thus every stimuli we encounter creates a reaction & a response from ourselves and others. That response is nearly always met with an emotion of one kind or another, and the feelings within our reaction very often becomes part of a conditioned response.

When a response is conditioned, it is largely automatic, and this can either be a great thing, a terrible thing, or it can land us somewhere in the middle depending on our habits. This can be super innocuous and it's all too easy to avoid looking more closely at our automatic responses. This becomes doubly true if there's any manner of harsh or negative emotions at play within us, as the more unpleasant a situation is, the more we wish to turn away. This instinct is understandable, but the jury's our in whether or not it's helpful. 

Generally, it isn't, as that unpleasantness usually becomes the elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about. When this occurs, the ignored problem tends to worsen over time purely through our own negligence & lack of awareness. 

This then creates a Cause/Effect/React loop within us and our life circumstances. Cause meets effect, and then our emotional state fuels an automated response that becomes part of a wider pattern in our lives. Over time, this can and very often does become a foundation for what we experience (**particularly if there's any manner of trauma complicating matters**).

This habitual response, if positive, can drive us to great heights and establish within our spheres an incredible amount of success. When that occurs, it's absolutely stellar & it's something to be celebrated!
.....But what happens when the habitual response is unhelpful? That's when we start to hurt ourselves & unravel our creations, and it's this effect of our conditioned response that I'd like to address here. It's this mental modality that allows us to become stuck in a rut of our own creation, and breaking that cycle becomes something of a necessity if we wish to experience something better in our lives. 

So how to address it?

First, mindfulness becomes key. If you find that you're getting stuck in one mode of thinking or another, be aware of it and seek to challenge that status quo. This cultivation of awareness can help us to become more cognizant of what's going on around us. This mindfulness gifts us with the ability to more fully understand the subtext of a given situation, allowing us to reach and respond more intelligently. 

Let's talk through some examples:

1) You're the nervous, anxious sort who almost always assumes that the quality of your interactions with others is poor because of some personal failing. You like to assume that you're being ignored because you aren't worth talking to, so you don't put much effort into conversations because you assume the worst. How do you change that?

Well, the first step is to take stock of what someone else has going on in their lives. If your friends aren't real chatty with you, ask them about what they've got on their plates and about their hobbies and weekends. Get involved and see what they're feeling and why, as this understanding of the flows of their lives will help you to more fully appreciate why they might be so pressed for time. It could be that they're genuinely too busy times have a proper conversation with someone else, or it could be that they're struggling with their mental health and that's taking up most of their energy. 

If you find that they need a little space because life is crazy, give them some and let them focus while you cheer them on from the sidelines. If you find that they're really depressed and down, you can find a way to process and improve upon those emotions together, thereby leading to a stronger connection and friendship. 

2) You and your spouse just aren't getting on. It seems like no matter what you do, you're always stuck and not moving forward. Romance is lacking and your relationship isn't as solid as it once was. 

If this describes your marriage, then the first step is to take stock of what they've got going on. How's your husband or wife's work schedule? How fulfilled do they feel day by day, and what kind of leisure time do they have? Consider those elements and then try to figure out how you can more adequately support him or her. Schedule time to talk as a couple and blow off steam without judgement and without bias that way you can keep your fingers on each other's pulse. 

The more time you spend doing this, the better able you and your spouse will be to support one another. The relationship will generally improve substantially if this approach is taken. 

3) You're having issues at your job. Your boss is a demanding jerk who doesn't really seem to jive with you, and he or she has become more abrasive of late. You feel that they're taking it out on you, but you're not sure, so you're constantly afraid for your career. 

If this describes you, the situation is a little bit trickier to address. When we're in the office, we interact with others as professional entities, but the professional attitude a person brings into work rests upon their personal state of being. What they've got going on at home will directly and indirectly effect their interactions with others, so I would invite you to interact with them. Ask about their off-hours hobbies and what they've got going on over the weekend. Connect with them like human beings and assess how satisfied they seem to be with their lives. 

Likewise, contemplate the quality of your work and see how it's being received by others. If you're doing a good job and they're still being harsh, I would suggest meeting with the critical third party to determine what responsibilities you can take on to improve workflow and better contribute to the team. Unless that person is directly and intentionally competing against you, they'll likely respond well to the gesture. 

With those examples given, you can start to sense a theme. The quality of our interactions with others directly and indirectly influences our feelings about our lives. By exercising mindfulness and purposefully focusing on what we can do to manage our responses to others, we take some of the unhelpful automation out of our lives. Moreover, we get rid of the "easy", troublesome assumptions that would otherwise habitually cause us to act out and cause problems for ourselves. All of that energy which would usually go towards maintaining and navigating the rut you're in can instead go towards more productive aims and further progress can be sought.

Creating progress and momentum is rewarding, and it doesn't take much energy to challenge the harmful automation in our life. The more time and energy we spend doing so, the more we are placed in the drivers seat of our lives. This is a core principle that is at the heart of magic and magical practice, as magick can and should be used to mold and improve our lives. 

That can only be done if we're targeting the correct issues, however, so this awareness becomes a life hack and something of a superpower! We become empowered to deconstruct the cause/effect/react loops in our lives, and each entanglement we unknot through the application of our newfound awareness improves. As these situations improve, so do the quality of our lives and our thoughts. We become more fulfilled and less bedraggled, as now we're riding and using the currents in our lives rather than being directed by them. 

Think on this. Its powerful stuff. ;)
Blessings,
-Chris 

Have you ever read something that just 'rings true' in the most obvious of ways? This quote is that way for me, and so it felt correct and timely to share it here given what's in front of us. At a time where fear is such an ever-present influence and conflict abounds, it is only natural that we might be conflicted within. It is only logical that we might feel ill at ease, and when under the weight of something one does not understand, its all too easy to give into the temptation to run from it & hide from it.

Trouble is that when we spend too much time running from something, its all too easy to make a habit of it. That behavior of running becomes a part of our process and a part of what defines us as a person.

Conversely, when we make a point of turning to face whatever it is that's bothering us, we can very often either resolve the trouble, make use of it, or grow from it. If we're really on our game, we can do all three. Doing so creates a kind of internal ferocity and a steadfastness of Will, and that is good for the mind, its good for the body, and its good for the soul. When we begin to embrace Triumphs of the Will, we become indomitable. We become invincible where it matters most: within our minds.

This ability to stand unshaken is a superpower. Especially now, and so I hope this food for thought inspires you to change what needs to be changed within your life. ;)
Blessings,
-Chris

​Good afternoon folks, I hope each of you are doing well today. It’s been a minute since I last wrote anything here, and this topic has been on my mind for a while now. 

This post is going to be more philosophical in its focus with a goal of making headway towards understanding an important point. Attachment is something we all need on some level, as it is our interactions with others that can being us the most joy. Those conversations we share with can bring us to wild parties, satisfying dates, and incredible experiences all, but what happens when they stop doing that for us? At what point is enough enough?

I’m broaching this particular talking point now because it’s been made relevant in much of the work I’ve been doing for others. When and where two people have a beneficial trust between them and they are working as a team, I am often asked to improve upon that harmony and flow. When there’s no such trust & harmony, however, there’s a great deal of bias and harm. 

My sense of it is that we are being pushed to our limits as a species and a society, and as a result some of our relationships are going by the wayside. It’s entirely understandable, but it’s also not helpful unless the relationship going to the wayside is one that doesn’t serve you. When we are in a situation where resources are scarce & barely enough time exists to connect with others, toxic relationships tend to be louder. This loudness can negatively impact other attachments in our lives, so it behooves us to consider the cost v. benefit involved in being in a relationship with others. Put differently, considering the nature of your attachment to others and then acting to improve upon worthwhile attachments can save us a lot of time. 

Conversely, taking a step away from ill fitting attachments can be equally worthwhile. As such, I would invite you to consider these connections that you maintain your day-to-day life. If you feel like someone is keeping your joy hostage, it’s time to find better friends. On the flipside, if you find that this one person is making your life infinitely better, tell them that and treat them like they are having that kind of difference. The more we reinforce these beneficial bonds, the stronger we will be. The stronger our foundations are, the easier this storm is to weather. 

With the philosophical portion of this out of the way, we can instead segue into a discussion on ascertaining the worth of a relationship. This is pretty easy at first blush, as it starts with being mindful of how your interactions with [x] individual make you feel before, during, and after the fact. Coming to understand the emotional flow of these interactions can help you to comprehend what the trends are, and by extension, you can determine what is coming from within you & your efforts and what is being brought to the table by the other party. Taking stock of how often you feel good in walking away from that conversation and how often you feel awful walking away from the interaction is important. Between that and figuring out how much baggage you bring to the party (as we ALL have some!) will help you to determine a basic understanding of this person's merit in your life.

I find that it becomes a bit easier when you've made that initial determination about people, as the good ones are outed as being healthy for us pretty quickly. We really only tend to have misgivings and mixed feelings about people who trigger us in some way, so the next round of work is a bit more in-depth. The second thing I'd recommend as a means of determining a person's overall influence on your life is to do a reading about it. Look into how this person affects you or have someone you trust do it, as that assessment should very well have some impact on your view of this third party you're concerned about.

Finally, take action on what you've found out. If the person in question is wonderful to you, treat 'em like it as best you can. If they're terrible for you, stop associating with them and replace their influence in your life. If they're somewhere in-between, that's where the real work begins. With those people, the next step is where we start to look at how we interact with them and they with us. Fine-tuning those interactions around both your own issues and theirs will help you and they to break out of the unhelpful patterns that bind. 

If you and they can come to an agreement about changes to make within the relationship, all the better. If they're unwilling to make those changes, however, and they're unwilling to work with you, they may quickly find themselves on the naughty list where your life is concerned. While its always a shame when that happens, its important for us to be happy too.

Just some food for thought. Stay safe!
Blessings,
Chris 

​Good morning folks, hope you've each had a blessed Solstice and a pleasant week thus far!

Recently, I spent some time talking to a friend about the nature of life experiences and how they seem to redefine us over time. Its as though experience gradually takes hold and inspires us to see the world differently, and so it is that as we grow, we "level up". This process of leveling up gives us the opportunity to contend with new responsibilities and make ourselves into better men and women.

In this, there is a kind of XP mechanic not unlike what one sees in video games, so this got me thinking. While we cannot see the experience bar anywhere on our HUD, acts of experience-gain are pretty much the same in life as they are in a video game. The more challenging the quest, the more experience you gain and, typically, the better the reward. 

For me, that concept is definitely a bit of a motivator, as I am very much in love with the idea of progress and growth. I find that both directly contribute to our quality of life, where slowing down and choosing not to do much directly hampers our life experiences. The less we do, the less we are motivated to do, and the more insulated from the world we become, the more out-of-touch with it we learn to be.

I find this awareness to be rather inspiring, as when we begin to see different challenges as being a means of gaining XP and growing, they become exciting. If instead of going to another boring Monday meeting to get funding for a project, we're going on a quest to convince the Powers That Be to partake of an important venture for the good of the Kingdom, the humdrum becomes kind of epic in its proportions....or at least in how we view them.

That shift in perception is an act of magic, just as growing to confront these obstacles before you is! These little bits of magic become a matter of gaining XP, leveling up, and learning to be a better whatever-you-choose-to-be. Its a bit silly on the surface, but what's the harm in choosing to  see these engagements as epic adventures? It might just give you more reason to strive, to try, and to prevail.

Something about this makes me smile, and I hope the same for you. Be safe and be blessed folks.
-Chris