Talking with the ancestors

 

Now that Hallow-een is near, also known as Samhain, us Pagans believe that the spirits on the other side can communicate with us, as the veil between the worlds is thinner now. And I'm ready to send my love to these spirits that offer nothing but good to my life. The others can just take their hate and find it's only reflected back to them.

I'll share a little about my altar, which will show my ancestors who have recently passed through the veil, as well as some important earlier ones for this time in my life.

My grandmother, Ada, was a Christian Science Practioner. She helped people heal, and I figure she would be good to have around as we continue in Phase 3 of North Carolina's COVID-19 pandemic steps. Her approach to healing was to call upon the same powers that Jesus used to heal the sick. I'm pretty sure that energy or power is still available today.

And of course on my altar stand two goddesses, or figures that remind me of the values for which they stand.

Themis, a young wise woman, holds her hands out to weigh the actions of people against the laws of nature...as her mother Gaia set forth. A lot of these laws have been violated recently, and the justice that mother nature provides will continue to strike humanity with many environmental issues including global warming.

Hecate, the crone, stands at the crossroads of life, helping with decisions as to which direction will take us to our destination, answering questions that we may not know we have. Again, her wisdom offers assistance, and knowledge that we need. She is also connected with the underworld of death. She is a strong ally to have at this time.

The stone circles were all built before Christianity came to Western Europe...so are surmised to have been locations of religious significance to earlier civilizations. Most Pagans are interested in them as links to practices long forgotten. The solstices and equinoxes are recognized as part of the meaning of stone circles, and many early sites of significance for these earlier cultures.

Just a note quickly to my conservative friends and relatives. Pagans are a group of people who believe in the laws of nature, the significance of older cultures' anthropologies, and living to support our one home, the earth. All life has equal standing to Pagans. We do not hurt any living thing if possible. There is no wish for power over another living thing. A Pagan doesn't have weird sexual practices, nor does he eat babies. The do not put a hex on other people. That would be our sisters, the Wiccans...another recognized religious group where hexes may be made to heal negative energies.