Scottish Witches
15:05 Jan 16 2011
Times Read: 676
It was not until the beginning of the 19th century that the fear of witches began noticeably to die out. Before that it was seriously believed that certain women were endowed by the Devil with supernatural powers which they used for evil purposes.
This again is a survival of a pagan cult common to Europe. Long after the pagan world had become (nominally) Christian, people continued to practice the old rites.
A witch persecution mania spread over the continent in the 15th century. It took some time to reach Scotland, and it lingered there longer than in other parts. Today we dismiss witchcraft as an outworn superstition, but at that time any old and eccentric person was in real danger of being tried as a witch—younger people, too—and witch trials were far from satisfactory. Many innocent folk (even those of noble birth) suffered torture. In the 16th century, for instance, Lady Glamis was publicly burned for witchcraft on the Calton Hill, Edinburgh, “with great commiseration of the people, in regard to her noble blood and her singular beauty, and suffering all, though a woman, with man-like courage."
Witch Pools, where witch suspects were lowered into the water in ducking stools, occur here and there. There is one at Lunan, and another at Abernyte called the Witches’ Dub.
Witches were also tried at Perth, Forfar and elsewhere. It was said that they held their revels at Caterthun (near Brechin), at the Loch of Forfar, at Petterden (between Dundee and Forfar), and in the vicinity of Kirriemuir.
Jean, the Witch, wife of Cardean, was well known around Meigle. She lived in a cottage alongside the Dean Water, with the Witches’ Knowe nearby. Jean’s sorceries were much in demand for the cure of cattle diseases. Her advice was often reasonable and good, but people feared her, and she was said to hold meetings, often very quarrelsome ones with the Devil. At Boglebee (near Kilspindie) there is a tumulus and two large stones. They are said to have been flung by the giant son of a witch who lived at Collace. He used her mutch as a sling, and meant to land the stones in Perth, but the string broke and they landed here.
The Devil appears in many Tayside place—names, and he seems to own a lot of property along the Angus coast especially. His “head” is there (an isolated stack of red sandstone) and so are his “anvil,” his “letterbox” and his “grindstone.” The anvil is a rock in the gloomy portals of the Dark Cave. The letter box is a chink in the rocks through which a turmoil of waters can be seen below. The grindstone can be heard, not seen—it is a whirring noise that occurs near Auchmithie at certain states of wind and tide. In olden days no Auchmithie fisherman dared go to sea when that dreaded sound was heard.
There is the “Devil’s Knapp” at Lunan, and the “Devil’s Knowe” at Brunton; there is the famous “Devil’s Elbow” on the Cairnwell Road to Braemar. And many others.
The Devil himself has appeared from time to time. It is recorded that he arrived in a cloud of sulphur smoke at a mill at Lethnot, but was soon routed completely by the local minister. The Lethnot district, incidentally, is notable for its old tales and superstitions. Its Whisky Road (or Priest’s Road) is now an almost forgotten hill-track, but at one time it was almost a main road for foot travellers between the Highlands and the Lowlands, and was well used by drovers, harvesters and smugglers, as well as by the minister of Lochlee, the “other half” of whose parish lay on the south side of Wirren, “the hill of springs.”
Scottish Witch Confessions
Almost all witches who have been executed in Scotland for this alleged crime have confessed, and their confessions are remarkably uniform, particularly as to their carnal dealings with the devil. This is not to be wondered at, as the report of the confession of one produced similar impressions upon the disturbed imagination of another, and none confessed until they were reduced to a state of delirious and bewildered imbecility.
Kept without sleep, and incessantly tormented in their bodies by prickers, or in their minds by the clergy; excluded from all but their tormentors ; believing what they had been told of others, although conscious of their own innocence ; hearing of nothing but terrible horrors, expecting no mercy, and with the dread of the bale-fire continually before their eyes, when worn out with sufferings, at last they were left alone without fire, light, or comfort, in some dungeon, kirk-steeple, or such place,
in the state of partial derangement to whch they were reduced, there can be no doubt that they dreamt of the pitiable absurdities which they afterwards believed to be true, confessed, and were burnt, while their nearest relatives dared not, even to themselves, complain of the wrong.
Scottish Witch Tests
When a person was accused of witchcraft, pins were thrust into the body, and if the searchers happened upon a place where, from hardness of the flesh or any other cause, acute pain was not inflicted, tlns was an insensible mark, and held an infallible proof of the person being in league with Satan.
If the ministers and judges themselves had been properly pricked all over the body, after being kept from sleep four days, they would have been glad to remain still and motionless, if the pin had come into a place where it excited no pain. Yet by such test was guilt or innocence decided on, and many lost their lives.
1597. Isobell Straquhan could not only produce love, but remove hatred. Walter Ronaidson had used to strike his wife, who took consultation with Straquhan, and she did take pieces of paper, and sew them thick with threadof divers colours, and did put them in the barn amongst the corn, and from henceforth the said Walter did never strike his wife, neither yet once found fault with her, whatsoever she did. He was subdued “entirely to her love.”
Scottish Orkney Witch
Some sixty years since an old weird woman lived in Stromness, who sold winds to mariners at a remarkably low figure. For the small charge of six-pence, “awful Bessie Miller” would sell a wind to a skipper from any point of the compass he chose to have it.
In Orkney there are, it is said, old women still living who earn an “honest penny” by controlling nature; there is not a pain, from the first that a child can cause to the last a mortal endures in getting rid of mortality, but these crones profess to relieve.
We learn too, on competent authority, that old Orkney women still retain an unaccountable aversion to turbot, and avoid naming it when crossiun sounds and bays in boats.
The Witches of Fife
Along the coast of Fife, in villages like Culross and Pittenweem, historical markers now include the fact that some women were executed as witches within these burghs. Still the reality of what happened the night that Janet Cornfoot was lynched in the harbour is hard to grasp as one sits in the harbour of Pittenweem watching the fishing boats unload their catch and the pleasure boats rising with the tide. How could people do this to an old woman? Why was no-one ever brought to justice? And why would anyone defend such a lynching? It is difficult to understand the economic failure of a sea voyage being attributed to the village hag, not bad weather. Witch-hunting was related to ideas, values, attitudes and political events. It was complicated process, involving religious and civil authorities, village tensions and the fears of the elite. The witch-hunt in Scotland also took place at a time when one of the main agendas was the creation of a righteous or godly society. As a result, religious authorities had control over aspects of the lives of the people which seem every bit as strange to us today as might any beliefs about magic or witchcraft. That the witch-hunt in Scotland, and specifically in Fife, should have happened at this time was not accidental.
Dirleton Witches
A short day's ride from Edinburgh, sixteenth century Dirleton boasted fine lodgings and splendid formal terraced gardens. It was a perfect retreat for the king when pestilence broke out in the wynds of old Edinburgh in 1585. The young James stayed in quarantine at Dirleton that May, feasting and play-acting until his host 'fell deadle sick'. The Devil himself turned up on the green beneath the castle wall in June 1649, taking the form of 'a greate black man'. Several of his servants were held in Dirleton's pit prison, where the Devil's marks were found upon them by the witchfinder John Kincaid. They remained in the pit until the order for their execution by strangling and burning came through from Parliament.
Dornoch Witches
In the year 1722 the last judicial execution in Scotland for the crime of witchcraft was carried out within the royal burgh of Dornoch. Witchcraft in various forms had been prevalent throughout these isolated northern areas during the 17th century, so much so that John, 12th earl of Sutherland, begged his brother, Sir Robert Gordon, to persuade James VI to help put some of these witches to trial 'or ellis honest peopil can not liue in that contrey'. The king regarded witchcraft as a most heinous crime, so statutes were promptly passed authorising magistrates to impose the severest penalties.
Most forms of witchcraft, as practised by ordinary country people, were fairly harmless, involving simple charms and divination to find lost or stolen goods. However, 'evildoers' usually ended up before the kirk session, or, in more serious cases, were dealt with by the presbytery.
In many parishes throughout Sutherland there were old women who were reputed to be in league with the devil and to possess powers which they used against their neighbours, who usually feared and hated them. Some were simply wicked old hags who played on the superstitions of their neighbours for personal gain; the majority were merely lonely and decrepit, rendered secretive and peculiar in their habits by virtue of their senility and isolation, easy targets for the ever-watchful witch hunters.
Such a one was Janet Horne, an old woman from Kintradwell in the parish of Loth on the northeast coast of Sutherland. A former lady's maid who had travelled in foreign parts with her mistress, she had a daughter with a deformed hand, and in her old age her neighbours became convinced she was a witch. She was accused of having transformed her daughter into a pony, which she rode to witches' meetings and on Satan's errands. Mother and daughter were arrested and incarcerated in the old tolbooth of Dornoch. The daughter somehow managed to escape, but her deformed hand, which was conveniently seen to be in the shape of a horse's hoof, was eagerly accepted as proof that the mother had failed to restore her completely to human form after some devilish midnight ride. Her fate was sealed when she failed to repeat the Lord's Prayer correctly in Gaelic, unfortunately using the words, 'Our Father who wert in heaven' instead of 'art in heaven'. She was alleged to be praying to the devil, who had been expelled by God from heaven for disobedience.
The trial and subsequent execution of Janet Home were presided over by the sheriff depute, one Captain David Ross of Dean, who, according to Sir Walter Scott in Tales of a Grandfather, 'was an ignorant provincial judge who was later censured by his superiors for the proceedings'. The censure came too late to save Janet Horne from her cruel fate and a place in history. She was stripped, tarred and feathered and carted around the burgh as a warning to others. The day was a cold one, and when the party arrived at the execution spot, the pitiful old wretch is said to have warmed her hands at the fire prepared for her burning, saying 'Eh, what a bonnie blaze,' and commented that so many neighbours gathered round made it a cheery sight.
The horror of her eventual demise inside a blazing pitch barrel needs no description. She paid the full, gruesome penalty demanded by the law of the time and became the last of the many who were 'wirriet at the stake and brint in assis'. Her memorial is a stone in a garden on the links and the nearby Witch's Pool.
Crook of Devon Witches
It is hard to believe that the peaceful village of Crook of Devon, about four miles to the west of Kinross, Scotland, was the scene of an infamous killing of a coven of so-called witches, which took place in the summer of 1662. Detailed accounts of the witches trials have survived and we are told that the court met on five different occasions, probably at Tullibole Castle.
At the first trial the accused were Agnes Murie of Kilduff, Bessie Henderson of Pitfar and Isabella Rutherford of Crook of Devon, Scotland. After a long and close investigation, they were unanimously convicted and sentenced to be: "all three taken away to the place called Lamblaires, bewest the Cruik Miln, the place of their execution, tomorrow being the fourth day of this instant month of April, betwixt the hours of one and two in the afternoon, and there to be stranglit to the death by the hands of the hangman, and thereafter their bodies to be burnt to ashes for their trespass, whereupon William Donaldson, doomster, gave doom."
At the second trial about three weeks later, there were five accused who had been incriminated by the first three as having been present with them at their alleged meetings with the devil. These were the warlock, Robert Wilson of Crook of Devon, Bessie Neil of Gelvin, Margaret Lister of Kilduff, Janet Paton of Crook of Devon and Agnes Brugh of Gooselands. All met with a similar 'doom' and were executed the following day.
Less than two weeks later, there were two accused: Margaret Hoggin, 'relict of Robert Henderson' and Janet Paton of Kilduff, 'relict of David Kirk'. Margaret Hoggin was apparently reprieved, owing to her great age of 79, but for Janet Paton there was no escape and she was strangled and burned between four and five o'clock in the afternoon of the day of her trial, Alexander Abernethie being her executioner.
An interval of over two months passed before the next trial was held, apparently because the remaining members of the coven had fled. But on 21 July, two prisoners brought to trial were Janet Brugh, wife of James Morels, and Christian Grieve, wife of Andrew Beveridge. Janet was convicted and executed the following day while Christian was acquitted, only to be re-tried and convicted by the same jury on 8 October. She also was 'stranglit' and burned by Thomas Gibson, doomster, five days later between the hours of two and three o'clock in the afternoon.
Several reasons have been suggested for these convictions. The individuals may have been of unpleasant or antisocial character - evidence against them was probably concocted by malicious neighbours - and confessions could have been obtained by keeping the accused in darkness and solitary confinement until they hallucinated. The jury consisted of 15 eminently respectable local landowners, but there was at that time a deep and unreasoning belief in witchcraft and the power of Satan.
The church ministers on the jury were particularly interested in finding out what Satan looked like, and they must have been rather disappointed at the variety of descriptions they were given by the women. One said he was a bearded man with grey clothes and blue bonnet; another said he was 'a bonny lad'; to another he appeared in filthy clothes and a Spanish hat; his coat was black, grey or dun-coloured; to one 'witch' he appeared as a huge black man. But they agreed that the Devil was 'amorous and ardent'. The warlock complained that Satan promised wealth which he never got, and gave him food he could not eat.
All these confessions would be quite amusing if it were not for their tragic conclusion. Nowadays the little hillock of Lamblaires, in a field beside Crook of Devon, looks peaceful, nothing indicates the dreadful scenes that must have taken place at this spot.
[taken from: TourScotland website]
15:52 Jan 14 2011
Times Read: 702
FESTIVALS AND CELEBRATIONS
"The notations of the Celtic year belong to the Christian period, old style. If there are any traces of Pagan times they are only such as are to be gathered from a few names and ceremonies. The four seasons are known as earrach, spring, samhradh, summer, fogharadh, harvest, and geamhradh, winter....There can be no doubt the origins of the names belong to a period anterior to Christianity." ~John Gregorson Campbell~
Indeed earrach is derived from ear, meaning the head or front, also the east. Samhradh is from samh, the sun. Fogharadh is from fogh, meaning hospitality and abundance. Geamhradh is connected to geamhtach, meaning stiff, thick, binding, and thus sees tied-in with the idea of snow and ice.
With the Scottish Quarter Days differing from the English Quarter Days, F. Marian McNeill concludes that "Scotland follows the ancient customs of the Celtic peoples, and England that of non-Celtic peoples of Europe." The Scottish Quarter Days are as follows: FEBRUARY 2 - CANDLEMAS MAY 15 - WHITSUN or OLD BHEALLTAINN AUGUST 1 - LAMMAS NOVEMBER 11 - MARTINMAS, or OLD HALLOWMAS
The ancient Celtic year started on the eve of November 1. Then in 527 C.E., this was changed and New Year's Day was declared to be March 25. Almost a thousand years later this was changed again to January 1. In Scotland it wasn't until 1600 that New Year's Day was first celebrated on January 1. The PectiWita, in common with many Witches, still celebrate the start of the year at Samhuinn, though their Samhuinn is November 11 rather than November 1.
The calendar, festivals, customs, and celebrations can become very complicated, especially when you start studying the changes that have taken place over the centuries. But the PectiWita celebrated only on those festivals/dates which were important to them. These were: SAMHUINN - NOVEMBER 11 YULE - DECEMBER 22 (Feill Fionnain) BEALLTAINN - MAY 15 MIDSUMMER - JULY 5 (Feill-Sheathain)
SAMHUINN (pronounced sow-wen) This is the start of the year and the start of winter. This, then, was a time when thoughts were on the Horned God who oversaw the hunt in earlier days, for this was the time when humankind had to go back to hunting animals for food, to get through the winter. There would usually be a general celebration in the villages and towns at the time of the Sabbats. Since this particular one marks the start of a new year, in many parts of the Highlands household fires are extinguished and then the first fire of the new year is kindled from a piece of wood taken from the Samhuinn ritual fire.
First thing in the morning of the New Year the head of the household, for luck, will treat everyone in the house to a dram of whiskey and a spoonful of half-cooked sugan an ancient Celtic dish. The toast is Bliadhna mhath ur dhuit "A good New Year to you." The response is Mar sin duit fhein is moran diu "The same to you, and many of them."
"First-footing" is treated very seriously. The very first person to enter the house on New Year's Day should be a dark-haired man bearing gifts of a piece of coal or peat, and/or salt and bread. Many households will not allow anyone to enter the house until the appropriate first-footer has come.
New Year's Day is a great day for taking precautions against bad luck, both to the humans and to the animals of the household. Juniper was burned in the byre; the house was decked with mountain ash: door-posts, walls, even cattle were sprinkled with wine.
One of the methods of divination practices by almost everyone on New Year's Day was to toss a shoe over the roof of the house. The shoe had to be held by the tip when thrown. The thrower would then rush around to the other side of the house to examine how the shoe had landed. It was believed that in which direction the toe pointed, that was a direction the thrower would be taking before long. However, if the shoe landed with the sole upper-most, this was a sign of misfortune to come.
FEILL-FIONNAIN or YULE The shortest day of the year and the longest night. At this time the sun rises and sets at its most southerly point. The day usually falls on December 22nd, though this will vary from year to year. Feill-Fionnain means "Fionn's Eve," for the great Celtic god Fionn, or Finn (equated by some scholars with Lugh).
Yule is celebrated with a large bonfire on the top of a ben. Since it can be very cold and sometimes snowy, the fire is usually much appreciated! As at Samhuinn, however, there is a sacredness about the fire. The main log in it, the largest one, is the Yule log. This must have been cut from the celebrant's own tree or have been a gift from a neighbour. It must not be a log that was bought. It is traditionally oak, ash or beech. In some areas of the Highlands the Pictish Witch will carve into the Yule log the semblance of an old woman. This is known as the Cailleach Nolliaich, or the Yule Old Wife. A toast to future prosperity is drunk, from the Quaich, over a log before it is taken away to the ritual fire, and libations poured over it. At the start of the ritual the Yule Log stands to one side, to be placed on the fire at a particular point.
BEALLTAINN May Day festivities were originally part of the general Bealltainn celebrations and the erection of the Maypoles was a common practice. A general rather than specific acquisition of fertility was intended by the widespread use of trees and foliage in May Day celebrations throughout Europe. In the belief that the tree-spirit would fertilize women and cattle, and make the crops grow, houses and farm buildings were decked with greenery, while whole trees were cut and then re-erected in the village. Although later a pole was left permanently erected and then decorated at each year's May festivities, originally a new tree was brought each year. Since the tree embodies the newly awakened spirit of vegetation, a dead tree would hardly have the same power, and the re-use of a "dead" pole indicated that by then the real meaning of the custom had been forgotten, although as a phallic symbol it could still suggest the flow of energy between cosmos and earth which people were seeking to invoke.
The sometimes "orgiastic" fertility festivities associated with Bealltainn were too blatant to be adopted by the Christian Church, which had assimilated so many Pagan practices. By 1644 the Puritans had got Parliament to ban May festivities and to do away with the Maypole. But with the return of Charles II in 1660, the people joyfully brought back their old beliefs and practices. On the first Bealltainn after Charles's return, a Maypole 134 feet tall was erected in the Strand and remained there until 1717.
Bealltainn falls on the old date of May 15th. As with all other PetiWita Sabbats, the ritual starts on the rising of the moon the night before. Have your Quaich available, filled with wine or ale. The staff may be decorated with bright ribbons, greenery and wild flowers.
FEILL-SHEATHAIN, or MIDSUMMER July 5th is the date of the Old Midsummer. Feill-Sheathain means "Swithin's Eve." Swithin is the old form of John, the common form being Iain, Eoin, and Eathin. Many ancient Pagan sites dedicated to Baldur were rededicated, by the Christian Church, to St. John the Baptist. Baldur was, of course, a radiant Sun god.
Throughout Scotland, and the rest of Britain, villagers would make "cartwheels" of straw and dip them in pitch. On Midsummer's Eve these would be set alight and bowled down the hillsides, to give power to the sun god. It the flames went out before the wheel reached the bottom of the hill, it presaged a bad harvest.
Torches are frequently lit from the ritual bonfire. In the Orkneys these torches, made primarily of heather, are then carried through the cow sheds to keep away sickness and to make the cattle fertile. In other parts of the country the torches are carried around the fields and the houses of the village, always moving clockwise or deiseil.
The smoke of the ritual fire was also held in awe. To be censed by it ensured a healthy year to come. Mothers would hold their babies in the smoke of the Midsummer bonfire to bless them. Jumping over the fire, as it blazed, was another time-honoured custom. Highland women were prone to leap over the fire with their skirts held high, exposing their genitals to the smoke and flame, to bring fertility. Ashes from the fire were sought after. Ashes were rubbed onto the foreheads of children to bless them.
SCOTTISH WITCHCRAFT
15:07 Jan 14 2011
Times Read: 708
The Highlands of what is now Scotland were earlier inhabited by people known as the Picts, or Pechts. In fact, this area was then known as "Pictland" and did not become "Scotland" until as late as the eleventh century. A second century Roman geographer, Ptolemy, drew the earliest map of the region. On it he showed four tribes: the Venicones, Tazali, Vacomagi and Caledoni. By the third century these four had become two tribes, the Caledoni and the Maeatae, and by the end of the third century merged as one nation, the Picts.
These people have long been a mystery, partly because they spoke a language that is now lost. When the Scots became a dominant force in the welding together of medieval Scotland, it was not in their interests to keep alive any Pictish traditions.
The Scots, incidentally, were immigrants from Ireland who, having come first as raiders, by the fifth century had settled in the under-populated areas of the west. By the seventh century they were virtually masters of the lowlands.
The right of succession to the throne was matrilinear-in other words, reckoned through the mother. This practice was in existence for well over three hundred years, that we know of, and probably much longer.
Most of what was learned about the Picts was through their art. They used powerful animal symbols and geometric forms. Jewelry, metalwork, stone carvings: all show the same highly skilled craftsmanship.
The form of Witchcraft that we shall be dealing with is that which stems from the time of the Picts. The late Aidan Breac, a respected teacher and practitioner, termed it "PectiWita", or "Pictish Witchcraft." From just how far back it comes it is impossible to say, but it is certain that it differs in many ways from the Wicca of England; of the Gardnerian, Keltic, Saxon, Alexandrian and other varieties. This is of the old Scotland.
Witchcraft was practised in Scotland from earliest times. During the reign of Natholocus, in the second century, there was a famous Witch living on the island of Iona (a tiny island off the coast of the large island of Mull, in the Hebrides, off the west coast of Scotland.) Such was her renown that the king sent a trusted messenger to her to find out what was going to be the result of a rebellion then building in him kingdom. The Witch said that the king would soon be murdered, not by an enemy, but by one of his most trusted friends. When the messenger demanded who it was, she said it was him. After thinking it over, not wanting to report what the Witch had said, and perhaps be killed by the king in anticipation, the messenger did stab the king to death.
There are many cases of Witchcraft throughout Scottish history, reflecting the bitter crusade pursued by Protestants and Catholics alike, in their paranoia over possible "servants of the devil." The vast majority of Scottish Witches, like their Pictish forebears, practiced as Solitaries, only occasionally coming together for special celebrations. Witchcraft was first made legally punishable, in Scotland, by an Act passed by the Scottish Parliament, in the reign of Mary, in 1563.
HISTORIC SCOTTISH MAGICK
Scottish history and legend is replete with stories of magickal workings, spells and charms. A lot of this reflects the very forms of the "airt" used by the "PectiWita", or Pict Witches.
In Orkney, there is a charm performed to bring a good supply of butter. To ensure a favourable breeze, fishermen and seamen at Gourock Bay would pace seven times around a large monolith standing on the cliffs. Some still do it today. In Moray, Pechts would cut down woodbine in the waxing of the March moon. These they would twist into wreaths and preserve for a year and a day. After that time young children suffering from fever could be passed through three times and be cured. Even today, throughout the highlands many people carry a lucky penny or "peighinn pisich". This has to be turned over three times, at the first glimpse of the full moon. These go on and on, and as mentioned earlier, many are still practised today.
GODS OF THE PICTS
Traces of the old Druidic reverence for the sun still linger throughout Scotland. It was believed that both the sun and moon could exert strong magickal influences. In this respect the moon was more powerful than the sun.
The "Mother of All" was CAILLEACH: an old "hag" often depicted with the teeth of a wild bear, or with boar's tusks. She was reputed to be a great worker of spells. Cailleach has also been identifies with Scotia, after whom Scotland was named.
If there was a male deity who was especially acknowledged it was GRUAGACH. This name means "the long-haired one." In the western highlands he was placated by oblations of milk, which were poured into a hollow stone. He was looked upon as the guardian of cattle and as a valiant warrior and a sorcerer.
Others were:
TARANIS A thunder god.
SHONEY Ensured good fishing.
MUIREARTACH "the hag of the sea." She was the mother of the western storms.
FIONN A warrior, magician and poet. He destroyed giants and monsters.
SLUAG (Slooa) the Host of the Unforgiven Dead. He was the inventor of the Ogham writing.
SPIRITS
There was a strong belief in the earth and water spirits, of various types. Earth worship was a prominent feature of Scottish paganism. Children would often be concieved on a special piece of earth or earthen mound. Offerings would be made at standing stones and sacred areas.
GIANTS, supposed to have been scattered generally across Scotland.
KELPIES, especially found in the Hebrides, had human appearance but may take the form of horses. They tempt humans to ride them, then plunge into the water to drown them.
BROWNIES, usually in pairs, look after boats. They seem to like to argue.
MERMAIDS, found scattered along the northern coasts. They are the lovely daughters of the Fin Folk: tall dark men who wear close-fitting silver scales. They live under the sea, although they also cultivated farms on the dry land.
TOOLS AND ACCESSORIES
STAFF The first tool is the staff. If you need to compare it to tools of other traditions, it is the Sword and the Magick Wand rolled into one. This tool has many uses from traveling staff, to weapon and even to consecrate a ritual circle. It is a personal item and is called "an luirgean" or "an lorg ohn" in Gaelic.
DIRK Second working tool. This is a long-bladed knife that often have engraved or etched Scottish motifs.
KEEK-STANE Third and last is the main tool. In effect, this is like a scrying stone, or the equivalent of a crystal ball. It can be made of glass, concave on one side and convex on the other. The convex side is painted black. It is usually held in a box.
ADDITIONAL TOOLS
MOOL Usually an earthenware bowl. It represents earth.
QUAICH A cup. Some are made of horns that can be hung from a belt. Usually saved for ritual purposes.
INCENSE Favourites were Sweet Flag, Scotch Heather, Catnip, Milfoil, and resin from Scotch pine trees.
BELL Not used by everyone. Used to achieve the right "vibrations". Choose one that sounds "right" to you.
1/1/11...
18:45 Jan 01 2011
Times Read: 737
One (1)
1 (one) is a number, numeral, and the name of the glyph representing that number. It is the natural number following 0 and preceding 2. It represents a single entity. One is sometimes referred to as unity or unit as an adjective. For example, a line segment of "unit length" is a line segment of length 1.
Is considered to be a primordial unity. The beginning. The Creator. It the First Cause or as some cultures refer, the First Mover. One is the sum of all possibilities. It is essence, the Center. One is referred to isolation. One springs forth, upsurges. It is seen as the number that gives cause to duality as multiplicity and back to final unity.
Chinese: refer to one as Yang, masculine; celestial. It is seen as an auspicios number. One is The Monad. Christian : God the Father; the Godhead.
Hebrew: Adonai, the Lord, the Most High, the I am, hidden intelligence.
Islamic: One refers to one as God as unity; the Absolute; self sufficient.
Pathagorean: One as meaning Spirit; God, from which all things come. It is the very essence, the Monad.
Taoism "Tao begets One, One begets Two, Two begets Three and Three begets all things."
~~~~
TAROT
As a life path number, one signifies individuality and independence. As an expression number it suggests self-sufficiency and self-reliance. One is the first number used when counting and therefore it is considered to have great power. Because one signifies the beginning of an enterprise, it is very egocentric and prefers to be the center of attention. One can be happy, loving, romantic, dynamic and charismatic, but on the downside it can be egotistical, selfish and melodramatic.
The meaning of One is about the initial point of contact. The Zohar indicates: "When the Unknown of Unknowns chose to be revealed, it came as one point of light."
This statement is profound. It is in this statement that we derive the prime meaning of number One. If we come from the understanding that prior to One there is void - we begin to see the gravity represented by One.
Effectually, One changes the landscape. It alters the entire view of what was before.
When we encounter One's in our lives or in the cards we are asked to recognize that which sets the fire to burn. In other words, we must observe the point of ignition in our lives. This analogy is best illustrated with a few questions you may ask yourself when confronted with the meaning of One:
* What is the point of contact that lights up my life?
* What beginning action must be taken to move me in a desired direction?
* Where is the point of entry? That space I can enter into in order to clearly see and change my landscape?
Alternatively, the meaning of One is also an indicator of completion. Just as we see reference to the beginning (the Alpha) One also symbolizes the ending (the Omega). Even in the ending's One is changing the landscape of our lives, because as an ending approaches we must become aware of a new beginning on its heels.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly the number One reminds us to focus. It is only through concentration that we are able to accomplish anything. With singleness of mind, body and spirit there is no end to our potential. In this light, we can identify our objective and see clearly to our prime purpose (which, ideally, would be to ease into the knowledge of our highest, truest selves).
Meaning of One in Western numerology and Tarot ? a quick reference:
* Will
* Force
* Drive
* Unity
* Focus
* Action
* Vision
* Clarity
* Initiation
* Purpose
* Ambition
* Solidarity
* Narrowing
* Beginnings
Visually, the meaning of One illustrates:
* Door - One way in, one way out
* Street - A path in a new direction
* Staff - A motion in one direction
* Arrow - Hitting the focused target
* Sword - Cutting through to reach clarity
* Building - Reaching higher and higher
Common associations with the meaning of One:
* Tarot Cards: The Magician, The Sun, Ace of Swords, Ace of Wands, Ace of Cups, Ace of Pentacles
* Colors: White and Red
* Letters: A, J and S
* Qabalah symbol: Aleph
* Astrological: Neptune, Uranus, The Sun
Potential Personality:
Those who resonate with number One are driven and ambitious; they get things done. Their ability to focus is amazing, and they can concentrate even in the midst of chaos around them. One people are usually objective, and shrewd, able to make hard decisions with ease. Sometimes these people are stubborn, obstinate and have inflated egos. However, when these people are set in one specific direction or given a constructive goal, they will excel. Here the goal overshadows the ego as this personality has purpose now - this makes him/her congruent with the vibration of One, and thus successful.
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Characteristics of Numerology Number 1
Below you find a list of the main characteristics of the number 1. There are thousands of different human characteristics and each of them is represented by one of the numbers between 1 and 9.
The following list presents only a subset of all possible human characteristics, but it's nevertheless a good starting point and it should enable you to match specific personality traits with their corresponding numbers.
Number 1 is the most individualistic of all numbers.
You most likely have some of the following strengths and talents at your disposal if the number 1 appears in your numerology chart:
Extraordinary leadership skills, very ambitious, driven, goal-oriented, strong will power, courageous, unconventional, inventive, creative, original, pioneer, unique approach to problems, independent, individualistic, great potential for success.
Here are some of the career choices that might suit you particularly well if the number 1 is predominant in your chart:
Entrepreneur, leader, manager, business person, inventor, scientist, ideally you should be your own boss.
Some of the following weaknesses, which are associated with the number 1, could slow down or even prevent your progress. But don't worry, it's very unlikely that all of the listed characteristics are part of your personality.
Most probably, only one or a few of them will belong to you:
Stubborn, dominant, impatient, concerned with status and appearance, selfish, egotistic, angry, aggressive, demands respect and attention, pride, need to feel in command.
COMMENTS
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Blackstaff
21:02 Jan 17 2011
Love it, love it, LOVE IT. You should compile these and put them in an ebook and sell it. Just a thought.
PAGAN
21:39 Jan 17 2011