What this means to you is that Spiritual Counseling for Beginners is free again.  Intermediate Spiritual Counseling is still $150 but now this includes the printed certificate.  While it’s still under construction though, it’s all free, so feel free to browse around.

Agate

It comes in many colors and patterns.  Though most agate is fairly inexpensive, it has a very high sentimental and spiritual value to many.  Just about all faiths on Earth prize a particular type of agate for its energetic properties or symbolic meaning.

It is the mentioned in the Bible as a necessary stone in the priest’s breastplate.  It was said to aid in judgement and to help one achieve the correct mental and spiritual state for their work.  Carnelian agate is prized by many Muslims for protective talismans.  Also, sometimes the bands form the name of Allah in Arabic.  These stones are particularly highly prized.

In American southeastern Hoodoo, agate is commonly used for protection and to “set things in stone”.  Black agate is protective against negative witchcraft.  Blue agate, especially in circular bands, protects against the evil eye.

Different varieties and colors have different mystical properties, but generally, they are for boosting energy or power, protection, healing, and balancing the yin and yang.  They are a power stone for Geminis and can help break the melancholy common in Cancers who fit their astrological sign a little too well.

Because of its combination of hardness and its fine grain, agate is an excellent stone for both mundane and magical tools and jewelry.  It can hold a carved symbol or prayer through years of wear and tear.

These days when many are suffering from being overwhelmed and pollution and misnourishment causes energy problems and chronic fatigue, agate is an essential tool in a crystal therapists’ arsenal.

I’m not saying that gender specific charities are wrong, it’s just that I want to know exactly who is getting what and why, when I give the tenth of my income that I must, to a charity or spiritual organization.  If I am giving, for instance, to earthquake relief, I want to know that everybody who has been hurt will get care regardless of their gender or orientation.  If anything, the main consideration should be age, not gender.

I want to know that if a teenaged boy has been injured or rendered an orphan and homeless, he is not going to get passed over in favor of a woman with a splinter whose relatives with a summer house in the Bahamas are waiting to take her in.  I want to know that if it was me who was looking for shelter in a war or natural disaster, my sons would be as welcome as my daughters.

So I am seeking charities that are not gender biased.  It is important to me because in a bad situation wherein strong hands and arms and legs are needed to fix a situation or rebuild, men are needed.  I believe that there would be much less looting and other chaos if men are brought into relief efforts instead of being shut out.

If you know of any organizations that are truly egalitarian, please comment.

This is all good, but as spiritual people, we must take care that we don’t abandon God while embracing Goddess, or ignore the masculine forces of Nature.

It is especially disheartening for me, with Vodun as my home faith, to see people co-opting female/feminine Orishas without any understanding of them or their place in the Yoruba or diaspora pantheons.  Somehow, the vast majority of them pounce onto Yemaya without first, going through Eshu.  There is a reason that everyone must ask Eshu before approaching other Orishas.  If one does not have the proper attitude of reverence, one cannot successfully work with Nature.  There is a good reason that the Orisha we approach first with reverence is identified male, and it’s not just because his first human avatar was.  There’s a reason he chose a male body first, with whom to enter the human consciousness.

The female may carry babies and give birth.  This is no small task.  The male however, provides the seed, provides for the mother (or his female relatives in matriarchal or heavily matrilineal cultures), physically and psychologically protects her, and does the vast majority of the warrior and builder duties that keep societies functioning.  Without male presence, children would have to be born walking and talking.

Yet in western culture, maleness is being villainized.  We’re told that there is a rapist or murderer lurking in every dark place, waiting to strike, and we’re told that these are almost invariably male.  We are taught to suppress any hint of masculinity in our boys except as it directly profits a woman.  Some Pagan and Wiccan feminists even attempt to force feminist political agendas through magic, without considering the long term effects, much less what the spirits who nurture humanity may want.

A spiritual person should be able to see through all the mess, and should understand the need for reality and for balance.  A spiritual person should have a God in harmony with their Goddess.

A spiritual person should be egalitarian, not feminist.  The spirits do not have a political agenda.  Where you may have a closer affinity to feminine spirits if you’re female or have been driven that way because of a special talent (you may be two-spirit regardless of your orientation), you should have place for the masculine as well.

…and for goodness sake, if you’re incorporating spirits or paths from the Vodun or diaspora systems, get into Eshu first.

We all know at least one Goddess proclaiming person whose life is in shambles.  They’ve alienated the men in their lives as they are attempting to distance themselves from masculine spirituality.  Yet they claim that since they’ve embraced the Goddess, they’re doing the right thing.  As the years go by, you’ve seen them become ever more shrill in this proclamation, and yet become ever more hollow and shallow.  If you’ve ever been in a coven or group where it seemed like a competition to be the most “empowered” and felt uncomfortable with this, that was your animus and probably Eshu with Shango singing backup, telling you to get out of there, and rightly so.

Respect the masculine in harmony with the feminine, and you’ll find many things in your life improve naturally.  You’ll feel more free to let your Oshun aspects come out when you know there is a Shango around.

Suppressing masculinity suppresses femininity because both need each other to exist.  Even and especially if you are a naturally tough woman, you should be able to access the masculine spirits.  A good many if not most tough ladies became so with considerable contribution from their fathers or other positive male role models.  To balance expedience and honor, one must balance their masculine and feminine self.  Just as men and women need to learn to live in peace in the outside world, you need to learn to live in peace with your feminine and masculine self in your inner world.

Bochio (also spelled bocchio or bocio) are basically small dolls or figurines that serve as charms, amulets, or talismans.  They originated in west Africa, and are common objects in the antiques and artifacts market.  Often, people buy them thinking that they are simply figurines.  In more than one case, someone who has acquired one has received a blessing specific to it without even knowing that it was the bochio that helped to draw the energy to that purpose.

Bochio are generally made in secret.  Sometimes they are filled with objects intended to attract a positive energy or repel a negative one.  Sometimes they are solid, but the artist is putting energy into the object while they carve or sculpt it.

Aside of their magical usefulness, they serve the psychological purpose of acting as visualization tools and reminders of a goal or a wish.  Having them around can cheer up a room, keep a couple mindful to be considerate to one another, or even remind you to lock your doors when you leave the house.

If you have reasonable artistic talent, you can make your own bocio at home.  You can model it after an Orisha, or even a fairy, gnome, or sentinel depending on its purpose.  You’ll just need some DAS clay or other air drying clay, and objects that have to do with its purpose.

For instance, if you want to make a home protection bocio, you would gather some locks and perhaps various small household objects.  Think of how you would ornament the bocio with them, or use these as part of the sculpture.  You may also wish to add Eshu friendly ingredients to the clay since he is a well known guardian of gateways.  Oba is also a good Orisha to honor while crafting a bocio since she is the Orisha of home and hearth.

Once you’ve finished sculpting it, paint it colorfully, and if you like, dress it nicely.  Traditionally, bocio looked a bit…baroque, but yours doesn’t have to be.  It should at least look a bit flamboyant or wild.  Have fun with it.

Bangkok Gems

7.70 Carats Kyanite Cabochon
Kyanite is an excellent stone for meditation and bringing calm to a stressful situation.  In this size, it would make a great pendant for someone you know who is a student or working in sales during the holiday season.

37.15 Carats Labradorite Cabochon
Labradorite helps one to see through illusions and reveal the hidden or unknown.  It’s good to carry with you when shopping for others.

Medico Herbs

Wild Dagga flowers with petals
Wild dagga is a well known healing and mood enhancing herb that should be in every herbalist’s tackle box.

Atlan Beauty Care

16 oz. Unrefined Shea butter
Shea butter is one of the best moisturizers in the world.  It helps to heal your skin while conditioning it, and is a must for beating winter dryness.

an aquamarine wand

 Aquamarine is a type of beryl, that ranges from very light to bright blue-green.  Like kyanite, it owes its bluish color to the aluminum in it.  It’s found mostly in Brazil, but there is some in other places where there are deposits of tin.  Other stones that may be found near or with it are feldspar and tourmaline.

Metaphysical/Mystical Properties

Aquamarine is symbolic of the sea, and is said to bring good luck to sailors.  It is also said to be a cure-all, but in truth, its energy is more specific.  It has a cooling effect when rubbed on the skin because it draws away heat.  So it is useful for someone who tends to get hot or a rise in blood pressure when they are stressed.  It also helps someone to control their anger.

Because of its close association with water, it helps to regulate the body’s water balance.  If you tend to get thirsty often due to diabetes, or are easily dehydrated, then while you’re being treated for the main problem, carrying or wearing an aquamarine near the throat or chest can help.

Caring For Your Aquamarine

Clean aquamarine with clear water.  Do not let it get too hot, or bake it in the oven to make polymer clay handles for them, or they may split.  It won’t get damaged from normal wear, but beryl can shatter like a diamond if it is smashed against something.

a kyanite therapy stone

 Kyanite is a very under-appreciated stone because it isn’t often found in gem quality.  Usually, it’s ground up and used as an industrial abraisive or a kind of glitter for ceramics.  This special aluminum silicate though, packs a powerful metaphysical punch, as in the few cases that it is found tightly packed enough not to fall apart, it is breathtakingly beautiful and immediately takes the viewer to a calmer state.  The reason why is because it reminds one of water.  Indeed, even touching it feels like touching ice that isn’t frozen.

The reason why is because of the columns of crystal that form kyanite.  It’ll always have multiple levels of hardness.  So a sensitive person will feel the slight ridges and perhaps even the varying temperatures of the columns.

Metaphysical/Mystical Properties

Kyanite is a calming stone.  It helps one to relax and keep a cool head during tough times.  It is an interesting coincidence that it is becoming more popular these days, as many people have found their lives turned upside down because of financial problems.

It’s a great stone for competitive athletes, and students during exam season.  It’s also said to make people less nervous when trying to speak a new language.

a kyanite ring

One not so well known use of kyanite is to dispell the “evil eye”.  It amplifies the effect of eye symbols, and is used by some as the eye itself on hamza symbols.  The refractory effect is said to confuse any possible jealous or possessive onlookers.

Caring For Your Kyanite

It does not need to be “cleaned” in the same way as other stones.  A little time in sunlight will do, if you feel it necessary.  If it gets physically dirty, just rinse it with room temperature water.

Keep kyanite from rubbing too much against other stones or even normal hard objects.  It has perfect cleavage, so a chip will turn into a full fledged split.  This is why the water you clean it with should be room temperature. Rapid changes may split your stone.