In Honour of the Crone

[WiccanWade]

[I wrote this earlier this month, during the Black Moon]:

Over this past week, here in my sleepy town, we have seen the reign of the Crone in Her regal aspect! The bear, black, bones of the Earth cast their silhouettes against the steal grey mantle of the heavens, and the shortening rays of the Sun, as they remind us of The Caileach Bheur's black blasting rod heralding the shifting seasons from the warmth of summer to the silent snows. Yet, as Mother Night rules this blessed season, Hre regal air is evident; the diamonds which sparkle in Her newly fallen snow beneith the pale Moon's light. Yes, we have seen, merely a night ago, Her white winter cloak unfurl across our fallow fields- black and rich- on Her icy breath. Behold the season of death, both heroing and beautiful.

Summer has flown from our verdant fields on the wings of gease...far to the south...their song heralding the reign of our mighty Snow Queen!

Bless Her Holy Name!

In service of The Goddess,
Wade MacMorrighan

 

[Susma Rio Sep]

Mother of God, Mother Mary

[I wrote this earlier this month, during the Black Moon]:

Over this past week, here in my sleepy town, we have seen the reign of the Crone in Her regal aspect! The bear, black, bones of the Earth cast their silhouettes against the steal grey mantle of the heavens, and the shortening rays of the Sun, as they remind us of The Caileach Bheur's black blasting rod heralding the shifting seasons from the warmth of summer to the silent snows. Yet, as Mother Night rules this blessed season, Hre regal air is evident; the diamonds which sparkle in Her newly fallen snow beneith the pale Moon's light. Yes, we have seen, merely a night ago, Her white winter cloak unfurl across our fallow fields- black and rich- on Her icy breath. Behold the season of death, both heroing and beautiful.

Summer has flown from our verdant fields on the wings of gease...far to the south...their song heralding the reign of our mighty Snow Queen!

Bless Her Holy Name!

In service of The Goddess,
Wade MacMorrighan

I must confess to a feeling of uneasiness as I read the above paragraphs. But they don't seem to be in themselves any dreadful, except for my conditioning or religious training and education and familiarization as a Catholic, rather a postgraduate one.

“Crone, Mother Night, Snow Queen, Goddess”, if I substitute Mother of God for them -- and I pray Mother Mary won't mind, the above paragraphs can be perfectly acceptable to Catholics, in my personal opinion. But I am a postgraduate Catholic.

Wasn't Buddha (Amitabha) also appropriated by the Catholic Church or the Christian Church? (St. Josaphat, from Ioasaph, a hebraized version of Bodhisatva, aka Buddha; look it up with Google.)

Search the hagiography and the ritual manuals of worship and sacramental enactments of the Catholic Church, and you will find how much from the beginning has been assimilated by Christendom from other religions.

Susma Rio Sep

 

[Vajradhara]

I must confess to a feeling of uneasiness as I read the above paragraphs. But they don't seem to be in themselves any dreadful, except for my conditioning or religious training and education and familiarization as a Catholic, rather a postgraduate one.

“Crone, Mother Night, Snow Queen, Goddess”, if I substitute Mother of God for them -- and I pray Mother Mary won't mind, the above paragraphs can be perfectly acceptable to Catholics, in my personal opinion. But I am a postgraduate Catholic.

Wasn't Buddha (Amitabha) also appropriated by the Catholic Church or the Christian Church? (St. Josaphat, from Ioasaph, a hebraized version of Bodhisatva, aka Buddha; look it up with Google.)

Search the hagiography and the ritual manuals of worship and sacramental enactments of the Catholic Church, and you will find how much from the beginning has been assimilated by Christendom from other religions.

Susma Rio Sep

Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are not the same. Bodhisattvas are beings that have not achieved Buddhahood yet. if one is a Bodhisattva, they have attained one of the 10 levels or bhumis.

 

[Susma Rio Sep]

Super-ecumenism, anyone?

Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are not the same. Bodhisattvas are beings that have not achieved Buddhahood yet. if one is a Bodhisattva, they have attained one of the 10 levels or bhumis.

Namaste Vaj:

I am getting a bit naughty, so bear with me.

Can you imagine yourself, Vaj, one day going out and above all religions even your Buddhism, appreciating the best in their beliefs and observances, but yourself not committed to any religion, in your case Buddhsim, not in the way that you feel you have to be partisan in its favor?

There is a fair number of good wisdom guidelines for life and physically beneficial practices in Buddhism, and anyone with a working mind can value them and adopt them.

So also with Baha’i and Christianity of whatever stripes and Islam and even Satanism (chill and shudder) and Wicca and Hinduism...


What I mean is can you one day be a super-ecumenist? As for me, I am a postgraduate Catholic, my own way of saying that I am a super-ecumenist with Catholic habits of feeling and thinking to some good extent. But I keep very well guarded the autonomy just the same of my heart and mind.

Susma Rio Sep

 

[Vajradhara]

Namaste Vaj:

I am getting a bit naughty, so bear with me.

Can you imagine yourself, Vaj, one day going out and above all religions even your Buddhism, appreciating the best in their beliefs and observances, but yourself not committed to any religion, in your case Buddhsim, not in the way that you feel you have to be partisan in its favor?

There is a fair number of good wisdom guidelines for life and physically beneficial practices in Buddhism, and anyone with a working mind can value them and adopt them.

So also with Baha’i and Christianity of whatever stripes and Islam and even Satanism (chill and shudder) and Wicca and Hinduism...


What I mean is can you one day be a super-ecumenist? As for me, I am a postgraduate Catholic, my own way of saying that I am a super-ecumenist with Catholic habits of feeling and thinking to some good extent. But I keep very well guarded the autonomy just the same of my heart and mind.

Susma Rio Sep

Namaste Susma,

heck.. i cam imagine myself flying through space! so it's easy for me to imagine that i would leave behind any particular doctrine. in point of fact, i simply use the Buddhist label when i'm forced to classify myself in some fashion as that tends to lead to a more easily had discussion.

to be honest with you, i incorporate practices from several different traditions into my own praxis. specifically some of the Taoist spiritual alchemy practices from the Northern Complete Reality school.

in many ways this school is quite similar to the Vajrayana tradition of Buddhism.

however... i would probably not abandon the Dharma for any reason whatsoever... that would be tantamount to jumping off the ship before it reaches the dock. though the water may be warm, it's quite a long swim.

 

[Susma Rio Sep]

That' what I like about Buddhism.

Namaste Susma,

heck.. i cam imagine myself flying through space! so it's easy for me to imagine that i would leave behind any particular doctrine. in point of fact, i simply use the Buddhist label when i'm forced to classify myself in some fashion as that tends to lead to a more easily had discussion.

to be honest with you, i incorporate practices from several different traditions into my own praxis. specifically some of the Taoist spiritual alchemy practices from the Northern Complete Reality school.

in many ways this school is quite similar to the Vajrayana tradition of Buddhism.

however... i would probably not abandon the Dharma for any reason whatsoever... that would be tantamount to jumping off the ship before it reaches the dock. though the water may be warm, it's quite a long swim.

That's what I like about Buddhism, guys like you. But I still think that the Dalai Lama should go home with his entourage, and go get married, make a home and raise a family -- at most two kids only. All of them; they can continue to be Buddhists, simple ones, and reach Buddhahood.

Susma Rio Sep

 

[Vajradhara]

That's what I like about Buddhism, guys like you. But I still think that the Dalai Lama should go home with his entourage, and go get married, make a home and raise a family -- at most two kids only. All of them; they can continue to be Buddhists, simple ones, and reach Buddhahood.

Susma Rio Sep

hehe...

why would someone that's taken vows not to get married, have sex and the like, suddenly drop all of them? wouldn't that show a deranged or dishonest character?

far better to keep the vows and promises that one makes, don't you agree?

fortunately for us, the Tibetan schools of Buddhism allow for both types of traditional Buddhist praxis, that of the monastic and that of the yogin. the Dalai Lama is a monastic and not a yogin, as such, he's bound by oaths and vows that he's taken, which have some similar aspects as the yogin, though many, many more.

 

[Nogodnomasters]

The Crone was part of a trinity concept which symbolized the three parts of the day. From my unpublished work on Biblical Astrology, Hecate the crone represented the night. Black would be the natuarl color for a crone to wear.

It is time to introduce the concept of the ancient Triad. A Triad is three gods clumped together to represent one concept. Several such Triads exist. In Egypt the best known Triad was Osiris, Isis and Horus. However the Triad I am concerned with represents the various times of the day: sunrise, midday, and evening. In the Hindu religion this is easily seen by the titles of the gods themselves: Brahma, the creator; Vishnu, the maintainer: and Shiva, the destroyer. In Greece this Triad was three women: Hebe, the virgin; Hera, the Mother; and Hecate the crone. Christianity has its own trinity which corresponds to this scheme: God the Father, creator; Jesus the savior with a Halo; and the mysterious Holy Spirit. Judaism has its Triad in the form of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
The Hebrews established three daily prayers:

• Abraham => Shacharit, the morning prayer
• Isaac => Mincha, the afternoon prayer
• Jacob => Ma'ariv, the evening prayer.

Each prayer has its own special character, as determined by the mood of that time of day.
Abraham was the beginning or seed of Israel.
"Abraham rose early in the morning, to the place where he had [previously] stood before God." [Gen 19:27]
Isaac was the daytime sun.
"Isaac went out to contemplate in the field at eventide." [Gen 24:64].
Sicha is also used in relation to plants and bushes ("sichim"), for it expresses the spontaneous flowering of life- force. This is a fitting description of the afternoon prayer, when the soul naturally grows and flourishes.
And Jacob was the night.
"He chanced upon the place and stayed overnight, for it became suddenly night." [Gen 28:11

 

[Phi]

Honoring crones is not just a mystical excercise

Here's a true story for you to ponder:

A group of Americans were allowed to present themselves to a Native American Circle of Elders following a ceremonial dance. The Americans asked their questions with great respect and received the answers with not a little awe. When the meeting was nearing its end, one American spoke in graditude:
"Thank you so very much for allowing us to come to your circle for guidance and wisdom. Our culture does not have such a circle. Without your willingness to answer our questions where would we ever have turned for such wisdom?"
The eldest of the elders responded simply, "your nursing homes."