The air is crystal hard, not clear;
Chilled by mottled, somber blankets.
Cold grey on darker grey
Lift pillars above the dull snow.
Yet this drear light lies.
Beyond the grimly bare trees
Wild rose and black briars
Set stealthy green shoots.
Below the grimy, frozen slush
Day lilies and daffodils
Swell towards their spring explosion.
Above the lowering, gloomy clouds
Summer’s sun begins to spiral
Towards its golden kaleidoscope.
Come, companions, into my fire
Where salamanders dance their release
Of Vernal rainbows trapped by leaves
Into this log for this fire to dance warmth
To make the sterile cold, pregnant.

©2004, 2009 by Ambrose Hawk.

Ambrose Hawk is the author of Exploring Scrying He currently resides in the Ozarks forests with a pride of rescued of cats, his beloved wife, and their stray terrier, Darling.

 
 

I hear music in the chilling winds from the sea.
It is wailing my lonely cry, “Come back to me.”
In loneliness, my heart aches so I want to die.
Winds, blowing over the sea, sing my mournful cry.

Yesterday my darling and I strolled hand in hand
On the shore, barefoot, digging our toes in the sand.
Mist from the sea breeze bathed our tear-stained faces,
As we built air castles of faraway places.

With hearts breaking, we knew our dreams could never be.
No tomorrows together, we would ever see.
Then from me, the Death Angel carried her away.
In memories, I live the dreams of yesterday.

Through the veil of the wind, I see her lovely face.
From the wings of the wind, I feel her warm embrace.
In whispering winds, I hear her calling to me.
The wind echoes my lonely cry, “Come back to me.”

©2009 Tina L. Salley. Originally published in The Poetry of Life:A Treasury of Moments by the American Poetry Association, ©1987 by Juanita McIntyre. Tina L. Salley represents the poetic estate of Mrs. McIntyre. All Rights Reserved. Used with permission.

Creature of God, I wish thee no ill
But just to teach thee: rule thy will.
Christ’s love invokes His Might as Son
To heal the hurt thy choices have done.
Thus, when harm may rule thy mind,
Only good shall come to me and mine;
Rebounding damage that thou might choose
Until thou learn such harm to refuse.

©2004, 2009 by Ambrose Hawk.

Ambrose Hawk is the author of Exploring Scrying He currently resides in the Ozarks forests with a pride of rescued of cats, his beloved wife, and their stray terrier, Darling.

 
 
In the still of the dark of the moon
after the revelry has passed on
deep, deep into the frozen fields of dreamless sleep
we, walking, silently, along the riverbed
breathing in ancient ash of woodsmoke
breathing out long-growing tears
to weave ghostly tentacles
along our path
take each others’ hand up to our heart
to pray, to kiss, to whisper
thus casting an eternal spell.

©2009 by Laurie Corzett.
Edited by Sheta Kaey.

Laurie Corzett (libramoon) publishes the visionary art ezine Emerging Visions.

 

 
 
Use any preliminary ritual you like —
Banish, Create a Circle, Meditate.
 
By the light of a dark indigo candle
place The Devil Card of any tarot
(The Thoth Deck is recommended)
in the Center of your altar.
There should also be tokens of Kali —
a simple inverted triangle, a cup of dark wine, dark incense… etc.
Sit in ½ lotus upon an animal skin or black wool cloth.
Surround yourself with appropriate objects of power.
Meditate deeply on the card.
Raise your right hand up;
with your left touch the ground.
Visualize the Image of an Eye
Manifesting before you…
 
*******
 
YOU ARE IN A DARK FOREST
ABOUT YOU ARE COWLED FIGURES WITH TORCHES
SILENTLY GOING TO THE SABBAT
YOU FOLLOW THEM THROUGH THE UNDERBRUSH
UNTIL YOU COME TO A ROCKY CLEARING
THERE IS A CAVE ENTRANCE
A CLEFT IN THE BLACK ROCK
VINES CLINGING ABOUT IT
YOU AND THE OTHERS SQUEEZE THROUGH THE OPENING
ONE BY ONE
COMING TO A LARGE STONE CIRCLE
SURROUNDED BY MANY TORCHES
IN THE CENTER A BONFIRE
AND AN ANCIENT GRAVEN IMAGE
HERE THE CELEBRANTS STRIP
RUBBING SWEET-SMELLING OINTMENT ON EACH OTHER
NAKED THEY BEGIN TO DANCE
AND WEAVE AND LAUGH AND CARESS EACH OTHER
BANGING DRUMS AS THEY STAMP AND DIP
YOU GO TO THE CENTER
AND STARE UP AT THE STONE IMAGE
WITH FLOWERS, FRUIT AND EGGS PILED AT ITS FEET
IT IS HORNED AND HORNEY
WITH ERECT PHALLUS AND YEARNING VAGINA
HAIRY FACE AND BREASTS
KILLING, HEALING, FUCKING, AND GIVING BIRTH
GREAT BEAST AND DARK MOTHER
THERE IS BLOOD ON ITS HEAD
AND A HUGE SMILE ON ITS FACE
AND SOMEONE WHISPERS, “BAPHOMET”
AND FACELESS HANDS BLINDFOLD YOU
AND A VOICE WHISPERS, “DO YOU WISH TO KNOW?”
YOU NOD YOUR HEAD AND ARE BEING LIFTED UP
YOU KISS THE IMAGE
AND ARE SUDDENLY OVERCOME
WITH EVERY SEXUAL FANTASY IMAGINABLE
THROUGH THE GATE OF ORGASM
YOU SEE A GLOWING EYE
AND FLOW TOWARDS IT AND ENTER IT
 
SUDDENLY YOU ARE ON A DESOLATE PLAIN
DEAD GRASS, BLACK NIGHT, HOWLING WOLVES
YOU ARE IN A GRAVEYARD
SURROUNDED BY BONES, SMOKING PYRES AND ASHES
SUDDENLY WALKING CORPSES APPEAR
ALSO GHOSTS AND SKELETONS
MONSTERS AND GHOULS
THEY ALL WALK TO THE CENTER OF THE GRAVEYARD
AND YOU FOLLOW THEM TO A FIRE
AND THE MONSTERS BEGIN TO DANCE
DRINKING BLOOD
HOWLING AND POUNDING SKULLS
AND BEFORE YOU IS ANOTHER ANCIENT STONE IMAGE
AND IT IS ALMOST THE SAME AS THE LAST
BUT THE VAGINA IS LARGER
THE RIBS ARE SHOWING
AND THE BREASTS ARE SHRIVELED
AND HUMAN FLESH, BLOOD AND HAIR ARE THERE
A SCARLET FLOWER SITS ATOP HER HEAD
AND A COLD, BONY HAND GRABS YOU
AND A GHOST GIBBERS, “DO YOU WISH TO KNOW?”
YOU NOD YOUR HEAD AND ARE BEING LIFTED UP
YOU KISS THE IMAGE
AND SUDDENLY ARE OVERCOME
WITH EVERY HORROR DEATH NIGHTMARE IMAGINABLE
THROUGH THE GATE OF DEATH
YOU SEE A GLOWING EYE
AND FLOW TOWARDS IT AND ENTER IT
 
YOU ARE IN SPACE
STARING AT THE EARTH
GREEN, BLUE, WHITE, AND BEAUTIFUL
THEN YOU SEE A GIANT HAND OF LIGHT
REACHING UP AND SPINNING THE GLOBE
YOU SEE BIRTH, LIFE, WORK, AND PLAY
ANIMALS AND PLANTS SWIRLING
BREEDING, SWARMING, SPREADING
FORMING, DESTROYING, JOINING, AND SPLITTING
ALL THE PAIN, BUSTLE, ACTION OF LIFE
THEN YOU SEE ANOTHER HAND
LARGE AND BLACK
REACHING DOWN TO THE EARTH TO SPIN IT
THEN YOU SEE DEATH, DECAY, AND HUNGER
THINGS ENDING, DRYING, HIDING
LIFE ENERGY SINKING, DISPERSING, AND FADING
KEEPING THE SWARMING MASSES OF PLANTS AND ANIMALS
FROM OVERWHELMING EACH OTHER
FROM DEVOURING THE PLANET COMPLETELY
DELIVERING THE SICK AND UNWANTED FROM SUFFERING
AND THE DANCE OF LIFE AND DEATH
SWIMS AND FLOWS ACROSS THE EARTH
IN SPIRALS AND LEAPS AND TWISTS
 
YOU BECOME FULLY AWARE OF A GIANT FIGURE
DANCING IN SHADOW BEHIND THE EARTH
AND BOTH HANDS SEEN WERE FROM THIS BEING
AND IT IS SLOWLY DANCING
AND WITH EACH MOVEMENT
LIFE AND DEATH SHIFT ON THE EARTH
AND SUDDENLY YOU MOVE BACK
AND SEE THE FIGURE
HORNED AND FULL BREASTED
SOMETIMES MALE
ALWAYS FEMALE
SKIN BLACK AS NIGHT
LONG HAIR SHAKING
WEARING A SNAKE AND BONES
BEATING A DRUM
KEEPING THE BALANCE
 
THE CHANT “JAI MA!” ECHOES
ON AND ON AND ON…
 
IT IS THE RULER OF THE WORLD
THE INITIATOR OF THE MYSTERIES OF LIFE AND DEATH
THE GUARDIAN OF THE LEFT
THIS GLOWING AWESOME FIGURE SMILES AT YOU
AND A COLD WIND CARESSES YOU
AND THE BLACK ONE MURMURS, “DO YOU WISH TO KNOW?”
YOU NOD YOUR HEAD AND ARE BEING LIFTED UP
YOU KISS THE RULER OF THE WORLD
AND SUDDENLY ARE OVERCOME…
AND YOU ARE GIVING BIRTH
AND YOU ARE GRIEVING A DEATH
AND YOU ARE HEALTHY AND FIT
AND YOU ARE DYING OF DISEASE
AND YOU AND FULL AND ENERGETIC
AND YOU ARE STARVING AND LISTLESS
AND YOU FEEL AND SEE AND EXPERIENCE
THE LIFE AND DEATH OF EVERY PERSON ON EARTH
AND YOU SEE YOURSELF IN THE MIDST OF THE CROWDS
CONTRIBUTING TO THE FLOW
OF LIFE AND DEATH
BY YOUR EVERY ACTION, EVERY MEAL, EVERY THOUGHT
YOU SEE PSYCHIC CHAINS
ATTACHED TO YOU
FROM EVERYONE YOU KNOW
FROM EVERYTHING YOU OWN
PEOPLE AND THINGS YOU LOVE AND HATE, USE AND DISCARD
AND THE BIGGEST CHAINS
ARE HELD BY THE MASTER OF THE WORLD
WHO IS LAUGHING AND CRYING
 
“NOW YOU KNOW,” SAYS THE GOD-DESS
“AND KNOWLEDGE IS POWER.”
AND YOUR THIRD EYE OPENS
AND AS HE/SHE DANCES
IT GIVES THE CHAINS INTO YOUR HANDS
AND YOU KNOW THAT THE WORLD
AND ALL ITS THINGS
AND ALL ITS PEOPLE
AND ALL ITS OBSESSIONS
AND ALL ITS TEMPTATIONS, HORRORS, AND PLEASURES
IS THERE TO TEACH AND LIBERATE
OR TO ENSLAVE AND ENTRAP
THE DECISION IS YOURS
 
YOU SEE A GLOWING EYE
AND FLOW TOWARDS IT AND ENTER IT
 
AND YOU ARE BACK IN YOUR TEMPLE
AND YOU FEEL YOUR THIRD EYE CLOSE
AND THE VISIONS END
BUT THE KNOWLEDGE REMAINS
 
End the meditation by chanting
JAI KALI MA!
JAI KALI MA!
 
JAI KALI MA!
 
SHANTI SHANTI SHANTI!
 
Earth the energy. Banish.
Have fun.

©2009 Aion 131
Edited by Sheta Kaey

O thou who sails Binah’s black sea
Whose term is undefined
O thou whose sickle circumscribes
The arc of a lifetime

O thou who gives but twenty-four
Divisions in a day
And never grants a moment more
No matter how much we delay

O thou that mocketh every pow’r
That we here on Earth may know
From your seat above the Great Abyss
Ruling times to reap and sow

O thou that giveth birth to gods
And then devoureth one by one
Great civilizations of mankind
Left in dust as you plow on

O thou who comest to collect
Souls as the clock begins to chime
Thou known throughout the Aeons
By the feared name Father . . . tick. tick. tick.

Against the now I raise my cry,
“Death is not the end of all!
— save only of the dross of Earth
returning downward in the Fall.”

For here I raise the flaming Lance
And from the pulsing wonder-tree
Eyes open now I smite thee with
The blazing spear of Eternity.

©2009 Shawn Gray
Edited by Sheta Kaey

Shawn is an ex-pat Canadian who lives in Japan studying and teaching martial arts. A practicing ceremonial magician and Thelemite, he is currently in the final year of a Masters Degree in Western Esotericism from the University of Exeter. You can view his website here.

Dancing God: Poetry Of Myths And Magicks
Diotima
Version available:
CreateSpace (May 6, 2008)
ISBN: 978-1438210643
206 pages
Reviewer: Lupa

 

Poetry usually isn’t my preferred reading material, but every so often I find a book of it that I truly enjoy. Dancing God is the second volume of poetry that’s caught my attention in such a way, the first being The Phillupic Hymns by P. Sufenas Virius Lupus. In this particular text, I was treated to a lovely variety of verses, some of which are strongly flavored by mythology — but all of which speak to the human condition.

Diotima’s verses are generally not long, but instead are bite-sized descriptions of her interaction with the world, divine and mortal alike. There are four themes, each with its own section: Gods, Myths and Sagas; Love; Life; and Death. Diotima has done a lovely job of sorting her works into these categories, but the variety she displays demonstrates an understanding of multiple perspectives on each theme.

The poems in the Gods, Myths and Sagas section may be of particular interest to pagan readers. Her works encompass several mythologies, from Greek to Celtic to Japanese; primarily, though not exclusively, they are snippets of story or honor (or both!) offered to a particular deity. Some are rooted in the deities’ contemporary cultures, such as a rather macabre description of Dionysus’ darker aspects, a retelling of Fenris’ chaining, and a poem to Hekate as “lady of the hounds.” Others, such as Icarus’ musing on human’s common flight in airplanes, a poem comparing the original manifestation of angels to their modern “cute” depictions, and wondering “Do the old gods walk the streets of London?” are more modern commentary. They all weave together well, and demonstrate that the gods are not, in fact, dead at all. These would all make lovely incorporated into private rituals and meditations.

All of the poems, however, are exquisitely crafted. Both the kind and the painful sides of love are evoked. (I was particularly fond of “Communication”, with its recurring line “Damn you, pick up the phone!”) “Life” is a short section full of little slices thereof, commentary on the day to day (and yet how unusual it can be from this angle!). The theme of death is dealt with using everything from grief to black humor, a good catharsis for working through loss.

Having been assaulted with bad verse and worse attempts, Dancing God is a reminder that we still have muse-touched poets today, those who create beauty through carefully structured words. There’s magic in these pages, and Diotima is an accomplished magician when it comes to evoking the feelings she wishes to convey.

Five pawprints out of five.

Review ©2009 Lupa
Edited by Sheta Kaey

From the rock beside the wall of water he stood and blew the white stag horn.
The dolphins leaped with joy.
The sea giants answered note for note the calling of the wise.

From the hills they came, from the cities, from the near meadows and the fields.

Songs paused in mid-measure.
Flowers remained unpicked.
Thoughts stopped unspoken.

The gathering had begun.

The shore beneath the obsidian cliffs became a rainbow as the masters gathered; each gloriously clothed by rank. Ruby gowns of the novice blended with the citrine and amber, flowed into the emerald and the sapphire, melded with the indigo and deepened to the royal amethyst of the select.

Whale song echoed from the harbor as the horn sounded again — deeper this time — a resonant minor tone that hung in the crystalline air.
The sky hummed with the approach of a star that was not a star, but all the colors of light and love: shimmering sunset pinks.

The wind carried the voice of the whales to those waiting on the beach
as if the earth herself were singing.

Joy unconstrained rolled from each tongue as the golden rays played across the sands, and wondrous beings glided down on wings of light to stand in snow white garb where they had stood for millennium.

And they gave the word:

As you have been told and will be told for a thousand thousand years
Teach love and joy.
Lift our children from the darkness.
Give them knowledge that they may be wise.
Wisdom is the mother of all creation.
Serve her well and she will be bountiful in her gifts and generous in her mercy.
Let each seeker know that the answers are within.
Comfort those who yearn and guide their path to the light.
Turn no one away, for even the darkest soul has a gift that illumination will reveal.
Find answers in your science and in your theology.
One without the other is but a cold stone; a half-written page.

Feed the dreamers. They are the seed of your greatness.
Cherish the singers. They are the voice of your soul.

Go beyond the myth of time and place.
Here and now, up and down.
You are with us as much as we are with you.
You have but to whisper and peace will come.

Work in celebration to bring forth the fruits of your labor.
Love in peace, to bear the fruit of your joy.
Put away the bitter wine of condemnation
Lest you become drunk with despair.
Do not judge the path another walks.
Walk your own path.
Water your own garden.
Watch your soul bloom.

Poetic Journeys is a semi-regular column featuring a wide variety of poetic styles. If you’d like to submit a poem, please send your submission to admin@rendingtheveil.com and we’ll happily review your material for inclusion in a future issue.

©2009 Judith Barnett

Screaming in my heart
Pounding in my blood
Seeping through my skin
Flooding in my eyes

Body twitches to nerves unbidden
Muscles flex and relax with each step
Fingers reach unconsciously
Lips seek soft skin

No thought just feeling
No reason just emotion
No emotion but the need
No need but of you

Let my eyes see only yours
Let my tongue taste only you
Let my ears hear only your voice
Let my heart receive your love

Rocking body, panting mind
Gasping for a moment to think
Time is spirited away as
I reach for you

Arms unfold to bring you near
Legs shake with fear
Throat locks with feeling
Eyes well with joy

Know I need you
Know I want you
Know I love you
Know I fear

Poetic Journeys is a semi-regular column featuring a wide variety of poetic styles. If you’d like to submit a poem, please send your submission to admin@rendingtheveil.com and we’ll happily review your material for inclusion in a future issue.

©2009 Sarenth