Sunday, December 27, 2015

Wheel of Wonder December 27, 2015

The Winter Solstice has passed, and pleasantly, on the evening of the solstice I had the honor to co-facilitate a Solstice ritual at the local Unitarian Universalist Church.  60 people showed up!  Its wonderful to now there are actually that many seekers wishing to learn and celebrate the old ways of Yule, the pre-christian holiday.  I'm glad my friend Amy and I could facilitate the experience for them.


Today was also Freya's birthday according to a seasonal observance book I found.  Freya: Norse Goddess of Love.

In the interest of stories at gatherings around the fire inside or out of the winter cold I was also thinking about the winter morris singers and dancers of England.  Much like Wassailing, these singers will go door to door sharing their songs and plays in the hopes of some drink or food in exchange for their christmas cheer.  It is said that if the Wassailing goes badly at a house they will sing intentionally off-key Christmas Carols in reaction to the situation.
One of the favorite plays of the midwinter morris revelers is the story of St. Michael and the Dragon done in fun and spoof by actors dressed as folkloric figures.  In the story St. Michael (the sun god figure)  will slay the Dragon (embodiment of winter), or in the process, St. Michael will be slain, only to be raised from the dead once again by the Faerie Doctor or other magics.  Much like the folkloric sun god/green man figure.
Winter blessings to all!

Sunday, December 13, 2015

Wheel of Wonder December 13, 2015

Today is a triple day of festivities!  December 13 is Santa Lucia day, popular in Sweden. If you ever wondered about the images you've seen of a young woman in white, or red and white with an evergreen wreath, crowned with burning candles on her head?  She's representing Santa Lucia.  The story of Santa Lucia is believed by some to be a christianized version of the story of Lucina, the sun goddess.  Thalia Took writes: “Lucina is a Roman Goddess of Light, a Moon-Goddess who is especially a Birth-Goddess, for when a baby is born it is brought into the light of the world for the first time.  According to the  blog Journeying to the Goddess:  “Lucina themes are banishing, kindness, charity, health and protection. Her symbols are candles (light sources).  Lucina means light."
Today is also the beginning of the runic half-month Jera.  The Futharc/Norse Rune Jera is a rune that represents the cycle of life. With this rune we see that we must go with the flow of nature to obtain the goals we want.(info found on this blog)
Also today is a day to pay homage to Demeter:  Here is a prayer you can prelude your meal with by Dorothy Morrison to reflect that:
Great Goddess of the plants and Earth
Who tends the crops that fill its girth
We ask your blessing on this meal
and honor you with the turning of the wheel

The picture above Credit:  Cristian Bait/The Image Bank/Getty Images/Demeter

Sunday, December 6, 2015

Wheel of Wonder December 6, 2015

"The traditional rules about how to be a “real man” in America are breaking down. Economic upheaval has shifted wage earning from men to their wives or partners. The rise of men as primary caregivers of their children is challenging our most fundamental assumptions about gender. The gay rights and trans rights movements are creating expansive new definitions of masculinity. Millennials are leading a much broader acceptance of diversity.
This generation is witness to a collision between traditional masculinity and a new wave, one that values intimacy, caregiving, and nurturing. But many of us have spent our lives under immense pressure to stifle emotional expression of any kind. And we’re learning there’s a cost: Men are suffering higher rates of life-threatening disease, depression, and death. Simply put, the suppression of emotional expression in men is damaging their health and well-being.
If you’ve grown up in the United States, then you’re familiar with the Man Box, the longstanding rules of how to walk, talk, and sound like a man in America:
1. Real men don’t express a wide range of emotions. They limit themselves to expressing anger or excitement. 
2. Real men are breadwinners, not caregivers. 
3. Real men are “alphas” and natural leaders. 
4. Real men are authoritative and make all final decisions. 
5. Real men are physically tough and sexually dominant. 
These rules take hold early in our lives. Boys 4 and 5 years old are told to shake it off, man up, don’t be a crybaby, and, worst of all, don’t be a girl. This is because the Man Box devalues any form of emotional expression traditionally deemed to be feminine. A devastating result of this anti-feminine bias is that women, gays, and trans people face epidemic levels of bullying, rape, misogyny, homophobia, and violence.
The Man Box robs our sons of a lifetime of opportunities to develop their emotional capacities. Instead, they grow into emotionally isolated men who wall themselves off from the social connectivity central to healing and creating community."
-----Mark Greene, from Why manning up is the worse thing to do Yes! magazine, December 2015

Mr. Greene's words could not be more true, and he expressed this idea much better than me.  To read the rest of the article follow the link above.  Social Media Sites and Politicians trying to run for office by showing "they are not scared of anyone" (and proving quite the opposite) through spewing hate, fear, and bigotry have been hard to avoid lately.  Considering hate talk to be normal, does not help American society head in the correct direction, most of the trash talk I've heard and seen comes from men, so I was pleased to find this article today as it addresses that.  Men's roles are changing in American society, so this is an important issue. This old, all about rough and tough men way of being has no place in this modern, 21st century.  At least its less prevalent in communities of Goddess honoring traditions, that is one of the things I appreciate about modern neo-paganism and its place in the world.
 Today, December 6th is also known as the day that is sacred to Odin, so we briefly covered some ideas of Asatru, the Norse Pagan faith.  I appreciated the "Nine Charges" of the Odinic Rite:


 The Nine Charges were codified by the Odinic Rite in the 1970s.[13]
  1. To maintain candour and fidelity in love and devotion to the tried friend: though he strike me I will do him no scathe.
  2. Never to make wrongsome oath: for great and grim is the reward for the breaking of plighted troth.
  3. To deal not hardly with the humble and the lowly.
  4. To remember the respect that is due to great age.
  5. To suffer no evil to go unremedied and to fight against the enemies of Faith, Folk and Family: my foes I will fight in the field, nor will I stay to be burnt in my house.
  6. To succour the friendless but to put no faith in the pledged word of a stranger people.
  7. If I hear the fool's word of a drunken man I will strive not: for many a grief and the very death groweth from out such things.
  8. To give kind heed to dead people: straw dead, sea dead or sword dead.
  9. To abide by the enactments of lawful authority and to bear with courage the decrees of the Norns.
The picture to the left is called "Odin" by Jeff Stokely this link should lead you to his gallery on DeviantArt

Sunday, November 29, 2015

Wheel of Wonder November 29, 2015

MEETING GWYNN ap NUUD

To the King of Spirits and his queen:  Gwynn ap Nuud, you who are yonder in the forest
for the love of your mate, permit me to enter your dwelling
(Lindahl et al., Medieval Folklore, 190 re-quoted from the book of Celtic Magic, by Kristoffer Hughes)

Of late I've been experiencing dreams rife with the imagery of death, but not terror.  I attribute it to "living in the season" as I've mentioned in posts before.  Just the other day I was out at a wonderful grove I visit.  I was sitting there, surrounded by the presence of Cedars, near a cold, and fast running stream.  Some of the Salmon are returning to the place of their birth, to lay the eggs that carry their wisdom on through the young.  Its in their natural life cycle to die after fighting their way upstream for sometimes hundreds of miles just to spawn the young.  From November to February many dead fish lie along the shoreline of the stream as their bodies leave, then the dirt, water and sand bury their bones. The alder and the maple lose their leaves at this time too, skeletons standing erect over the skeletons lying below.  The ground seems frozen and cold, so thoughts of death and life are easily conveyed across the moistened landscape.  I accept it as a scene of rest before life springs up anew in the spring.  I wonder what is to be learned there...so my dreams reflect this yearning and from time to time a tall, strong, and dark haired facilitator to this learning meets me in that dreamscape of death, and I ask him questions and take in the sights.  All of these nocturnal wanderings lead me to consideration of the welsh diety Gwynn ap Nuud, King of the Faeries, dwelling beneath the Glastonbury Tor, as the shamans, historians and occasional bards relate.
This version of herne the Hunter was created by A.L Paciorek

Gwynn ap Nuud is variuosly described as the welsh god of the forests, the wild hunt or death.  Today on wheel of wonder we visited these stories as well as stories of other forest god figures like Tam Lin, Herne, The Satyrs, and the Holly king, rulers of the dark part of the year in the myths of the oak and holly kings.  Death is another beginning, a rebirth, and though most all people will agree that taking another's life in not right, as do I.   Fear of death maybe one of the aspects of being human that Gwynn ap Nuud may be able to help us overcome.  Perhaps there is some learning to be gleaned through understanding the darkness of the unknown that he so comfortably dwells within.
Holly King by RavenWillowHawk


Sunday, November 15, 2015

Wheel of Wonder November 15, 2015

Today we continue our three part Shamanic Journey.  Our first part was through the middle world of Land, today, the second part through the lower world of Sea.  In many cultures it is the crossing of a body of water that leads the Shaman, Shamanic Poet, or Shamanic Hero to the land of the ancestors, to the land of the dead.  The hero Vainamoinen from the Kalevala (runos 1-10) crosses the water to reach Tuonola, the land of the dead, in order to glean wisdom from their teachings.  I read of a story from the Iglulik of Greenland in which a Shaman has to journey to the bottom of the sea and show respect to the Spirit of the Sea there, inside of her lair, guarded by a strong and vicious dog, like Cerberus, guard dog of Hades.  The Shaman has to show this respect to the Spirit of the Sea as she had become angered by the men of the land not living as they aught to, without that respect, and without the wisdom to live as they should, they would face storms and bad hunting and lack of fish for the catching.
  Sometimes the Celtic Sea God Llyr is said to represent deep wisdom, deep emotion and oneness with the earth and universe, singularity as it were.  These various tales easily correspond to journeys to the underworld for wisdom, knowledge and healing.  Deep Magic Deep Wisdom, the depths of knowledge represented by the ocean.  The upper world, or the Sky will be the subject of the next part of the journey.

The picture above is entitled "Nereid" and is by an artist named Sussi.  I found it on this blog

Sunday, November 8, 2015

Wheel of Wonder November 8, 2015

Leaves painted in the hues of Autumn complete their wild, windy dance, rain weeps at their passing, but the ground softens to catch them as they fall, making use of their nutrients to feed the Crows, crawlers and seeds.  The cycle continues without harm or hindrance, and we Humans begin the Celtic year anew.

Happily I've been accepted into a fine circle of spirit, and Druidry is strongly on my mind.  As the seasons change so do we.  That journey of life is the very simple, but meaningful subject of reflection today.  Many people, at all times of the year will face their anxieties overcome them, or deal with them and thus redefine the point of reverence, wisdom and relevance they've come to in their life.  The darker half of the year seems uniquely magical in helping this process.  It's no coincidence that All Hallows Eve sounds so much like The Hallowing.  The Hallowing of course, is that unique and inner journey that brings us face to face with our shadowselves, our anxieties and fears, and these allies bring us wisdom that can be transformative in understanding ourselves and the challenges we need to overcome in order to live our lives to the fullest.  These experiences are often described through the metaphor of finding the treasures of the underworld and bringing them back to the middle world we live on.  May this reflective time of the year be beneficial to you as you learn and grow. (which can happen at any age we are living through, even after our pedigrees are processed and our biological growth completed.)
Its like our own Shamanic Journey through the roots and branches of The World Tree.  Today on Wheel of Wonder we started a musical representation of this triskelion journey through Land, Sky and Sea.  We journeyed across the land through metaphor and music and next we will cross the harmonic metaphor of the sea.  I hope you can join me on the journey....

The beautiful picture above the Triskelion is artist unknown to me.  If you know, please send a link.

Sunday, October 25, 2015

Wheel of Wonder October 25, 2015

As the bright flame of the Celtic year and all of its experiences begins to light the dimming year, more like coals than bonfires now, I begin to see the connection between the events of the beginning of the year and the experiences I'm having now.  Cause and effect , interconnectedness, the tapestry of living, these things surround me as I look back on the passing year and look ahead on the year yet to come.  Its in this spirit of connection that I find the awe and wonder of being one with all , yet singular unto myself as well.  As I prepare for my Samhain ritual and experience, I see the cyclical nature of this dance around the sun we call a chronological year.  I appreciated the sabbat of Samhain last year and the experiences it brought me, I will do the same this year, but this time I'll observe the Sabbat differently, with a different group of people, this is the harvest of my experiences , I've sown new seeds and now I'll reap the benefits of doing so.
  For some the world holds deeper magic now than last year at this time, and for others, they've found new groups of people they have things in common with, and that's what inspires their love of living.  Perhaps even, others have had loved ones they know die , and in that way leave their lives between last Autumn and this one.  Sometimes that can enrich one's love of life as well; a reminder that this incarnation is a fleeting moment in the course of time, one to make the most of as we head into another year.  The Celtic new year begins at sunset on the 31st of October on the Roman calendar, so happy impending new year, may it bring you a bountiful abundance of amazing experiences and blessed be!

 The picture above is entitled Mabon and is by Jason Harrison, The one below is from the "Witches of the Craft" Website

Sunday, October 4, 2015

Wheel of Wonder October 4, 2015

The Wheel in which I find the most Wonder is the Celtic Wheel of the Year.  Staying in tune with the cycles of the seasons and all their different energies helps many people, myself included find a sense of meaning and movement in their lives.  Thinking about the way we feel as so many people sharing this yearly dance around the sun, how does our energy feel at different times of the year?  Do we love bicycling on a brisk spring day?  Do we feel that we are more in tune with a sacred, life-giving Earth as we plant our flowers and tend our gardens, helping in the hand of creation as we watch food and flowers grow?  During the bright Summer days do we feel more awake and active, enjoying the outdoors and all the activities we can pursue outside, or do we prefer those cozy nights by the fireplace or in our warm and welcoming homes while our friends and family come to visit?  Perhaps you have a preference for skiing through the silent snow, or the crunch of colorful leaves under your feet and the invigorating chill of an autumn hike?  Perhaps you like all of these!  All these experiences lead us ultimately to CONNECTION, either with the earth or other people.  With an open awareness of the realms of spirit and mind it seems like one can feel their inherent life energy moving from the outgoing to the inward turning as they fully experience their life in the changing of the seasons.  To me, all of these moments we engage in our lives are contained within the change of energy and the change of  seasons represented by the Wheel of the Year, especially when I complete the equation with the many holidays of the neo-pagan calendar designed to celebrate solstices, equinoxes, and  those cross quarter days between the change of seasons.
Wheel of Wonder is broadcast across the airwaves from a 4 year university, or state college here in the northwest corner of North America. Every complete sun cycle, or about the start of the new academic year here, I run Wheel of Wonder's foundational episode "the Celtic Wheel of the Year."  This was my weekend to bring these ideas forward to the listeners choosing to live their lives in this way, and to new listeners interested in hearing how other people can think about the cycles of the year in this way.  This weekend was also for those seekers and scholars who might be  interested in understanding the truth behind the pagan point of view. The change of seasons affects all of us where we live.  Some may dread the coming of winter with its ice and snow, some may dread the heat and drought of summer sunshine.  Being deeply in tune, mentally and spiritually, with the change of the seasons, not separate from them, can make these transitions easier. Many people could benefit from understanding how modern earth spiritualists and indigenous faiths have understood these changes we humans have experienced from time immemorial.  Ultimately, we are all, every one of us, people of this earth, living together in this amazing dance around our sun!


I also wish to offer a HUGE thank-you to all those who started or renewed their memberships with KAOS during last week's pledge drive!  Its only through that support that KAOS can justify continuing to offer the sort of free-form, non-commercial radio that allows shows like Wheel of Wonder to stay on the air.  Thanks again!
------Radio Ray

Sunday, September 20, 2015

Wheel of Wonder September 20, 2015

Today we celebrated the coming of the autumnal equinox on Wheel of Wonder!  Mabon, Alban Elfed, Mea'n Fo'mhair, Autumn Equinox, depending on your beliefs and traditions is the time of the second harvest, and the celebration of the physical "food" harvest as well the harvest ing time for what you've learned , and how to use it.  The Autumn mist seems to lend itself easily to bringing one into that reflective, inward space, where we think about what we've experienced in the course of this year.  Of course the Autumn vistas painted upon our eyes by the deciduous trees and their brilliant leaves also play their part in coloring the world , so at least we can have a moment to take in the beauty of this earth, that too is a harvest in and of itself.  Mabon is the name of the lost child of the old goddess Modron, recovered from the underworld by King Arthur and his men in the mythic Welsh poem Preiddeu Annwn, a story of a shamanic journey, often attached to the story the  Culhwch and Olwen.  MAbon represents the return from the inner space of the soul or shamanic journey with wisdom and grace to become a better person in the world.  It is in that pursuit of wisdom that we see "Seven and Arthur " return from the underworld with.  A harvest of Wisdom.  Today we also had a guest on Wheel of Wonder;  Stefanie, a practicing Druid from the OBOD group of Seattle, WA. and she would be someone I've met in the course of the past year, a woman of wisdom, I was glad to have on the show at this time of harvest.  Moving along the course of the Wheel of the Year, brings us to a place of slowing down, and thinking, after we consider what wisdom we've harvested over the past year, and what "seeds we've planted"  in the lives of ourselves and others that did not come to fruition, as well as those that have...we truly reap what we sow in this life.  Shall we approach things differently in the coming year?  During this time of moving our lives indoors when necessary, and celebrating the holidays with friends and family, we have plenty of time to think about what we can do and what we have done with this brief part of our incarnation in this world.......HAPPY HARVEST!  Enjoy the journey




Sunday, September 13, 2015

Wheel of Wonder September 13, 2015

As the Summer begins its annual spin into the beauty of Autumn, I find myself back in the familiar fields, hills and forests of home, excited for another turn around the sun on Wheel of Wonder. Autumn is finally beginning to roll in to the Northwest, the leaves are changing into their colorful autumn gowns ready to dance 'til they fall down as we celebrate the bounty of the season.
The vine maple already carry the festive blush of fall and the nights are cooler and longer.
I face the coming darkness as a crucible of change, not as a shroud of cold and shadow, but as a place to slow down, reflect upon the knowledge reaped in the courses of the passing year so I can proceed to build anew.
At the completion of our sharing information about climate change, I began to share the inward journey, so much a part of the darker half of the year exploring Celtic Shamanism.  John Matthews' book "Taliesin: The Last Celtic Shaman" (1991 aquarian press) and Robert Moss' book "Active Dreaming" are good reads to help understand these ideas.  I hope you caught some of them on Wheel of Wonder.
As we go forward into the coming year, I hope to bring you the perspectives of modern, practicing pagans covering everything from earth spirituality and its place in this world, to native american belief systems, and even pagan prison based ministry through up and coming guests on Wheel of Wonder.  I also have 2-3 more musicians/groups ready to join us on the show to share their music and viewpoints and all because of people starting and renewing memberships with this not for profit radio station that let's me bring them to you: kaosradio.org
Wheel of Wonder is intended to be place to share unique music and ideas, so I hope you catch it at kaosradio.org, on "Radio Free America", or on your smart phone at "Sound Tap" or "Tune In" I love having access to the Internet and independent media.  I hope you do too, and will support its continuing to be available to seekers everywhere.
--Radio Ray

The images above are a picture of Cascade Pass by Ed Farell and an Illustration of/inspired by musician Autumn Rayne by Derek Emmons

Sunday, August 16, 2015

Wheel of Wonder August 19, 2015

Having returned from a wonderful bit of traveling , off to the barrier islands of the Carolinas, to visit Sea Turtle and Shorebird Sanctuaries, I couldn't help but consider Human impacts on the Earth's Natural Systems.  We Humans with our Post-Industrial hubris are just beginning to understand the negative impacts our actions, our consumerism, and our arrogance are having on Mother Earth.  Some have already learned these lessons and try desperately to share their knowledge with others, but have to shout out so loudly to be heard over the clamor of greed, acquisitiveness, and the grinding gears of the miltary-industrial machine that their voices are carried away from the ears of those who need to hear them.
Pleasantly, Humans are an adaptive species and some good has come from those who listen to their conscience, and even the reputed consciousness of the land, more of a reality for some than for others.  These latter folks can and will take action in this world to help nature adapt, at the same time as they themselves do, to keep the precious natural life cycles of the Earth continuing in perpetuity, for they know if the Earth's Natural Systems suffer so do the animals, plants and Humans.
Among the Atlantic coast of North America's barrier islands are turtle and shorebird sanctuaries, salt marshes, and beach dunes.  At the same time that these ecosystems mitigate flooding and damage from the onslaught of hurricane force winds and rain they also offer habitat and breeding grounds for so much wildlife.  Greedy, acquisitive people will want to build their fancy beach houses (beach MANSIONS really) on stilts within the dunes, and sometimes they will be disciplined for their arrogance by Mother Nature, as she tears down their strong, colossal houses, which are less than twigs to her, then often they will build them again.  But within those barrier islands there are areas were building is not allowed, and the normal, natural systems take place smoothly, year after year.  Some bird sanctuaries thrive in these locations, and as a low impact visitor, we Humans can not only enjoy a beautiful beach, but the beauty of the flying ones as well.  Do you hear the language of birds?  Its carried on the wind....

 Sea Turtles first great challenge is to dig their way out from under the beach sand after they have hatched, and then race for the sea, guided by the moon.  Many things want to eat them on the way to their new home in the deep and blue, only one in 10,000 actually make it.  This year on the full moon of Lughnasadh I was at a turtle sanctuary were 108 of them hatched and dug their way to the surface, trying to follow the song of the sea to their new home.  All the people in their massive houses did agree to turn off their porch lights so the turtles could follow the moon to the sea and not the flood light into the dunes where ghost crabs would eat them. A veritable wall of people surrounded that nest and did all they could, in the moonlight to keep the turtles from straying off course, so they could make it to the sea.  All turtles survived and swam out to where their adventure begins.  We as Humans can also be good stewards of the plants, animals and environment. and we can protect the earth for the future as well!  We must take action, and try very hard to hear the song of nature still singing within the trees, the breeze, the ground and the air and use our knowledge to improve the future of this planet, and leave an equally beautiful place for our children, grandchildren, and the children of our friends living on the land, in the sky, and under the sea.

This week on Wheel of wonder I'll begin a series of shows focused on Climate Change, due to Human pollution and ignorance and strategies and actions that can be taken, and are even now being taken to protect the Earth and all the natural systems she is the architect of, that support and feed us so we can continue to live on this wonderful planet surrounded by awe-inspiring beauty and the hope that life continues.  Blessed Be




Sunday, July 12, 2015

Wheel of Wonder July 12, 2015----Just before I hit the road for a spell

Summer can get busy, and this summer has offered me many a crossroad to follow, choices are amazing, but have kept me from the blog.
These days among earth spiritualists we have Neo-Pagan, Neo-Shamanic, and even Neo-Druidic pathways.  These living traditions are, in their own way re-defining the way they express the roots of their faith.  There is some looking through the mists into the distant past involved in these neo-creations (or, re-creations)but rather than a wistful gazing into history, or a better time, they are focused instead on becoming living, breathing, and pertinent spiritual paths for the 21st century.
Today on Wheel of Wonder the focus is on Neo-Druidism, often referred to as simply "Druidry"
One of the common origins for most modern Druidry, is the romanticist era of culture and arts (circa 1800 to about 1850).  As Wikipedia puts it:
"Defining the nature of Romanticism may be approached from the starting point of the primary importance of the free expression of the feelings of the artist. The importance the Romantics placed on emotion is summed up in the remark of the German painter Caspar David Friedrich that "the artist's feeling is his law".[9] To William Wordsworth, poetry should begin as "the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings," which the poet then "recollect[s] in tranquility," evoking a new but corresponding emotion the poet can then mould into art.[10] In order to express these feelings, it was considered that the content of the art needed to come from the imagination of the artist, with as little interference as possible from "artificial" rules dictating what a work should consist of. Samuel Taylor Coleridge and others believed there were natural laws which the imagination, at least of a good creative artist, would unconsciously follow through artistic inspiration if left alone to do so.[11] As well as rules, the influence of models from other works was considered to impede the creator's own imagination, so that originality was essential. The concept of the genius, or artist who was able to produce his own original work through this process of "creation from nothingness", is key to Romanticism."
For some of the people of Britain, this included returning to the inspiration of the Bards of Antiquity , and the Druids that held positions of importance in the Iron Age.  The word "Bard" itself is said to have hailed from Gaul in the Iron Age. The BDO, ADF, and even the OBOD are good examples of organizations that support and define what modern Druidry is.
Finding out about these Romanticist origins that make up part of the modern movement is very interesting.  In the later 20th century however, this movement began placing a much greater focus on Celt Pagan belief systems, animism and what historical accuracy can be gleaned from the work of modern day archaeologists it has been a very interesting journey I invite you to investigate yourself.  I covered some of this on Wheel of Wonder today.
Next week I'll be on the road though, so I've suggested to Miss Melissa (host of Cottleston Pie on KAOS) that she may want to look at the romantic movement of the early 19th century and explore the origins of its art and poetry and the impact these have had on our modern culture.  Other voices and ideas will follow her for the next few weeks.  I expect to be back on Wheel of Wonder near Lughnasadh.  Summer blessings to you all!

For the images above, I photographed the mask in the garden, The Bards of Caer Pugetia logo belongs to a Seattle, WA. based group of Bards, and the "Ancient Druid" was designed by S.R. Meyrick and C.H. Smith in 1815.




Sunday, May 10, 2015

Wheel of Wonder May 10, 2015

Happy Mother's Day!  Mother's Day was originally started after the Civil War, as a protest to the carnage of that war, by women who had lost their
sons. Here is the original Mother's Day Proclamation from 1870

          ......................................

Arise, then, women of this day! Arise all women who have hearts,
whether our baptism be that of water or of fears!

Say firmly: "We will not have great questions decided by
irrelevant agencies. Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking
with carnage, for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be
taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach
them of charity, mercy and patience.

We women of one country will be too tender of those of another
country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. From
the bosom of the devastated earth a voice goes up with our own.
It says "Disarm, Disarm! The sword of murder is not the balance
of justice."

Blood does not wipe our dishonor nor violence indicate possession.
As men have often forsaken the plow and the anvil at the summons
of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a
great and earnest day of counsel. Let them meet first, as women,
to bewail and commemorate the dead.

Let them then solemnly take counsel with each other as to the
means whereby the great human family can live in peace, each
bearing after their own time the sacred impress, not of Caesar,
but of God.

In the name of womanhood and of humanity, I earnestly ask that a
general congress of women without limit of nationality may be
appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient and at
the earliest period consistent with its objects, to promote the
alliance of the different nationalities, the amicable settlement
of international questions, the great and general interests of
peace.

Julia Ward Howe
Boston 
1870

Let's get back to what Mother's day was meant for in the first place!

Sunday, May 3, 2015

Wheel of Wonder May 3, 2015

Happy Beltane!  Beltane is usually recognized as falling on May 1st, just as MayDay.
May Day is the workers holiday to commemorate how far  Labor unions and Organized workers have brought us, away from the inhumane treatment they received from wealthy business (Factory and Mine) owners in the past.  Unfortunately not every group of workers can Unionize, so some are still mistreated, even in the USA in its "Right to Work" states.  "Right to Work" status is just political talk for "We make it harder for you to unionize, so we can underpay you and give you no benefits or retirement!" Strange thing about economies the only real product economies have are that which is physical, which can be held, and the pool of laborers that have created through their efforts.  "Currency" is at its core, just a symbol of wealth, backed by governments accepting it as such.  Capitalism  of course, will often have a tendency to prioritize these data records, and colorful papers called currency over actual Human rights!  Hooray for May Day, to keep this fresh in our minds!
Beltane however, is a celebration of the return of sunshine and springtime, and the birth of flowers, the budding trees, and the singing birds that remind us what it is to be truly alive.  The very land itself shares with us a symphony of fresh scents and birdsong to enjoy in our dance of life.  Mythically speaking Beltane is also the time when the May Queen returns and engages the Forest King in the Great Rite (SEX people, love-making) to ensure the health of the land , and to reinforce, through the May Queens and Forest Kings inside us, why life is so enjoyable! IT is also a good time for divination, they say the spirit world is closer at hand, and for finding the Feminine and Masculine aspects in all of us, these principles of Intuition and Action and bring them into closer union in order to complete our great work on this world.  Again, Happy Beltane!
Sadly, we couldn't hook up with Malachi, our scheduled guest, today, but hopefully he will join us with his poetic work in the near future.

Sunday, April 26, 2015

Wheel of Wonder April 26, 2015

For Alchemists, there are many different ways of acquiring and exercising their knowledge.  According to a modern Alchemist who joined me today on Wheel of Wonder, at its core, it is a symbolic language, shown through statuary designs, corporate logos (all variations on the cube) palmistry and its relation to Astrology and the planets and constellations it interprets/represents.  Aubrey, The Alchemist I spoke to, also relates Alchemical knowledge less to changing a base metal like Lead into Gold, like some sort of primitive chemistry, and more to learning through the language of symbols, quantum theory, and achieving greater knowledge about oneself into an evolution of the spirit, to a point like that of the ascensionist paradigm.  I've posted about the idea of ascension elsewhere on this blog, and Christopher Penczak is a well known writer on this subject you can link to from the margin.  IT was an interesting idea though, that some approaches to Alchemy have nothing to do with physically turning a base element to gold at all.  Instead the focus is on self-achievment  from a lesser, unrealized self, to a spiritually awakened one!  I'll post the second half of my interview with Aubrey on this site soon.  KAOS is also on Free Radio America now, so you can catch up on today's episode there.  What music did I play?  Check Spinitron.com look up KAOS and today's date, and you can learn that too!  To check out Aubrey's ideas check out this YouTube link, or look up You Tube's "The Modern Alchemist Channel."

The Picture above is from a website called Alchemy Lab Art

Friday, April 24, 2015

Thank you to every listener who supports Independent Media and Upcoming Guests on Wheel of Wonder

I heard one of the DJs on KAOS say that the $11,000.00 goal of the KAOS fundraiser was made!  Thank you new and renewing members!  We Love you!  Neither myself or the community radio outlet that I bring people Wheel of Wonder through are commercial operations, help from student activities at The Evergreen State College, and people pledging their membership dollars are all that keep KAOS, the independent radio station alive and broadcasting.  Soon I'll have a profile on Free Radio America, as will the other KAOS broadcasters and, if you haven't been able to hear Wheel of Wonder (because say, you live in Australia, Europe, or an Asian Pacfic country, or there's a terrible time zone difference) streaming or broadcasting, you'll still be able to catch the show at your convenience for a few days after the broadcast.  I'm pretty excited about that, as far as I know, I'm still the only Pagan Radio Show on the FM dial in America.

Here are some of the upcoming guests On Wheel of Wonder, and also an idea of who has been on the show recently:

Aradia, modern nature and magic loving electronic band.  April 12, 2016

Lori D, DJ Local Miss Mellisa and Fred from "Free Jazz with Fred" during the fund drive week, some on Wheel of Wonder, some when I substituted for "Celtic Echoes" on KAOS

Aubrey, a modern Alchemist, sharing information and philosophy Sunday, April 26, 2015

Malachi Wavebreaker returns to Wheel of Wonder to share poetry from his new book: The Sojourner of Mutable Fire:  An Illustration in Quantum design Malachi picks up his epic narrative poetry from where he left off, this time from the perspective of the feminine principle referred to in The Voyager of Cardinal Water Just in time for the Beltane show on May 3, 2015

Sunday, April 12, 2015

Wheel of Wonder April 12, 2015

This week on Wheel of Wonder, I'm happily giving over the second hour of the radio broadcast to the Interview and Music of Aradia.  This week will seem a little bit Electronica for those who listen to the broadcast regularly, a natural selection of subject and philosophy that follows that for me is the New Age movement.  This movement, along with a few neo-pagan others offers a unique welcome to spirituality in the information/computer/space age.  Interesting information I found on the New Age Movement from religioustolerance.org :

The New Age Movement is in a class by itself. Unlike most formal religions, it has no holy text, central organization, membership, formal clergy, geographic center, dogma, creed, etc. They often use mutually exclusive definitions for some of their terms. The New Age is in fact a free-flowing spiritual movement; a network of believers and practitioners who share somewhat similar beliefs and practices, which they add on to whichever formal religion that they follow. Their book publishers take the place of a central organization; seminars, conventions, books and informal groups replace of sermons and religious services.
Quoting John Naisbitt:
"In turbulent times, in times of great change, people head for the two extremes: fundamentalism and personal, spiritual experience...With no membership lists or even a coherent philosophy or dogma, it is difficult to define or measure the unorganized New Age movement. But in every major U.S. and European city, thousands who seek insight and personal growth cluster around a metaphysical bookstore, a spiritual teacher, or an education center." 1


New Age beliefs:

A number of fundamental beliefs are held by many -- but not all -- New Age followers; individuals are encouraged to "shop" for the beliefs and practices that they feel most comfortable with:
bulletMonism: All that exists is derived from a single source of divine energy.
bulletPantheism: All that exists is God; God is all that exists. This leads naturally to the concept of the divinity of the individual, that we are all Gods. They do not seek God as revealed in a sacred text or as exists in a remote heaven; they seek God within the self and throughout the entire universe.
bulletPanentheism: God is all that exists. God is at once the entire universe, and transcends the universe as well.
bulletReincarnation: After death, we are reborn and live another life as a human. This cycle repeats itself many times. This belief is similar to the concept of transmigration of the soul in Hinduism.
bulletKarma: The good and bad deeds that we do adds and subtracts from our accumulated record, our karma. At the end of our life, we are rewarded or punished according to our karma by being reincarnated into either a painful or good new life. This belief is linked to that of reincarnation and is also derived from Hinduism
bulletAn Aura is believed to be an energy field radiated by the body. Invisible to most people, it can be detected by some as a shimmering, multi-colored field surrounding the body. Those skilled in detecting and interpreting auras can diagnose an individual's state of mind, and their spiritual and physical health.
bulletPersonal Transformation A profoundly intense mystical experience will lead to the acceptance and use of New Age beliefs and practices. Guided imagery, hypnosis, meditation, and (sometimes) the use of hallucinogenic drugs are useful to bring about and enhance this transformation. Believers hope to develop new potentials within themselves: the ability to heal oneself and others, psychic powers, a new understanding of the workings of the universe, etc. Later, when sufficient numbers of people have achieved these powers, a major spiritual, physical, psychological and cultural planet-wide transformation is expected.
bulletEcological Responsibility: A belief in the importance of uniting to preserve the health of the earth, which is often looked upon as Gaia, (Mother Earth) a living entity.
bulletUniversal Religion: Since all is God, then only one reality exists, and all religions are simply different paths to that ultimate reality. The universal religion can be visualized as a mountain, with many sadhanas (spiritual paths) to the summit. Some are hard; others easy. There is no one correct path. All paths eventually reach the top. They anticipate that a new universal religion which contains elements of all current faiths will evolve and become generally accepted worldwide.
bulletNew World Order As the Age of Aquarius unfolds, a New Age will develop. This will be a utopia in which there is world government, and end to wars, disease, hunger, pollution, and poverty. Gender, racial, religious and other forms of discrimination will cease. People's allegiance to their tribe or nation will be replaced by a concern for the entire world and its people.
The ideas of the New Age movement are for some, another great guide toward how to live an enlightened life, evolving in the mind and spirit to create a better world.

Sunday, April 5, 2015

Wheel of Wonder April 5, 2015

Often it seems, that in this Post-Modern world, that which can't be scientifically proven is often considered "untrue" or "delusional"strangely, even the post modernists viewpoint can't be proven as real, especially since the post-modernist viewpoint only believes in the concrete and hypocritically that nothing is definite, everything can be disagreed with or proven wrong.  This does not leave much room for spiritual experiences in the Human lifetime, but having a Spirit is something amazing that we have going for us, it gives some the strength to work through the hard times and evolve into a greater, or even more compassionate existence.
I would say that personal divine experience, as reflected by some of the writings of Christopher Penczak, and its near relation of working with archetypal energies, walking in recognizable form as expressed in the writing of Emma Rostel--Orr, could even fit into a post-modernist spirituality.  As would that feeling some neo-pagans get in ritual, that "cone of power" extending outward and upward from the sacred circle, or the inspiration that Druids attribute to "The Awen." Human spirituality also helps us reach a common ground in our belief systems, that help us to work together better as a species, even, an evolving species. Otherwise, in a post modern world of only concrete experience, our understanding of our place in the universe, our connection with the spirit of all living, seems alienated from us, and sometimes hope for improvement can die with it, and the feeling that we're in all of this alone can lead to depression and loneliness.  How do you see/keep spirituality alive in this post modern world?  We'll explore this a bit this week on Wheel of Wonder, and I hope it will inspire you to seek important answers in your lives as well, a spiritual human is an awakened traveler, on an amazing journey!

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Wheel of Wonder March 29, 2015

May all beings everywhere
Plagued by sufferings of body and mind
Obtain an Ocean of happiness and joy
By virtue of these merits.
May no living creature suffer
Commit evil or ever fall ill.
May no one be afraid or belittled,
With a mind weighed down by depression.
May the blind see forms,
And the deaf hear sounds.
May those whose bodies are worn with toil
Be restored on finding repose.
May the naked find clothing,
The hungry find food;
May the thirsty find Water
And delicious drinks.
May the poor find wealth,
Those weak with sorrow find joy;
May the forlorn find hope,
Constant happiness and prosperity.
May there be timely rains
And bountiful harvests;
May all medicines be effective
And wholesome prayers bear fruit.
May all who are sick and ill
Quickly be freed from their ailments.
Whatever diseases there are in the world,
May they never occur again.
May the frightened cease to be afraid
And those bound be freed;
May the powerless find power
And may people think of
benefiting each other.

From Compassion and the Individual, (1991) Gyatso, Tenzin the 14th Dalai Lama.
Wisdom Publications, Boston

In some practices of modern spirituality the advancement of the individual practitioner seems to be the main focus.  I was reading an article from the blog "Magic of the Ordinary" suggesting that as a Human Race, we can only make our world better by exercising compassion for all, and trying to lead all to a better life, whether through magicraft or through our way of living.  If one is open to the idea of feeling and working with the energy of spirituality, or magic, can you imagine what could be done if large collections of Covens, Fraternities, and other Spirit Groups were all working on improving the lives of everyone?  That's what we'll be speaking about this week on Wheel of Wonder!

the picture above is called empathy compassion and I found it on EOC institute website

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Aradia on Wheel of Wonder April 12th, 2015

New to me, the Electronic band out of Seattle ARADIA will be guests on Wheel of Wonder April 12th, one week before the KAOS membership drive.  Its Aradia's first performance in Olympia, and although its pre-recorded it will still be great.  This starts this season's schedule of Guests on Wheel of Wonder, there are still more to come, people practicing their craft locally, published Authors, Musicians and Leaders well known in the modern pagan community!
All this happens because of membership support for not for profit, independent media like KAOS.  Please think about that when it comes to the membership drive Wheel of Wonder and KAOS will need your help!
Check Out Aradia (and of course I mean her music not just the lovely picture below)!




Wheel of Wonder-----Celtic Echoes

This week and next I'll have the priveledge of hosting Celtic Echoes as well as Wheel of Wonder.  Celtic Echoes airs from 10am -12pm WEDNESDAYS on KAOS communtiy radio station.  This week, music wise, I mixed traditional and modern Celtic/Celt inspired music together, and even took a musical trip into the Hollow Hills with help from Spiral Dance, Alexander James Adams, and even Clannad.  Next week we'll travel the Road to Santiago, musicaly speaking.  The music will be French and Spanish Celtic music, not likely bringing anything from Ireland or Scotland at all.  The following information about the Raod to Santiago comes from a website out of Australia:
  The town of Snatiago in Spain is a world heritage site, and for centuries Pilgrims have been traveling there from  the Camino Francés (the French Way), often referred to as the Ruta de las Estrellas (the Way of the stars, or the Milky Way). This route starts in Saint Jean Pied de Port on the French side of the Pyrenees, and travels westward for nearly eight hundred kilometres (following the yellow arrows and scallop shell markers) to the legendary city of Santiago de Compostela.
The Camino de Santiago (Way of Saint James) is a unique and endless mixture of discoveries. Mountains, dirt roads, cathedrals, local legends, bridges and monasteries are but a mere handful of the memorable treats on offer. However grand these things may be, the journey is infinitely more. It is a beautiful combination of external and internal discovery, and a rare chance in this modern world to radically change one's life. Over the centuries, the Camino has been imbued with the powerful goodwill of a billion pilgrim footsteps, making it the perfect catalyst for a life-changing experience. :
In every way imaginable, the road to Santiago soars high above any efforts of definition or explanation. Whether describing the intriguing history, a host of past legends, or the differing routes across the nations, the words, however fascinating, pale in comparison to the experience. Some things just need to be tasted. It is literally step by step that the greatest truths are to be found, and in doing so, the Camino roars to life. Having said that, its origin and history are quite enchanting, and are more than worthy of review.
The roots of both Santiago de Compostela and the pilgrimage itself reach all the way back to the early 9th century. At that time, a hermit by the name of Pelayo discovered the tomb of Saint James (one of the twelve disciples in the Bible). Legend has it that James was beheaded in Palestine, and two of his followers placed his body in a boat and set him out to sea. With no captain at the helm, the journey defied all odds with the ship finding its way to the Galician coastline and the Apostle's body eventually buried on Mount Padrón. Month by month, and year by year, all was eventually forgotten. Until the year 813!
True to Camino form, the discovery of the grave went hand in hand with the miraculous, the story providing the key ingredient to its illustrious name. Compostela (or campus stellae), is so named because the light of the stars guided Pelayo to the ancient burial site. The magnificent Santiago Cathedral now stands on the very same spot.
A good time for me, and I hope you too, on Celtic Echoes April 1, 2015!

Sunday, March 22, 2015

Wheel of Wonder March 22, 2015

Happy Ostara, Blessed Alban Eiler!  The Spring Equinox has arrived again, in the city of Seattle at the arboretum there seems to be miles and miles of blossoming trees, if your in the the area walk through the canopy , festooned with flowers. its so near the Oak Grove, you could even pay your respects to the budding Oaken King, if that's how the spirit inspires you.
Some notes about Alban Eiler, from the Black Mountain Druid Order of South Carolina, USA:
At Alban Eiler, the day and night are in perfect balance, and from this day forward to the autumnal equinox, the light shall continue to grow.  Alban Eiler is a time for balance and rest, before beginning a period of new growth.  It is a time to contemplate achieving balance within you.  Are your Mind, Body, Spirit, and emotion in balance (Sea, Land, Sky and Transformative fire in balance)?  What would that balance look like if it were already here?
I myself have noted, this year the equinox also includes a time of the new moon, and a solar eclipse, visible in some areas of the world.  If you use the new moon as a time to put in place an intention in your life, to come at least in part, if not fully into fruition by the time she is full, wouldn't the moon passing in front of the Sun and all the power attributed to it as a solar deity make that intention even stronger?  More likely to be fulfilled?
As you contemplate these questions, use the gathering energy of the coming brighter days to make changes within yourself that you would like to bring to fruition.  Its a time to set aside the slumber of winter.  Its a time to awaken from hibernation and to start to move, learn, and grow again.  It is also a time to celebrate your own personal growth in the past while looking forward to new growth in the future.
I hope the number of people who engage the message I try to share through wheel of wonder grows, as does my wisdom and ability to share it.  I also hope the raising of spiritual awareness through music, compassion, learning and intention also rises like the new son, transforming like fire,
the lives of we the children of this amazing Earth!
 The gorgeous picture above is off of tumbler and its origins trace back to a post by a Druid from the Order of Aspen.

Saturday, March 7, 2015

Wheel of Wonder March 8, 2015

Water flows through all of our lives, life cannot exist without it.  Proof Positive that privatising of water is very ill-advised!  Here in the Northwest of North America, especially, water connects us all, whether through rainfall for our long growing season, or through hydropower bringing us electricity through the dams (some of which, in recent years have thankfully been removed, while more wind turbines get built), or unfortunately, carrying the oil tankers through the Salish Sea (called Puget Sound by colonial minded people).  For the first people of the area, water carries the Salmon a great deal of their indigenous culture and educational stories are built on!  Water needs our help, so we can celebrate diverse cultures, avoid pollution and those "dead zones", where no fish live anymore, or just to fend off the spectre of drought.  this week on Wheel of Wonder we'll share stories about water, written by Druid naturalists, and good news about water conservation, from people who have worked hard to protect it. We'll also briefly celebrate the full moon of March.  Remember to set your clocks ahead if you live in the area!  Perhaps then you'll join me in the flow of music on Wheel of Wonder


Sunday, March 1, 2015

Wheel of Wonder March 1st, 2015

Our world is in a time of transition.  Many have said this as we've circled the sun the past decade and a half of the 21st century.  Some still say "We're facing the end of the world as we know it!" even after we made it past the predicted christian rapture of, what was it 2013? And the end of the Mayan Calendar in 2012, and yet we are still standing.  We still face climate change and economic inequality, but now on a global scale. Over the past few years, it hasn't taken much research to find that organized churches are seeing a sharp decline in membership numbers.  Yes, it is the end of the world as we knew it in the twentieth century, and the 600 years that led up to it when people from certain areas of the world met people from other areas of the world for the first time, travelling in their ships of wind and wood.  That time when the human race introduced capitalism and currency.  We've now begun to realize greed driven resource extraction is unhealthy for the life support systems that keep our planet and our fellow humans healthy, There are changes we need to enact now to avoid near extinction, we can't put them off until "sometime in the future," that future is now in the present!  This is a time of transition, and many people are building bridges between cultures, the Internet is the new medium for those explorers who will change the future, it is the ship of wind and wires.  Wind carries the signal, the culture's perspective and wires direct it, just as the hulls of ships directed the path of explorers 700 years ago.  Other people are changing the rules of the extractive economy, which is really a relic from the last century and the industrial age, unoccupied spaces in cities are becoming local gardens to raise local food, sustainably, new green areas are being introduced to process carbon emissions and in some cases, protect from floods and storms that kill people and damage property.  The amazing interconnected system that is nature is becoming more understandable to ourselves as people.  Indigenous ideas and intellectual understanding are joining forces to save our world, in this present time.  Perhaps the rebirth of earth based spirituality, and new age or ascensionist thinking, and new scientific discoveries are human expressions of true divine will and the will to survive, both, balanced as we transition into a race on a world that is not the world as we've previously known it. Perhaps that is the true end of the world that people are speaking of, the end of the bad world and the beginning of the good one!
we'll  be exploring this idea today on Wheel of Wonder with articles from Wendell Berry and David Korten  The pictures above and below are both of the good world "Presence o.f Gaia" and "Earth from Space."

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Wheel of Wonder February 22, 2015

Is Shamanism controversial?  Apparently so, to some people.  I've recently been re visiting a great documentary by Terry Macy and Daniel Hart, from 1996 "White Shamans and Plastic Medicine People." This documentary is about white folks pretty specifically white folks in the United States of America who've received little to no Tribal teachings about sweat lodges, the medicine wheel, and Shamanic healing, and turn around and try to share this information with the rest of the world (or at least Americans).  Many indigenous people find this to be just another exploitation by the ruling class of what tribal people hold dear, and speak out soundly against the practice. Part of the message behind this documentary seems to be that this form of exploitation applies most especially to people who do this for fame and profit.  This is a very good point and certainly one worth reflecting on.  People have literally DIED from going into sweat lodges that were poorly conceived, and in sweats that were not handled correctly.
 It does make sense that if someone decides to adopt a tradition or practice they haven't been well trained in, and then they turn around and try to teach it, they are not only being disrespectful to that tradition but their mishandling of this ancient knowledge can lead misinformed followers into many problems on the path to the truth they are trying to find in the spiritual practice, some may even say it could have an ill effect on that person in particular's soul or spirit .
  One of the ideas expressed in Macy and Hart's documentary that I found worthy of note was the idea that wisdom for the good of people should be given freely to help other people, other souls, not made into a commodity that can be bought or sold, because that cheapens it, and takes its magic away.  Another idea is that money is just a material exchange of one's energy and effort, or a form of gratitude for help that was offered.  Understandably, there are expenses that need to be met in a culture that is built on currency exchange, but is being a spiritual leader really something a person should get rich for doing?  Think about the cost, the insult, doled out to others who did not get rich or famous in the process referred to above, then decide.
Does this mean Shamanism is particular to the indigenous people of  North America, and anyone else who claims to be a Shaman is just a fraud?  Shamanism and soul journeys have been a part of the Human experience since the first Human dreamed, shared, or meditated, nearly every culture the world over, has had their shamans and mystics. Shamans and Mystics still practice today.  The true question becomes what process did they go through to unlock their gifts?  Did they find them in the roots of their own culture?  Are they mediums or channels to the spirits?  This week on Wheel of Wonder we'll visit with a local healer/shaman/empath and talk about these things. Of course we'll also have the good New Age/Folk/ Independent music your used to, as that is also part of the inspiration and enjoyment of Wheel of Wonder.  Next week we're planning on having guest musicians Aradia on our March 1st show! (see artist links in margin)