Baba Yaga : a Different Telling

Finding Baba Yaga: A Short Novel in Verse by Jane Yolen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

On the whole I rather like Jane Yolens work even if the writing could use a bit more attention to detail. I liked this as well but with some caveats. First it was way too short. The story could have been fleshed out more with a few more plot twists added to make the story more exciting. The story is also lacking details and not very descriptive. It needs more of this. I am not a big fan of telling stories or tales thorough poetic verse I much prefer the narrative approach.

This tale of Baba Yaga has been reworked from the Russian fairy tale thus bringing it into modern times. Natasha is a girl that lives in what could be a household marred with arguments and fighting. Her father forbids her to use profanity and washed her mouth out with soap every time she used profanity. In a moment of tearful desperation she decides to run away. Alone in an unnamed city she roams the streets for seven days . Hungry, dirty and alone it is no fun being homeless. So she wanders into a forest and comes upon Baba Yaga’s house.

Now Baba Yaga is an old crone from Russian faery tales. An old woman with an Iron nose and teeth she gets around on a flying pestle. Her favorite dish is children who wander in her domain . Usually it is bad kids that get eaten up. At Baba Yagas she meets Vasilia who falls in love with a princes and she meets Kotschai the deathless. Baby Yaga has a hut that is armed with a modern kitchen and a microwave . In the end Natasha’s destiny is revealed.

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Philosophical Words of Ordo Dracul

The Prophesy of the Ordo Dracul: The Philosophy of the Vampire by William Allan Lavey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

From two great vampires comes a massive philosophical tome that gives off lesson to make us better human beings that are filled with warmth and love. Filled with great advice and anecdotes, it is one of those book I took my time reading so as to absorb the teaching as best i could. Kudos to Andreas Bathory and WD Allan for putting out one of the most humanistic books ever read. The book is close to a thousand pages and believe me when I tell you , get a highlighter or take good notes cause you will want to refer back them. I myself got the kindle version and i have made several high lights on this book.

This tome touches on several issues. The thrust that got my attention came toward the end of my reading was the focus on individuality and spirituality. In essence we are all individuals who must blaze our own path in life as well as in spirituality. We should not be expected to rely upon others to validate our path or spirituality cause each individual has their own way and their own destiny. People are moving away from the standard religions and embracing other spiritual ideals. It is becoming more individual. People are getting into meditation, wholistic health and yoga just to name a few. The church leaders are not to happy about this because they have less congregant which boils down to less money. THe established religions are losing their hold on the collective consciousness . Individualism also entails our relationships . We cannot have the heard mentality where we must rely upon the opinion of others. In fact it is most important to become/best friends with ourselves before we can become best friends to others. We must remember that the human mind seems to designed to seek out modes of spiritual transcendance. Let us seek. In the paragraph below a few quotes pulled out from the book will be shared.

When was the last time you took the time to attend to that innermost part of who you truly are within yourself and sat alone with yourself in silence so you could see, feel and listen to how you felt? Really took the time to notice what was affecting you and changing your inner vibrations, your inner resonance, that part of your core that is the “you”

This means getting in touch with your inner self and become aware of your feelings and how they affect your life. Sounds like good advice to me.

Happiness is another of those relative concepts that you occasionally come across that most seek, some claim to find, and others remain quite insistent that they have found while yet others will attest that there is no real happiness except what you create.

Read into this that you can and must create your own happiness but also think about how your smile can uplift someone else’s day despite all that they went through. The same can happen to you when someone smiles at you.

Drawing the grief of the past up for a re-experiencing again and again to the pain of all.

Speaks for itself. Grieve and then leave it in the past. Do not keep bringing it up.

If you are looking for darkness or arcane rituals go elsewhere . This is a tome of light love and humanity.

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Take This to the Trashbin

Celtic Heritage: Ancient Tradition in Ireland and Wales by Alwyn Rees
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book was terrible. It is supposed to be a classic but it clearly lacks the making of a true classic. It is neither scholarly nor entertaining. If you wish to understand Celtic Heritage I am sure there are better books out there. It is not clear where the paraphrase stories begin and end before jumping off into explanation. There needs to be a clear delineation of things in order to be fully comprehendsble. There needs to be fuller biography of the heroes and characters in the story . This book lacks that. So this book has good information but the formatting is terrible. The writing is muddled making it hard to ascertain the point.

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The Clan of Tubal Caine

The Robert Cochrane Tradition:CTC: Tubal's Mill Revised: An Autobiography by Shani Oates
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A has been said about the Robert Cochran’s Clan of Tubal Cain and according to Shani Oates, maiden of the CTC, much of it is untrue and comes from outsiders looking in. This book is meant to deal with the distortions and misinformation that is out there . I for one am glad because believe me there is lots of confusion.

Shani starts off with explaining some basic tenets of Robert Cochran’s philiosophy and some of their praxis. She does Ltd the similarities between Wicca and the Clan of Tubal Cain. Last there is discussion on the possible origins of the clan.

Some of the most recent rumors devolve around three or four issues. There is speculation as to where the tradition originated. Some say he made it up, while some others believe it was a family tradition . Cochran’s family was Methodist . The Royal Windsor Coven is a rumored coven that Robert Cochran started or belonged to prior to starting the Clan of Tubal Caine. No evidence of this coven has been found and there is no mention of it in Robert Cochran’s writing or letters. Further more associates close to him like Evan John Jones, Doreen Valiente and Bill Grey make no mention of it.

Another rumor on the mill is that the regency Coven which sprung up after Robert Cochran’s passing was part of Tubal Cain. Nothing could be further from the truth. It was started by Robert White and George Standard. They were banished from the Clan and is not part of the tradition. Another rumor is that they are Luciferian, not true. They do not pay homage to Satan or Lucifer. They blend Northern Tradition with some Old Testament myths .the closest approximation of what they work with is Hermes, Hecate and Saturn.

If you are looking for Clan of Tubal Cain or to get involved with them then I Suggest you avoid Joe Wilson’s 1734 Tradition and avoid Ann Finnins Ancient Celtic Church which Claim or did Claim they were part of the CTC. Their material may have recieved inspiration and some teaching from the CTC but it ain’t CTC.

Shani Oates is the spokesperson for this tradition and no other. She mentions others who are responsible for spreading misinformation. Among those names are Michael Howard, Dave and Ann Finnin ,John of Montsmouth.

The world of crafters is a small world and there is often times misinformation out there meant to fool you or lure you in. Shani Oates sets the record straight .

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The Magical Trump Presidency

Dark Star Rising: Magick and Power in the Age of Trump by Gary Lachman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What is the secret to Trumps success and his presidential victory? He seems to bumble through his presidency without a plan or clue and yet he still manages to come out on top. Is it collusion with the Russians? Or perhaps it is his untold millions or is it a pact with the devil? The title does suggest something sinister.

The real secret lies in positive thinking. As Robert Spencer, the leader of an alt right group, proclaimed that we willed Trump into power. This sounds magical to me. Trump was a follower of Vincent Normal Peale, a minister who believed in the power of thinking positive. Vincent Norman Peale had a plan of action that stated “Picturize it, prayerize it, actualize it.” If the mind can conceive it then the mind can achieve it.

This incredible book details the history of new thought or positive thinking, going back to when it was used for health. Now it is being used to generate wealth or achieve ambitions. Trump approaches his job with a controlled neurosis and not much of a game plan to tie him down. Rigidity in his mind detracts from success.

In terms of getting elected several Magick terms are discussed. Egregires or group mind mascot is a being or way of thinking created from the energy of human thought. Pepe the frog is an example . He was used to get trump elected. It carried an idea from mind to mind. Pepe the frog could be an egregore. On the net lol was usd to mean laugh out loud. Well in the gaming world typing lol translated to Kek. Somehow this kek got attached to Pepe the frog. Kek was also an Egyptian deity, a frog deity.

Chaos magic comes into play over in Russia. Alexander Dugin himself appears to be a chaos magician, he wears the chaos star. Like Trump this guy is a post modern thinker where in the truth and reality are negotiable. He is also a traditionalist meaning that he believes that in the beginning there a divine revelation or period and since then things have digressed. He is using chaos magic techniques to restore Russia to a Eurasian super power. There is a conflict with the west it is over supremacy. It could also turn into an occult war.

This fascinating book opened for me an internal doorway. I plan to read this author’s book and some that have been recommended or mentioned. The imagination is everything.

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