General Discussion

@sootsprite

Wow, that's amazing! I'm actually going to Korea in under a month, my family lives there and they want me to visit for the first half summer, and then they're going to drag me all over the West Coast to visit other family. So travel is something I do EXTENSIVELY and a safe travel spell will help. Trust is also easy to interpret, a little personal here, recently my closest friend said she couldn't be friends with me anymore, because I'm selfish and difficult and I don't really care about anyone besides my significant other. She told me "You don't have friends, you have Chris (Sig Oth) and acquaintances, because you don't put effort into anyone but yourself." She was right of course, trust has always been a big issue for me, ever since a group of really close friends turned against me years ago. I expected her to act the same, so I kept her at a distance and only looked after myself, and I just never bother to get close enough to anyone else to consider them a friend at all. When she left, I wasn't sad because she was gone, because I knew it was inevitable. I was sad because I felt I could no longer trust anyone enough to build a real relationship. If I trusted Courtney enough to not think she would betray me, we could've been real friends. Instead I treated her like a distraction, because that's all I wanted her to be to me so I wouldn't get hurt.

So yeah, trust is a thing I've been struggling with. I'm not sure about the New Beginnings card, I guess thats just something I need right now.

Let me do a reading for youuuu~

@morbidarachnid
ahh, i'm so glad it was relatable to you! firstly, hope all your travels go well, and if you do do the spell it isn't needed, but helps if it is! secondly, i'm sorry to hear about the friend situation. maybe this could help with that, or send you in the right direction for future friendships. u _u dealing with trust issues can be so frustrating. and it's funny because i almost scrapped the new beginnings card, but then i was like eh, maybe it could help. soo, maybe it ties into the trust. a new beginning on the friendship front!

i would love a reading, tho. orz

@sootsprite

Do you have a specific question or do you just want me to do a big *** spread?

@MorbidArachnid
i don't have any specific questions at the moment omg so a big spread is cool!

@Sootsprite @MorbidArachnid

I'll give a quick intro. I have not yet found the god I follow under. Nobody has really connected with me that I've researched on, but granted I've not done much research lately due to work.

I work mostly with nature. I like to give and protect the plants while using them in my spells. I also do a lot of stone/gem work. I always wear amethyst to repel bad dreams and insomnia. Though lately I've had some issues staying asleep. I know a full moon is coming soon so I'll be gathering my materials and recharge the stone.

Does anyone know of a good spell or method for healing sore/tender muscles?

I'm a polytheist and as divination goes I do a lot of pendulum work. I've done tarot but it's never clicked correctly me.

@Selnyam
oh, welcome btw! forgot to say it last night ~

i've heard so much about astral projection, and so many different things. do you mind explaining it at all? if it's personal or something that's okay, but i hear so many different accounts of what it's like when it's done, so what is it like for you/how do you do it?

also, i haven't actually seen anyone that works with dragons in that way. i've heard of draconic wicca, i think it's called that, but i never really knew what it was about or the extent that dragons have to do with it. never seen dragon work outside of that, tho.

@Finnley
i wish i had runes. orz

that's on my next buy list. i kind of want to get a set and feel them out before attempting to make my own. i could do a card read if you wanted in exchange for runes, tho, if you would be interested in that.

@Yield
welcome! i'm still working on the god/dess bit, too. i've got a bit of an idea who i'm going to try to work with, but i'm still kind of in the tentative ... researching and whatnot first stage.

plant magic, yaaay. i want a garden so badly. i'm in a desert right now, and while i know it's possible, i just don't have the time or energy for it here. but after i move, hopefully!

i might know of a few spells, tho, just have to dig them out ~

@Ladycowbell
welcomewelcome ~

what gods are you interested in or work with in your polytheism? is it just a mix, or do you stick to certain ones like hellenic, or celtic, or the long list of them ~

@MorbidArachnid

I'm sort of late to the party, but the Rede question is an interesting one. I appreciate the sentiment of it. But as a scientifically-minded person, I do not believe in karma or any similar concept. It's very anthropocentric to expect reward or retribution from a vast and neutral universe. The idea of a force of justice is very appealing, but how would it work? Would carnivore animals bring its wrath on themselves by bringing harm to others? What about our animal husbandry, or accidentally stepping on a snail in the yard, or any number of things? It's impossible to truly harm none. Does it only apply to humans, then? That's even more anthropocentric. If that is the case, it would certainly go against the very widely held Wiccan belief that humans are a part of nature and not fundamentally different from any animal. Or, does it only apply to magic? Why the distinction, if magic is simply another act of nature?

The only situations where something like that could occur are social situations. It's common sense that if you treat people badly, people will find out about it and ostracize you.
I guess I went on a tangent there and that would be more related to the "Threefold law" and karma in general. The idea that it's a law specifically and not a 'suggestion' like the Rede chafes my brain a bit.

Anyway, now to the Rede, which is somewhat related. It always seemed extremely out of place in what purports to be a natural religion. Nature certainly doesn't seem to have anything against harm, the entire concept of food chains is based on it, after all, among many, many things. This is simply an opinion, of course, as is everything else, but I always get the feeling that the reason for the Rede's existence is for the benefit of non-Wiccans, anticipating that people would be uncomfortable about a religion that has no moral code.

To me, it feels good to connect with people, to uplift them and to do kind things. That is all I need, but it is not a rule or law or even a suggestion. It's simply a fact. If that does not apply to someone else and they genuinely do not gather positivity from positivity - I would rather them show that, and maybe eventually change from the inside, rather than do kind things under the yoke of an outside influence. That sort of thing reeks of falsity.