Musings

The heART of Ritual

Welcome to the MUSINGS room in our digital nest! Here you will find an extensive selection of articles, poetry, prose, videos, recipes, and tutorials that journey the natural cycles, seasons, elements, and archetypes in the Celtic Wheel of the Year, as well as our Irish indigenous festivals, folklore, and customs.

This is lovingly provided as a free community resource, however it is copyrighted content. As such, we respectfully ask that if you share this content outside of this dedicated space, either in whole, in part, or paraphrased, that you credit the author and source. Thank you.

Wintering, and how Trees illuminate the Art of Self-Renewal in difficult times

“Wintering… is the courage to stare down the worst parts of our experience and to commit to healing them the best we can. Wintering is a...

The Complex Root Systems of Plants

Winter is the season of the earth element and earth, and it's hard to speak about earth without speaking about physical roots, our...

Seasonal Poetry & Prose: 'A Wintry Sonnet', by Christina Rossetti

A Robin said: The Spring will never come, And I shall never care to build again. A Rosebush said: These frosts are wearisome, My sap will...

On Smoke, Mirrors, and Shadow Play

One of the interesting qualities of being human is, by the look of it, we’re the only part of creation that can actually refuse to be...

Observation about the nature of Piskies (Pixies)

I always understood the Piskies to be little people. A great deal was said about ghosts in this place. Whether or not Piskies are the...

The Goddesses of January

As we approach Women's Little Christmas on January 6th, or 'Nollaig na mBan' as it is known here in Ireland, it is worth noting that...

The Miracle that is the Earthly Vessel

The earth element/winter season relates with, amongst other themes, the physical body and your relationship with it. So as a little...

Irish Folklore and Traditions of the New Year

Wandering fairies, returning ancestor spirits, and talking animals comprise some of the folklore and old superstitions associated with...

Seasonal Poetry & Prose: 'Spellbound', by Emily Brontë

The night is darkening round me, The wild winds coldly blow; But a tyrant spell has bound me And I cannot, cannot go. The giant trees...

Seasonal Poetry & Prose: 'The Legend of the Winter Rose', by Kenn Allan

The path beyond the garden gate Weaves 'round the olive trees And leads to where the flowers sway Upon a gentle breeze. Behind the heads...

What can we learn from how Nature spends Winter?

Life's adaptations to the cold and dark part of the year demonstrate how time and patience, in the end, teach us how to survive....

How to do Animal hand Shadow Puppets

Fun for all the family, big kids and small, young and old alike. How to do animal hand shadow puppets!

Ecstatic music from the mystic Hildegard Von Bingen

"The Word is living, being, spirit, all verdant greening, all creativity. This Word manifests itself in every creature, Holy persons draw...

Wren Day - December 26th

Going out on 'The Wran' was a strong tradition that I grew up with in the Mealagh Valley in West Cork. We would all dress up in all sorts...

Shetland folk tradition of Skelling, Skeklers and Guising

'For ‘a coarn o meal, a penny o money, ir a piece o flesh’ a handful of grain, penny of money, or piece of meat.' Any evidence of...

Vision

If we will have the wisdom to survive, to stand like slow growing trees on a ruined place, renewing, enriching it... then a long time...

Hibernation

It’s that time of year when the call of winter invites us to retreat here in the northern hemisphere. To rest deeply into the boundless...

The Light of the Christ Child

Today’s light emanates from the Christian story that God’s son was born to Mary, a virgin, in a stable in Bethlehem, to save mankind from...

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The heART of Ritual

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