To them I was not human but a stone or tree: I felt a sharp wonder they could not feel.
Sharp wonder is a wonderful turn of phrase, and so apt here. The wren is a tiny bird, but with a huge voice and bold personality. It is a tiny, feathery bundle of contradictions, and has been inspiring humans through folklore and superstition for millennia. We are wondrous in the presence of the wren; we don’t understand how something so tiny can be so resilient and tough, and throughout history we have tried to figure it out through tales of deceit, betrayal and heroism. As a witch, I see birds as both a physical creature, wondrous and magical in their own right, but also as an incredible source of magical symbolism. By studying the wren’s appearance in history and mythology, we can sketch out a useful list of correspondences and symbolism to help us in magical and spiritual practice.
King of the Birds
It was possibly Aesop who first told this tale, which is referenced by Plutarch around A.D. 96. In Glen-na-hEan, valley of the birds, the inhabitants were trying to choose a king. An owl and two swans decided that the only way to decide this was to have a competition; whoever could fly highest would be crowned King of the Birds. Everyone was pretty certain that the eagle had this one in the bag, but as the eagle soared higher than anyone else, he became tired, and confident that he had won, began to relax and drift downwards. At that point, the wren took off from where he had been perched on the eagle’s back, flew the highest and won the title. Although the wren had won unfairly, the birds conceded that a king needs to be clever as well as strong, and so the wren was named King of the Birds.
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Esta historia es de la edición Issue 22 de The Magical Times.
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The Wonder Of Unicorns
People nowadays believe that unicorns are creatures of myth and magic. However, these seventh dimensional ascended horses with light spiralling from their third eye are beings of light who vibrate at a higher level than we do. This is why we often cannot see them.
The Ever-Living One
I vividly remember when I first started writing my devotional to Hekate.
The Magic Of The Crow
Crows, black shadows flying overhead, omens of death and war. Feeders of battlefields, their cries signal dark times ahead and warn of evil prophecies. Or do they? Even though the crow is often seen as a harbinger of dark tidings, there is much more to the mythology and folklore of this amazing, intelligent bird than black luck.
Living Your Magic
One of the questions that I’m asked the most is ‘how do I do what I do? How do I live every day in my magical space?’
Tours In India With Vish Singh
1. Why did you become a tour guide?
Beneath Every Green Tree
When the universe was young and the barren earth untouched, God called forth from the soil a lush and verdant garden.
Unravelling The Past
Over the past century human, have accomplished many things from the creation of auto-mobiles to moon landings - they have broken the bonds of gravity and redefined time and space. In my ‘spirit travels’ I too have defied the natural order, bypassing what is known as current time to go back to the past.
Herbs Of The Sun, Moon & Planets
Yes, you read the title correctly, and are no doubt wondering how there can be any herbs growing on any of the other heavenly bodies of our solar system.
Working With The Cycle Of The Seasons Plant Magic
Today we have the luxury of buying what we want whenever we want; however, change is afoot in the mundane world with a movement that focuses on seasonal and local food. For Pagans and Wiccans, this goes hand-in-hand with a spirituality that celebrates the seasonal wheel of the year.
The Wren: The Brilliant Trickster...
To them I was not human but a stone or tree: I felt a sharp wonder they could not feel.
