I was lucky enough to get to adopt this gorgeous little 10 cm Black Shungite kitty. Thanks Greg. https://gregthecrystalman.com/
Shungite:
Shungite, a black stone made of carbon, is found near the village of Shunga in the Russian Republic of Karelia. A single living cell formed this mineral around 2 billion years ago.
It contains almost all the periodic table of elements. Even more it contains fullerenes; a hollow based molecule which recent research shows may be able to slow the growth of cancer cells and the development of AIDS virus. Fullerenes are antioxidant.
Uses of Shungite:
In magic, black is the colour of protection and hiding from bad luck. Shungite will help to focus your mental energy towards a specific goal. It has electricity-conducting properties which help to intensify magic and meditation. Your psychic power is increased while other stones are strengthened when used together. Shungite can aid those who predict the future.
Ruby or Garnet combined with it enhance its power of protection. Shungite can be successfully used with any other crystal or mineral.
This mineral is helpful in removing negativity and negative or toxic people from your life. By removing negativity and bringing more positive energy, you will find good luck more abundant in all areas of your life.
Healing:
Its calming energy can help ease anxiety, insomnia, allergy, asthma and inflammation. Meditating with it can strengthen the healing properties for headaches, back pain, blood pressure and muscle pain. Shungite infused water helps skin conditions when used to cleanse the skin. As Shungite absorbs negativity, cleanse it with cold water and place in the sun for a few hours.
Electromagnetic Radiation:
Shungite helps to shield you from the electromagnetic fields given off by computers, mobile phones, microwaves, televisions and Wi-Fi. A small adhesive disk attached to mobile phones neutralises harmful effects. Place a Shungite pyramid or a piece of Shungite near computers and Wi-Fi hot spots.
I find wearing my Shungite pendant for any length of time has an uncomfortable effect. This powerful stone produces the best results if only worn for short periods.
My lovely Shungite kitty lives on my bookcase surveying all but out of reach of my furry ones.
Keep a piece of this mineral in your home to protect against negativity and electromagnetic radiation.
A couple of weeks after Mamma had her Itty 2’s, Black Tart had four babies. I found two of them down between the cat run and the verandah crying out very loudly with no mother cat around. I rescued them and put them out under shade but she wouldn’t take them. We tried to hand rear them but they didn’t make it sadly. Several days later I counted more kittens than expected in the yard and discovered Black Tart had another two stashed under the ramp.
By this time I had ten cats and kittens living in my yard. They all sat peering in the windows and doors. Having Fami and Zeus inside I really didn’t want any more inside cats but hoped to re-home the kittens.
Both Mamma and Black Tart were exceptional mothers, very protective of their brood. I only named one of Black Tart’s kitties which was Tyger. I never named the other one, but looking back today at all the photos and videos, it was a doppelgänger for a later kitty.
So we now had Mamma and her three pure black Itties, Black Tart (named for becoming a mum) BT (Black Tart’s protector as he was always close by her), and Jasper. Then there was Tuxie and Fluffy Butt who had developed a magnificent tail. Little Blue and White Lip were still here at this stage.
Jasper took to climbing on top of the cat run bridge to get a little peace away from all the others.
Here we see him telling Zeus all about it.
At first I had a crate for them but there wasn’t enough room for them all, so I bought a tea chest and put rugs in them. After they outgrew these I bought a huge crate and put about 20 rugs in it for them and that is still in use today.
Needless to say they all laughed at my efforts to trap them.
Farewell Black Tart and family:
That was until one of Black Tart’s kitties got into the trap and Black Tart went in after her, setting it off. Poor little Tyger was running around and around the trap crying, wanting to get to her mother and sibling. The lovely lady at the local shelter came and we were able to put little Tyger in with them, then she took them away to be de-sexed and re-homed. I was so sad to see them go, but at least they now had a chance at a furrever home.
BT misses Black Tart:
BT spent some time looking for Black Tart and became a bit of a wanderer. He injured himself at some point and has a limp when it is cold. In Winter he always comes back because he knows he has a warm bed and plenty of food. He stays until the weather warms up again then leaves, returning every week or so for a night or two. Jasper never left the yard and hasn’t in four years.
This is the little unnamed of Black Tart’s Teeny Weenies. It is identical to Iomproidh who you will hear more of later.
I missed Black Tart and her babies after they were gone, but knew they would find new homes. BT was missed as well but he does come back from time to time.
So Mamma became pregnant again and delivered the Itty 2’s to me in October 2015. This time there were no full black kitties. They were all different, but still beautiful.
My days were spent mesmerised by the antics of all the kitties. Little Grey vanished after I was flooded out in the January 2016. Mamma had taken them to safety but when she returned with them Little Grey wasn’t with them. Sadly a few months later White Lip also disappeared, leaving just Tuxie and Fluffy Butt of the Itty 2’s.
Mamma was an incredible mother to her babies. She would call them all out to show them off to me, but I wasn’t allowed the touch them. It was fascinating to watch the interaction between Mamma, the Itties and the Itty 2’s. I learned so much about how animals behave over this time and they are to be admired.
During Summer it gets very hot here, so I put ice cubes in their water bowls. Fluffy Butt loved to play with the ice cubes, batting them around.
They would all also play in and with my jade plant which you can see scattered about.
The three original all blacks were still around and getting towards a year old now.
A few weeks after Mamma had the Itty 2’s one of the original blacks, Black Tart, also had a litter of four kittens, but unfortunately only two survived.
I moved to the Riverland in December 2014. Over the next few months I saw a black cat in the backyard, just sitting and watching me. At first I thought she must belong to someone in the neighbourhood. Then I began to get some work done outside including a cat run for Fami and Zeus.
My cats loved their new run. The black cat began to hang around even more, watching what was going on. I realised she had probably lived here before when the house was rented out as there had been a cat door in the laundry.
The Itties:
Then on my birthday in April 2015 after having a lovely lunch with my daughter, I returned home to see this.
The black cat had returned with three beautiful pure black kittens. They became known as the Itties. At first I didn’t give them names as being all black and skittish I was unable to determine their sex. Mamma was very friendly and would smooch and come up for pats when I fed them all, but I was never able to pick her up or trap her or her babies.
One day she took them with her to explore the neighbourhood. When she returned she only had two with her. She became agitated, ran up and down the back fence, jumping up and peering over. She left the two kitties here and went looking and after some time returned with the missing kitty. I somehow feel I know which one it was because he has never left the yard in over 4 years. Mamma would often go wandering around the streets, but the kittens remained in the yard. She always returned to feed them and care for them.
This little family were absolutely gorgeous and should have had a furrever home, but I couldn’t catch them. They allowed me near them, but not to pick them up.
I want to tell you a little about my book. First, though, ever since I wrote it I have cursed the title as I can never remember it. It is too long. Generally I refer to it as “The Definitive Crystal whatever”.
The Balaclava Mine:
The cover photo is of the Balaclava Mine at Whroo, now a ghost town, near Rushworth where I lived as a child. It is a massive and beautiful, awesome open cut mine. When I visited it as a child it was more open to go inside and there were shafts dropping straight down in the tunnels. They no longer mined it for gold but there was reputed to be a lot of crystal still there. Since then they have closed much of it off although I believe you can still walk through one of the tunnels. It is well worth a visit to this tourist attraction.
The Book:
I didn’t originally set out to write a book. Crystals are a passion for me and I wanted to learn more about them. So started the research. To keep it all sorted in my head I began to write down my notes, trying to put them into some type of order. Writing things down helps me clarify what I am reading. From there it grew.
I began to buy up the many crystals and gems so I could hold them and meditate on them as I wrote about them. Probably my favourite crystal of all time is Amethyst. It has a beautiful colour and a wonderful vibration. This is a great all-purpose stone for anyone to keep close to them. The other two I recommend as a general rule are Clear Quartz and Rose Quartz. With these three you can achieve quite a bit as they encompass a lot of healing and magic.
But they are not the only ones. Around 300 crystals, gemstones and minerals are described in my book along with their references. There are reference tables for colours, chakras and usage. Practical and magical uses as well as metaphysical meanings are included. I use a special set of crystals to do my own crystal readings.
The book itself if A4 size with nearly 300 pages. Because of the colour photos throughout, to get it self printed was going to cost me too much. The cost would then have to be passed on to anyone wanting to purchase it, i.e. $50-$75 AUD which was too prohibitive. Therefore I converted it to a pdf which can be loaded onto a computer and read or referred to that way. I printed and bound a copy for my own use but find that generally I use the pdf version. It is available for purchase as a pdf file.
Over the past couple of months I have had to replace several electrical items or had strange occurrences with them. My shredder died and needed replacing. My TV decided to start flashing so couldn’t see the screen and it wouldn’t turn off. If I tried using the off button it kept turning itself back on again so it had to be turned off at the power point and the plug removed. It went off for repair but couldn’t be saved, so the kind people at Kogan replaced it. I can’t recommend Kogan enough, they have been fantastic to deal with always.
Email Mishaps:
The day before yesterday my main email account would not download although my other email accounts had no problems. I spent hours trying to solve the problem. Then my IT person (i.e. my daughter, bless her) came after work and tried for about an hour and a half. She was unable to fix the problem but found another solution which I am trying to learn how to use.
Mobile Phone Mishaps:
Yesterday I spent 5 hours online chatting to support staff trying to change my mobile phone plan but kept getting timed out. Then another person would come on and want to start all over again. Needless to say I was getting more and more frustrated and stressed until finally one person suggested a a way to solve my problem. I went online and filled out all the necessary details to obtain the new plan, then at the end got a message “Sorry something went wrong. We are unable to complete your application at this time”. Did I mention my prepaid was due to expire yesterday and I needed to recharge urgently! So, there I was, not knowing if I was committed to paying for the new plan or if I had to pay $60 on the old plan which I would lose if the new plan went ahead in a couple of days.
By this time I was ready to start screaming. Once again my chat had timed out so had lost the third person I had spoken to. I rang them and a very nice lady helped me to get a temporary 7 day cover until the other went through. Only thing was when I went online and paid my $10 for the cover I got another message saying “Ooops something went wrong. Try another method of payment”. Fortunately the lady was still on the phone with me and said she could see that it had gone through even though the website didn’t show it. Finally after a few hours I had received acknowledgement that it had gone through.
And So It Continues:
I went down to the shops to get some scripts filled which were desperately needed. No problem there. Paid by EFTPOS. Then I decided I needed comfort food so went into Coles where I got some goodies. Going through the checkout I paid by EFTPOS again, but when I pulled my card out it cancelled the transaction. Do I cry or scream? In the end my card went through and all was ok once more.
I seem to have the killer touch with electrical appliances and electronics. My convection microwave has decided not to heat up properly so will have to deal with that when I find the strength and courage.
The Planets Are To Blame:
Of course, the planets are not cooperating as I would like them to. Mercury is in Scorpio as well as Venus, Retrograde, and Jupiter, all in my Natal 10th House. At least Mercury will move out of Scorpio on 30th October and Jupiter on the 8th November.
Meanwhile Uranus is in Taurus directly on the cusp between Aries and Taurus. I am a triple Aries (Sun, Moon and Mercury in the 3rd House) with Uranus as my Ruling Planet. Also my Natal Uranus is in Taurus on the exact degree as Saturn in my 4th House.
Does the world hate me at present. It sure seems like it. This year is going really fast but I am hoping it will be over soon and the bloody planets will have moved out of my range.
Hope everyone else is having more luck with the transits than I am.
I will talk a little about Hallowe’en first before getting into the serious study of two of the major Sabbats.
In Australia the tradition of “Trick or Treat” is not as widespread as it is in the Northern Hemisphere. In the past I hadn’t had any eager little trick or treaters come to my door before last year. I made a Jack O’Lantern that year and placed it outside. As I had done in the past, I stocked up on packets of lollies. In the past I had to eat them afterwards when no-one came. There were many visitors to my door last year, all in amazing costumes. So obviously it is growing in support throughout the nation. I live in a small country town in the Riverland, so it is quite surprising to see it here.
A friend of mine had given me one of the special Jack O’Lantern pumpkins she grew, which was extremely easy to carve, unlike normal pumpkins. She didn’t have as much luck this year growing them, but managed to give me a smaller one when we met up with her in the Murraylands for lunch a few weeks ago. As you can see from the photo above, one of my naughty cats has dug into it. Therefore I am not sure it will even last until the 31st October 2018. I guess we just have to wait and see.
Jack O’Lantern originated from an old Irish myth about Stingy Jack. Stingy Jack loved to play tricks on everyone, including the Devil. One year he conned the Devil into climbing a tree to pick fruit. He then placed crosses around the tree so the Devil couldn’t climb down until he promised not to take Jack’s soul when he died.
Many years later, Jack died, but because he was such a mean, miserable old man, Saint Peter refused him entry to Heaven. Jack went down to Hell, but the Devil also would not let him in. Instead the Devil gave him one of Hell’s fire embers to light his way. Jack placed it in a turnip and roamed the earth. He became known as Jack of the Lantern, later shortened to Jack O’Lantern.
Originally the Jack O’Lantern was made from swedes, turnips and potatoes, but when the Irish emigrated to America and took the fable with them, they found pumpkins made a better Jack O’Lantern and were easier to carve.
Despite people knowing the legend of Stingy Jack, many believed the Jack O’Lanterns described the strange flickering lights sometimes seen over bogs and swamps. These lights have many names such as ghost light, fairy light and will-o-the-wisp.
At Samhain, people went door to door demanding rewards in exchange for good luck which became the modern trick or treat custom.
The closest we ever came to Hallowe’en celebrations as children was the town providing a huge bonfire and burning an effigy of Guy Fawkes on November 5th.
Beltane and Samhain:
Beltane:
I am lumping these two together as they are interchangeable depending on whether you live in the Southern Hemisphere or the Northern Hemisphere.
Beltane is generally celebrated on the eve of April 30 in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere we celebrate on October 31st. Some people celebrate the date astrologically at the midpoint between the Spring/Autumn Equinox and the Summer/Winter Solstice.
There are many traditions surrounding Beltane. Oak, Hawthorn and Rowan trees are sacred to this time. It is considered taboo to cut down or break off branches from Hawthorn trees except on May Eve.
It was customary for girls and women to bathe their faces in the morning dew on Mayday to beautify the skin. A bel-fire or bale-fire was extinguished before being re-lit to herald the coming of Summer. Usually a candle was used to extinguish then if possible a bonfire was lit. Participants jumped over small fires to protect from disease and evil fairies who are particularly prevalent at this time. Fairies are also active at Samhain as well as Beltane.
As Beltane is also a fertility celebration, maypole dancing is traditional, with the maypole being a phallic symbol.
April 30th is also known as Walpurgisnacht (Walpurgis Night), the eve of the canonisation of Saint Walpurga.
Saint Walpurga was born in Devon England in 710 AD and later became a Christian missionary to Germany. She was instrumental in battling witches. People celebrated Walpurgisnacht by dancing and lit bonfires to ward off witches who were believed to gather on Hexennacht to worship Satan. Thus Walpurgisnacht is meant to counter witchcraft.
Dennis Wheatley made mention of Walpurgisnacht in several of his books on Black Magic.
Samhain:
Samhain like Beltane, is another fire festival. The 1st of November was the Celtic New Year, the time belonging to neither past nor present and neither this world nor the Other. The veil between the worlds is thin and the spirits of ancestors can come through. At this time we pay our respects to those who have gone before, ancestors, family members, friends and pets.
Scrying, divination and communing with the dead are all performed at Samhain.
When celebrating the Sabbats and Esbats it is better to do so after the date, if not at that time, because the energies are stronger than beforehand.
Beltane festival marks the beginning of Summer and the living, whilst Samhain symbolises the beginning of Winter, the darker half of the year, and the dead.
Because of the many similarities between the observances of Beltane and Samhain I always included a little of each in my rituals.
In ancient times people slaughtered their stock as crops died and they would have been unable to feed them through winter. Living in the southern states of Australia, the dying time is not necessarily winter as our blistering summers and dry winters lead to drought. This year in Australia there is a major drought and stock are dying and feed is difficult to come by. Farmers are having to kill off sheep and cattle who are starving.
Another reason for my combining Beltane and Samhain is the Celtic names of months. Celebrating Beltane in a month that is Samhain in Irish or Samhain in Bealtaine just seems wrong. This would be from the influence from my Irish Grandmother I think.
January – Eanáir
February – Feabhra
March – Márta
April – Aibreán
May – Bealtaine
June – Meitheamh
July – Iúil
August – Lúnasa (Lughnasadh)
September – Meán Fómhair
October – Deireadh Fómhair
November – Samhain
December – Nollaig, also Mí na Nollag
Finally, we are taught “..an it harm none, do what thou wilt”. Therefore celebrate the Sabbats and Esbats however you choose. Witchcraft is very personal so make it your own.
Rocks & Smells – Aloe Vera, Moonstone and Clear Quartz
Aloe Vera:
The plant in the photo above is one of my Aloe Vera plants. It began as a small plant a couple of inches tall and remained in a small pot for over a year. Then I planted it out into the big pot where it very quickly produced lots of pups that over-filled the pot. These had to be removed and were either planted out into the garden or given away. I think everyone should have Aloe Vera growing as it is a fantastic first aid plant. It is very easy to keep and doesn’t need a lot of looking after.
I have always been allergic to any burns treatments or products containing SPF . Therefore I had to either suffer through the pain and discomfort of burns or sunburn without treatment, or the rashes that persisted for weeks from burns treatment. That was until I found out about the magical plant Aloe Vera from a booklet put out by the Aloe Vera Research Institute, by Max B. Skousen, in 1979. This Hand Book is still a treasured possession and referred to often.
In addition to treating burns, Aloe Vera can heal wounds and relieve aches and pains. It is helpful for psoriasis, itching, hair loss, blistering, insect bites and stings. Rashes reduce and eczema eases with its use. It is antibacterial, anaesthetic, anti-inflammatory and anti-fungal. For thousands of years Aloe Vera was used for many types of healing.
Magical Uses:
Aloe is associated with the Moon, has feminine energy and relates to water and the Astrological sign of Cancer. It offers protection,luck, guarding against evil influences and accidents in the home. Placed on the graves of loved ones it brings them peace until they are reborn.
This plant enhances spells for protection, dreams, prophecy, psychic awareness.
Aloe Vera is also good first aid for animals, see “Aloe Vera Hand Book”
There are many sites on Google with plenty of information for those who want to explore this magical plant further. There are also a few YouTube videos on how to make your own Aloe Vera Gel.
I haven’t made the gel up myself as I prefer to just cut the leaves when ever I need their use.
This plant is not actually a smell as such, but I include it in Rocks and Smells for its many uses. It goes well with Moonstone and Clear Quartz Crystal.
Moonstone:
Like Aloe Vera, Moonstone is feminine in energy and relates to the Moon and the Astrological Sign of Cancer. It relieves anxiety and stress.
Moonstone is best used in rituals during a waxing Moon. Psychic ability and power and prophetic dreams are some of the benefits of this stone. It is very protective, so keep one in the glove box to protect while driving and to avoid road rage. With its affinity to water it also protects when traveling by sea or on water.
Evil is repelled and disputes settled using it. Place Moonstone in a cat’s bed to discourage them from wandering at night.
Health benefits include aiding with stomach, spleen, pancreas and pituitary glands, as well as the lymphatic system. Digestion is improved and obesity and fluid retention are helped. If you suffer from insomnia or stress headaches keep Moonstone handy.
Clear Quartz Crystal:
Quartz Crystal is the only truly programmable crystal. Clear stones are masculine, therefore stronger with faster energy. Cloudy stones are feminine and better aid for long-term and chronic conditions.
These are basic stones for magick as they enhance psychic ability. When you find one that resonates with you, keep it personal as they remember and store memories. It dispels negativity, prevents bad dreams and protects from the evil eye and counters black magic.
Health wise it aids the pineal, pituitary glands, pain, arthritis, bone injuries, depression and fibromyalgia among many other complaints.
Whether you are using Aloe Vera and these crystals for health reasons or for magical, they will work well together.
As always, my book “The Definitive Crystal, Gem and Mineral Reference Guide” has abundant material on crystals and gems.
All my life I have considered the number 13 to be lucky. I could never understand people who superstitiously believed it was unlucky. Buildings of many floors often eliminate the number 13 and jump from the 12th floor to the 14th floor. This makes you wonder what happened to the 13th floor. Is it in the Twilight Zone?
Witches, wiccans and pagans use the number 13 in rituals, spells and workings. Traditionally there were always 13 witches in a coven.
Friday 13th
Friday 13th is always a good and lucky day for me. But for those who are superstitious I have devised a calendar for 2019, removing the number 13 and replacing it with emojis. So enjoy a year without 13’s.
With the hundreds of crystals and gemstones I have in my collection, I have chosen a select few that resonate for readings. All of these crystals have different meanings, likewise their position in a reading can change that.
Part 1 of the reading:
I always read the crystals in two parts, the first part involves using 13 crystals. The person requiring the read, holds them in their hand whilst contemplating their question. They scatter the crystals onto a sheepskin when ready. I then do the reading depending on where they land in relation to each other.
Part 2 of the Reading:
The second part of the reading delves much deeper. It utilizes a board which I designed using Astrology in conjunction with crystals.
The questioner places 13 crystals around the board in whatever order they fancy. The crystal placed in the middle usually represents their hopes.
I first consider the Astrological signs upon which the others are placed. Finally I read them all as they relate to one another across the board.
Videos:
I made the first video with extreme difficulty, probably because Little Bit decided she wanted to steal the crystals all the time.
The second video went a little more smoothly before Zeus tried to do his own reading at the end.
I found reading crystals the best form of divination for me. There have been occasions where I have received nothing but gibberish. Subsequently, I have found there was a good reason the person was not meant to get the message.
Another time the atmosphere in the room became so dense and dark until I discovered the tragedy the person had gone through. After that reading I sat for several hours clutching my generator crystal to cleanse my aura.
Generally speaking I love being able to help people make decisions about what direction they are headed.
I also appreciate feedback, both positive and negative. If someone feels I haven’t read them correctly, I certainly want to know.
