30 March 2014

Chakra Series: Sacral Chakra and Your Flow

This article is part of Kallan's wonderful Sunday Stew. Please hop on over and read all the different flavors added by each chef. I know that you will love it!



This week will be the 2nd in the Chakra Series. Your energy centers are important to your health and well-being and your relationship with the Universal Energy. As I said last week, they are your spark plugs in your "vehicle". We want your vehicle to be a running smoothly, so let's give it a tune-up. This week's focus is on the Sacral Chakra, the Svadhisthana. Svadhisthana means "one's own abode".

Whereas the Root chakra was all about learning to love yourself and developing your relationship with yourself to give yourself a good foundation in the world, the Sacral chakra is all about developing your relationships with other people in your life. It is about your movement in this world of ours. Your flow of movement. It is your center for developing your emotions and sexuality. This is your pleasure center.

The Sacral chakra is located 2-3 inches below your naval. It's associations are: the sense of taste, the water element, your hands, the deities Vishnu and Rakini, and Sobek (a crocodile fertility symbol). Its color is bright, brilliant orange. It resides over your urinary tract, reproductive system (men and women: ovaries, testicles, womb, genitals), kidneys, lymphatic system, and your bladder. It is                    represented by a 6 petal lotus. It resonates to musical note D.

Many religions teach that erotica and sexual pleasures are evil, but these are essential for your well-being. By embracing your sexual side and enjoy all things pleasurable, you help this chakra to "blossom".

When this chakra is out of balance:
1. You can be rigid. Not just sexual rigidity, but also in your beliefs or behavior.
2. You can be emotionally insensitive
3. Fearful of change
4. Lack desire and passion.
5. You will also have bad social skills.
6. Get bored easily.
7. Feelings of guilt.

On the flip side, you can also be out of balance by having excess (only a few listed):
1. Mood swings
2. Sexual and stimulation addictions
3. Emotionally dependent
4. Over-sensitivity
5. Sex addiction

Signs that this chakra is a-ok and not out of balance:
1.You will have passion for life
2. Ability to nurture yourself and others
3. Gracefulness
4. Emotional intelligence
5. Healthy sex-life.

You will also have sex appeal if you have a strong Sacral chakra.

Since your Sacral chakra is all about the flowing of your emotions, you do not want it to be out of whack. When it is open and properly conducting your energy your emotion will show themselves appropriately, you will express them clearly.


Here are some things that will help your Svadhisthana unblock and spin at the correct speed.

1. Yoga poses for your 2nd chakra:




2. Take a bath, anoint orange candles with corresponding oils. Good ones to use would be amber, rosemary, sweet orange, or ylang ylang.

Since this chakra is about your emotions flowing through life in balance and since its element is water, a warm bath is an ideal place for meditating on affirmations. Let the water flow over your body while you meditate on things such as "I create and nurture freely" or "The harmony of the Universal Energy flows through me and I accept all the good things that it gives me" or "I allow myself to experience pleasure" "I am passionate and enjoy my body".

Sacral Chakra Music Note D meditation

Vam Seed Mantra

3. Make some sacral chakra juice.


4. Meditate while listening to the sound of rain, or water running. Use the corresponding stones and crystals. This time think orange: Moonstone, citrine, fire opal, amber, carnelian, golden topaz, tiger's eye, sunstone, goldstone. Also malachite, even though it isn't an orange color, it is great for working with this chakra because it can work with the reproductive organs.



















23 March 2014

Chakra Series: Root Chakra and Who You are

This article is part of Kallan's wonderful Sunday Stew. Please hop on over and read all the different flavors added by each chef. I know that you will love it!


I used to be a yoga nut. When we moved five years ago to our home we currently reside in, I stopped. I started working on our home, thinking I would get back to it soon, and before I knew it 5 years had gone by with only a sporadic here or there practice by me.

I recently picked it back up. My main reason for starting back was my stiffness. Gosh, sitting here and painting and never moving had made me sooo stiff. Being a lyme disease "survivor" I have to watch my joints. My legs are a trouble area of mine, so moving is important.

My very first day back, I realized how much I had missed it. My goal is to work my way up to 2 hours a day of yoga. I am up to 45 minutes every other day right now.

My favorite type is Kundalini yoga. I love the Ana Brett and Ravi Singh dvds. I also like Maya Fiennes. I also meditate every night in bed before going to sleep. I cannot tell you how much better my attitude has been. I've been working with chakra meditations. I thought that I would do a chakra series for the blog.

Chakras are your energy centers. The universal energy flows through these energy centers. There are 7 main chakras. You don't want these chakras to get blocked. It can lead to illnesses, bad attitudes, among other things that each individual chakra governs. And also, I firmly believe that if your energy centers are running smoothly, then of course as a magical practitioner, you will be more powerful. Because this energy is what you harness, what you use. Your body is your vehicle. When you are driving your car, you have to keep it running smoothly by changing the oil, changing your spark plugs, etc....so think of your body as your Universal Car. Your chakras are your spark plugs. Are yours corroded? Are they firing properly? Is your energy able to move through them so that you can go? No? Then do something about it!

This is especially important if you are also a Reiki practitioner. How can the Universal Energy be engaged and used by you if you are all blocked?


Your base chakra is the Root Chakra, the Muladhara, meaning "root support" This 1st chakra helps for you to stay "rooted". It is the basis of your being. Its color is a vibrant crimson and it is located at the base of your spine, and your energy lives in this chakra, being sent from it into your other chakras. Your root chakra governs your identity, your basic needs, your self-sufficiency, your stability, and your ambition. It governs moving forward in your life with independence. The body sense that it governs is smell. Its element is Earth. Other symbolism associated: the elephant "strength", Sanskrit mantra lam, the deities Brahma and Dakini, four-petaled lotus in a deep red color

Your root chakra is your foundation of being, of well-being, of survival. Your foundation must be stable for you to move ahead and not only survive, but also thrive!

This chakra governs your lower digestion, anus, bones, prostrate, kidneys, adrenals, and sexual activity. Also, your nails and teeth.

Some symptoms of root chakra imbalance would include problems like constipation, being tired, lower back and hip pain, auto-immune issues, eating disorders, poor sleep, and obesity.

Since your universal energy is drawn up from the earth and then is sent through your other chakras by way of this vibrant powerhouse then it MUST be in good running order.

This chakra wants you to root yourself firmly, know your true self, and not float aimlessly like a feather on the wind. It wants you to know your true self, your purpose, and deal with your life and your circumstances, whatever they may be.

What are some symptoms of Root Chakra imbalance?
1. clumsiness
2. sleep disorders
3. hemorrhoids
4. diarrhea
5. low self esteem
6. adrenal fatigue
7. constipation
8. greed
9. poverty
10.poor sense of smell
11. insecure

Now these are not all of them, I listed only a few.

If your root chakra IS balanced then you will have:

1. prosperity
2. good physical health
3. stability
4. acceptance of self
5. groundedness
6. feelings of security
7. good judgment

again, only a few listed.

What are some things that you can do to fix the blockage in your root chakra?

1. Go earthing. Sit outside with bare feet and imagine roots coming from your root chakra and your feet and going  into the earth. See the universal power coming up through your roots and filling your body. See your root chakra as a vibrant red ball that is spinning brilliantly. Do deep breathing while you enhance your connection with the earth. Do this for a few minutes every day. If the earth is too damp to do this, then stand outside in mountain pose and do it. Other yoga poses that are good for this chakra are standing forward bend, warrior pose and bridge pose.

2. Meditate on daily affirmations. "I am open and ready to receive love, prosperity, and abundance from the Universe" "I am beautiful, wanted, and loved" "My body is a temple of the universe and I will take care of and nourish it" "I am worthy of love and acceptance, I am beautiful, I accept all the love the Universe sends to me"   You get the idea. This is self love, baby. You are worth it and you are beautiful. You root chakra will make you stronger with each affirmation.

3. Forgive yourself for mistakes that you feel you have made in the past against yourself and against others. Know that at the time you felt that you were doing what needed to be done and move on with your life. No regrets.

4. Lie on your bed and listen to to a pre-recorded meditation made for the root chakra. C note corresponds with your root chakra. Here are a couple of good ones from Youtube.



and Lam


5. If you are lying down while doing the root chakra meditation, you can also use corresponding root chakra gemstones and crystals, by lying them near the area or over the area of the chakra. Good ones for the root chakra are:  Smoky Quartz, Ruby, Hematite, Black Tourmaline, Agate, Garnet, Obsidian, and Bloodstone. (Think red or black stones)

6. If you don't mind burning corresponding incense or using essential oils, you can use: Myrrh, cedar, clove,  rose, patchouli and cinnamon.








A good site:

For further reading:

The 7 Healing Chakras by Brenda Davies, M.D.

The 7 Healing Chakras Workbook

Chakra Balancing by Anodea Judith


Good sites with Root chakra info:

http://www.chakra-lover.com/root-chakra.html




16 March 2014

There's a Giveaway on the Sunday Stew!

What are you waiting for? Enter it!

http://mypaganworld.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-sunday-stew-spring-equinox-edition.html

Natural Egg Dying for Ostara


This article is part of Kallan's wonderful Sunday Stew. Please hop on over and read all the different flavors added by each chef. I know that you will love it!



I thought that I would show pictures from the last year that I dyed my eggs naturally. I don't dye any now. My children have all grown out of dying eggs, so now I just paint them. On the last year that I did dye the eggs, I believe it was 2010, I just used items that I had in my home already. It was a last minute decision, I didn't get elaborate with it, but Brev and I had fun. It can be a fun family togetherness thing and bonus, the kids can learn from it.

I just boiled the item that I was using, strained it, added some white vinegar, and let the eggs sit overnight. The only one that I had to leave the item in the water with the egg was the spinach. My favorite of all of these is the red cabbage. I love that beautiful blue color that it made. Word of warning: you cannot eat the eggs, they will taste like what you colored them with.

I've provided some links at the end for more information.


















For more detailed information and some different ideas, here are some other websites:







09 March 2014

March Full Crow Moon and Crow Medicine Bag

This article is part of Kallan's wonderful Sunday Stew. Please hop on over and read all the different flavors added by each chef. I know that you will love it!



Native Americans say that the end of Winter is announced by the cawing of the crow, which would have been in March around the time of the full moon, which is also near the Spring Equinox.

A beautiful Native American tale about the crow says that long ago the crow was not black, but was rainbow-colored. This was long, long, long ago, before there was Winter or the Snow Spirit. Ancient days.

Then one day, the Snow Spirit appeared.

"The Creator Who Created Us", Kijilamuh Ka'ong, needed to asked to think the world warm again. The animals were so cold that they decided to select a messenger from amongst them to go speak to Kijilamuh Ka'ong.

Finally they decided on Rainbow Crow because he was so beautiful and had such a lovely singing voice. They knew he would get Kijilamuh Ka'ong's attention. Rainbow Crow flew up into the sky for three long days. When he sang and captured the attention of the Creator, he begged for the warmth to come back to the Earth. However, the Creator said that he could not make it warm again, that he could not just un-think the Coldness. He did decide to think of something warm for the animals to help them with the Cold. He thought of Fire. The Creator took a stick and held it to the Sun and caused it to light. He handed the flaming stick back to Rainbow Crow so that he could take it to all of the suffering animals. Creator urged Rainbow to hurry or there would be no stick left.

With the burning stick in his mouth Rainbow Crow flew downward as fast as he could. Alas, his rainbow feathers became black and charred by the flaming stick and he breathed in the black smoke as he flew. It made his beautiful voice hoarse.

Forever after carrying the stick to warm all of his companions, Crow stayed black with a hoarse cawing voice. He was honored by his friends, for he had brought them Tindeh, Fire, to keep them warm.

To this day if you look closely at Crow, you will see the colors of the rainbow shimmering in his black feathers. Beautiful Crow is still honored by his friends and hunters for he is never hunted as food. 

I thought it would be nice to make a Crow Medicine Bag for the Crow Full Moon. They are quite lovely and it is a good way to honor Crow. You will only need a few things for a basic medicine bag. If you want to decorate it, you can get extra things like buttons and beads and feathers.

To learn more about medicine bags go here: MEDICINE BAGS and here: MEDICINE BAGS 2


Traditionally, the Medicine bag is 12-14 inches long. To find one that long in my area, I would have to full-blown make one. I didn't have time to do that so I've decorated a small 2 inch one that I purchased. Here I have two different types that I found. I'm going to use the one on the right.

I found a corvid skull charm and some feathers and I attached those to the outside for decoration.


You want to make sure that you put the 3 Sisters in your bag. One corn, one squash, one bean


Smudge all of your items that you choose. Your items should be sacred to you. It will be things that you connect with. You can use your bag during meditation. Ideally you want something from animal, mineral, and the plant kingdom. 




There I have a rough saphire, a labradorite heart, hematite, arrowhead, the 3 sisters, and owl totem, kyanite, a feather, a key, a cat claw, and cat whiskers.

Rose petals from roses that my husband brought me, rosemary, and some job's tears that I grew this past year.


And there it is.


As you find things that speak to you, you can add them to your medicine bag. It will help you to find your center and bring you peace and health.


Brightest Blessings,
Saga