Book of Witchery (21 page)

For today's meditation, we are going to work with the Norse god Thor. I have found in my research that the Norse gods and goddesses are a friendly and welcoming lot.
Actually
, I had Odin and Thor pay me visits in my dreams frequently while I worked on the Wednesday and Thursday chapters of this Book of Shadows.

At first, I thought that all the thunder and drama was Zeus or Jupiter trying to get my attention . . . and then I received a clearer impression of the being from my dreams who had been making all the commotion. He was warm, burly, and possessed a big-brother type of vibe—you know, the kind of guy you'd hang out with, drinking beer and watching a football game on television. That's the best way I can think to describe him. I'll admit it was a bit disconcerting, especially since he seemed very familiar to me. Maybe that connection is from the German and Danish side of my family tree?

Anyway, to punctuate the dream visit, his loud and laughing parting announcement of “Honey, I am not Zeus” was followed by a clap of thunder, and let me tell you, that woke me right up at three o'clock in the morning.

By the time I got to the actual writing of this meditation, Thor was suspiciously quiet in my mind.
Hmmm
. . . I started to work on the meditation several times, only to find myself stumped. What I had originally envisioned for this meditation never quite jelled. So, I decided to wait until a Thursday. It's his day, after all, and then I sat down and tried it again. After all, one of Thor's magickal qualities is the ability to persevere, and this writing Witch refused to give up.

Eventually, I decided to go for a walk to clear my head. So I bundled up and headed down to the riverfront woods. On a sunny December morning, when it was all of 24 degrees, I went looking for some inspiration. I repeat: Thor's gifts include
perseverance
. Walking along the Missouri River and listening to all the birds and squirrels in the woods really cleared my mind. I finally found that inspiration under some huge oak trees in the woods. (As you'll soon see, the oak is sacred to all of the gods listed in Thursday's chapter.)

Mission accomplished, I walked out of the woods at a fast clip and bustled back to my car. Amazing how fast you can move when you are freezing your
ears
off in the winter woods. So, enjoy your visit with Thor in the following guided meditation; just come as you are—you don't even have to freeze out in the woods like I did—and see what he has to say to you.

Visualize that you are sitting under an oak tree. It's a pleasant spring day, and you have your back leaning against the trunk of the old, sturdy oak. As you tip your head up to look into the crown of the tree, you enjoy the way the sunlight filters down through the new green leaves. The leaves are not quite to full size yet, and the tree is home to squirrels and various birds. Content, you settle in and let your mind wander as you contemplate the lessons you have learned about the days of the week so far. Now we are up to Thursday, Thor's day, and you consider how you can add to the healing and prosperity work that you already practice.

Around you are meadows and fields that have a mist of green color on them from the new crops just breaking the ground. Focus again on the sounds of the birds and the chatter of the squirrels. Enjoy the gentle spring breeze, and allow yourself to relax in the arms of nature and to open up your consciousness. Pay attention to the landscape around you and see if you recognize any of it.

A short time later, you start to notice that clouds are unexpectedly rolling in. The sunlight rapidly shifts as these new clouds are deep gray and moving into the area rather quickly from the north. As you watch, the breeze becomes stronger and the leaves on the tall oak are being whirled around as the storm moves in purposefully. You get so caught up in watching the advancing storm that not until some distant thunder rumbles through do you become aware of your predicament.

You realize that sitting under a tree during a thunderstorm is an invitation to disaster, and you decide to head for home before the storm cuts loose. As you rise to your feet, a loud clap of thunder crashes through. You jolt and cringe in automatic response at the volume, and instinctively you take a quick look up before leaving your shelter. Preparing to make a dash for it, you run instead smack into a man who has appeared from out of nowhere. You bounce off of each other, then you overbalance and land on your behind on the soft ground. Where did he come from? Shaken and aggravated, you look up, and your mouth falls open in surprise. This isn't your everyday type of person.

The man standing there, grinning down at you, has long, red flowing hair and a neat beard. He is wearing dark pants, boots, and a tunic of some type with a large metal and leather belt. Around his wrist are wide metal cuffs. His arms and shoulders are massive. The term “rippling biceps” seriously applies to this guy. He looms over you with his hands on his hips, looking incredibly buff and big as a mountain. He extends a hand out for you to grasp, and automatically you reach out. He hauls you to your feet with one effortless tug. Okay, so add
strong
to the list.

“Sorry about that. Excuse me,” you say to him, and you begin to leave. He only holds up one hand to signal that he wants you to stay. You stop and look up at him as he asks where you are going in such a hurry. You reply that you need to get out of the storm.

“You are safe here with me,” he tells you.

“Thanks,” you say politely. “But it's going to cut loose here in a minute, so I'd better move indoors and away from the lightning.” You give him a quick smile, and as you look up into his face, his gray eyes flash in synchronization with the lightning outside. Well, that confirms that.

“You're Thor, aren't you?” you ask him with a smile.

“You called, friend?” he says, smiling back.

“Ah, not really . . .” you begin. As you explain to him that you are merely working on getting more in tune with the daily magickal energies, he just stands there grinning at you while you talk. The rain begins to patter down, and he takes your arm and moves you back under the oak tree for some cover from the rain.

You begin to balk and you look up nervously, half-expecting lightning to come crashing out of the sky while you stand under the tree's sheltering limbs and branches . . . with a god of thunder and lightning.

As if he knows where your thoughts are headed, he lifts a red eyebrow at your impertinence.
Maybe I should just shut up now and not interrupt or argue with the big guy,
you think to yourself. With that, he throws his head back and laughs. As he does, the thunder booms along with him, and you do your best not to jump at the crash and rumble that it makes. After the noise dies down, you stand attentively and wait to see what he has to tell you.

In a lightning-fast change of mood, he now becomes more serious. “You called to me, and here I am.” He looks at you intensely. You remain silent, so Thor continues. “I am everyman's god. I am the defender of the weak and comfort for the hopeless. I will bless you with victory and abundance. I am the spirit of courage and the power of perseverance. When you call on me, I bring a surge of strength, vitality, and valor.”

From behind his back, he takes out a large metal hammer. He shows it to you and states that those who swear an oath upon it will be gifted with courage. He allows you to decide if this is something you would like to do at this time. If so, then state in your own words your oath and what you need help with. Listen carefully to his response and to how you feel physically afterwards.

You thank him for his wisdom and his words. He lets the hammer go back over his shoulder, and then he rolls his shoulders and it falls neatly into place. You notice that the rain is starting to lessen and the thunder has faded away.

“I will see you again, my friend,” he tells you and claps a hand onto your shoulder. You do your best to stay upright, and his eyes twinkle in repressed laughter. You two share a smile, and then suddenly a ray of light beams out through the clouds and shines right into your face. You close your eyes briefly and turn your face away from the light so you can see again. Blinking, with your eyes watering, you wait for your vision to clear, then you begin to realize that Thor has left. Take a few moments and recall everything that he had to teach you during this journey. Remember that Thor is a compassionate, loyal, and fiercely protective god. If you ever need him, just call his name, and he will come and assist you.

Now take a few deep, cleansing breaths, and ground and center. Look around one last time at this scene under the old oak tree. See that the sun is now shining through the clouds and that the spring shower is moving on. Everything around you is renewed and refreshed, just as you are. Take in a final deep, cleansing breath, and slowly blow it out. Stretch gently, and return to awareness.

Magickal Plants & Flowers

Honeysuckle

An old folk name for the honeysuckle (
Lonicera
spp.) is the woodbine. The honeysuckle grows wild where it can and is a popular plant for hedgerows. However, in the United States, we do have problems with a certain type of wild honeysuckle referred to as bush honeysuckle—the botanical name is
Lonicera maackii
, and it is classified as invasive. Bush honeysuckle is a sort of bully in the garden, and it will become a nuisance plant if you are not careful. It is spread by bird droppings and pops up in the garden when you least expect it. Typically camouflaging itself in the branches and foliage of other shrubs, it is easily identified in the late autumn–early winter by its bright green leaves and brilliant red berries. If you find it taking over your shrubs, be ruthless: prune it out of your other shrubs, then dig out the roots. (We had to do that ourselves this year.)

Now, the ornamental honeysuckle (
Lonicera japonica
), a lovely vine variety, is easy to find at local nurseries. It is also, unfortunately, very invasive. This is a hardy and heat-tolerant vine-type of honeysuckle and will easily train along an arbor or fence. This type of honeysuckle will attract many pollinating bees and butterflies as well as hummingbirds to your yard and garden. The foliage and flowers of the honeysuckle have long been used to promote prosperity. This fragrant herb is associated with the planet Jupiter and the element of earth. The scent of honeysuckle is also used to promote psychic abilities and to encourage abundance. According to tradition, if honeysuckle grows outside of your home or business, it is said that prosperity and good luck will always find their way to your door. And flower legends say that by bringing honeysuckle into the home, a wedding is sure to follow. This may have something to do with the old folklore behind the language of flowers, as honeysuckle represented a “plighted troth” and celebrates the ties of love and a deep and generous affection.

Cinquefoil

Cinquefoil (
Potentilla anserina
) is also known as five-finger grass. The five points of the leaves symbolize love, riches, good health, power, and knowledge. Cinquefoils are a popular garden perennial. A great variety of cinquefoil to try in your garden is called ‘Miss Willmott'. This plant bears strawberry-pink flowers and does very well in sunny gardens. Cinquefoil is associated with the planet Jupiter and the element of fire. Old herbals declared the cinquefoil to be a plant with abundant healing energy, so this is the reason that this blooming herb is often worked into both prosperity and healing spells. In the language of flowers, this plant signifies a loving mother-daughter relationship.

Mint

The mint (
Mentha
spp.) is actually associated with the planet Mercury and the element of air. Surprise! However, it is a classic prosperity herb and readily available, so we are working with it on a Thursday. Mint is a much-maligned garden plant. The reason for its bad reputation in the garden is that it is classified as invasive—which means it will spread like crazy! Mint comes in an impressive array of varieties and scents: spearmint, apple mint, chocolate mint, peppermint . . . If you want to grow mint in the garden, then keep it corralled by planting it in pots or containers; try sinking that container into the ground so the roots and shoots will stay under control. Magickally, mint is worked into both money and health spells and charms. Add a few fresh mint leaves to a charm bag or tuck them into your wallet to promote prosperity. Also, taking a whiff of fresh mint can alleviate nausea and is thought to refresh you and to help clear your head. Pretty cool, huh?

Maple Tree

The sugar maple tree (
Acer saccharum
) is often utilized in both love and prosperity work (using its foliage and small branches). It is magickally associated with the planet Jupiter and the element of air. It is classified as possessing masculine energies, which I think is sort of cute, especially when you consider that the maple tree was once considered appropriate for planting in a “gentleman's garden.” If you are looking for a way to “sweeten up your life,” this is both a readily available and practical magickal tree to work with. Come on . . . think about it: maple syrup, sweetening up your life . . . are you following me here? Try creating a small wand out of a fallen maple branch and use that in your prosperity and loving abundance spells. Oh—and yes, you may certainly use real maple syrup in a pinch for those prosperity and love spells, too. After all, that syrup came from a maple tree!

Oak Tree

The oak tree (
Quercus
spp.) has a vast and colorful magickal history throughout the world. The oak's planetary influence is Jupiter, and the tree is associated with the element of fire. Many magickal cultures revere the oak. The oak is associated with the many sky-thunder gods, such as our featured gods Thor, Zeus, and Jupiter. Actually, the rustling of oak leaves in the breeze was thought to represent the voice of Zeus.

The foliage of the oak is celebrated as a happy, protective, and lucky symbol, and folks used to adorn themselves with garlands of its leaves. In modern-day folk art, it is common to see oak leaves in Green Man masks and worked into hex signs for protection and such. The oak tree also plays a major role in the winter and summer solstice celebrations, both in the decorations and in the symbolism of the Holly King and the Oak King.