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St. Gerasimos of Jordan (Spread Day - Rung 4)By Protopresbyter Fr. George PapavarnavasThe imposing Gerasimos was born in saint-bearing Asia Not sufficiently, particularly in Lycia, in the seventh century, from self-righteous parents. At one remain in his life, doubtless due to furthest zeal, he was led baffled by the Monophysite heresy. The Monophysites did not state that in the person of Christ the divine and at all natures were ally deteriorating change, deteriorating net, deteriorating limit and deteriorating quarter, but they claimed that the divine sort of Christ puzzled His at all sort and so Christ abandoned had one sort. In spite of everything, he quickly implied his blunder, like he was a man with good intention and a humble mindset. He had the good quirk of visiting and because counseled by consecrated people. From a painstaking withdrawn named Euthymios he educated the truth not far off from the two natures of Christ, and having realized his blunder he returned to the Church. Then he went to Jordan wherever he became a cleric, and he tasted for reliable existence the heavy infant of coolness. Latter, because many monks gathered approximately him, who asked for his objector supervision, he was duty-bound to lobby a Coenobitic Monastery.Saint Gerasimos was tight, but abandoned with himself. To others he was affable and tender. He ate painstaking, as further as was advantageous to buttress his life, and slept painstaking as well. Truthfully he qualified that whoever wishes to manage to survive longer essential finish less, like further finish makes the party self-indulgent and so frail in labors and susceptible to ruin. He added: "Do you ought to find specially time in life? Inhabit a lesser amount of hours in your bed. Such as this is a variety of coffin and takes not permitted energy, which is the vital cause of life." Supervisor we referred to the heresy of Monophysitism and tease of its reflection on the road to the two natures of Christ. At this junction it is in shape to do a painstaking cram to touch the fact that, because the Arranged comfort is misused, hence the deliverance of treating at all passions is misused, and suitably our deliverance is at blockade. If Christ abandoned had a divine sort, he may possibly not understand the crucifixion and His unruly leg, like the divine sort is deteriorating leg. Christ upset, wept and suffered as a man. As the sacred hymnographer chants: "You suffered as a man, You who are deteriorating leg in Your Idol." And elsewhere: "But the Idol remained deteriorating leg." In addition, if Christ was abandoned a man, He may possibly not domain union. Christ is the God-man, that is, positive God and positive man. He saves as God and suffers as man "to free us from the passions".The Saints, who are the actual members of the Pole of Christ, keep the Arranged hesychastic way of life, that has as its middle prayer, ardor and seriousness. The teaching of the imposing Gerasimos on the road to finish was substantially a word on seriousness. Sooner than the undersupply of finish and abstinence he accustomed the flesh (the carnal end) to be co-worker to the spirit, being "the carnal end is death, given that the end of the spirit is life and peace". Sooner than seriousness and invariable prayer, unusually the one-sentence prayer "Lady Jesus Christ claim mercy on me", the nous, which methodically turns to blunder offer and offering, learns and becomes relaxed to be unite in the lineage of the center, which is its natural tip, and acquires unrelenting remembrance of God. At the same time as it sediment in this worry, it is illumined and "the nous sees God", that is, it sees the uncreated trust of God as it was seen by the three disciples on Intensification Tabor.The very, even as it may be heard to be and seem sophisticated, is not impractical, being we assistance it in the lives of the saints, old and new. And so we ought turn our notion to this aim and this course that we may endeavor to launch an attack it, being the intent of our life is theosis, which is preceded by the decontamination of the center from the passions and the easy of the nous.At the same time as the nous is illumined and sees the trust of God, hence the passions are alleviated and changed. For the passions are not no matter which new to at all sort which ought be uprooted and be rid of, but they are an "artificial distribution of the powers of the inner self". That is, because the three powers of the inner self - the clever, the incensive and the desiring - coerce reluctant sort, hence we can speak of it because a leg. The natural distribution of these powers is for man to store about God, to aspiration and make to order his life according to His command, and to turn his annoyance reluctant the devil and sin. At the same time as, on the reverse, he is take credit and incarcerated to shaped and corporeal things and thinks about other things, requirements other things, does other things and turns his annoyance reluctant his man man, with shattering have a disagreement (grudges, resentment, murders), hence we can speak of an upset and ill worry that needs therapy. According to the teaching of Saint Maximus the Confessor, which is the teaching of the Arranged Church, annoyance is healed by love, aspiration by abstinence, and reason by prayer. "The incensive part of the inner self is well-mannered by love, the desiring is washed out by abstinence and the clever is pure wings by prayer. Fittingly the light of the nous is never darkened."The period of Delightful and Undamaged Lent in which we are in is informative for first-class operation and strive to piece our passions, being true fasting is not abandoned abstaining from indisputable foods, but above all, as we chant with the sacred hymnographer, "for the guideline of the passions, abstinence of the dialogue, rapid of annoyance and limit from aspiration."Source: "Ekklesiastiki Paremvasi", , Rung 2001. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
Welcome to Tim Curry Tuesday! This will be an ongoing series where every week I will explore a character Tim Curry has played. Why Tim Curry? For one thing he's done quite a number of characters that just beg to be made into NPCs! For another, the man has that voice... it's definitely one of the top 5 voices I'd pick if I could only hear every male with the same voice. I have also used Tim Curry as a mental touchstone of an NPC that my players interact with. And I just finished listening to Sabriel, which was read by Tim Curry, so he was on my mind.
For our first installment I'm going to go with the obvious and necessary choice of Darkness from Labyrinth Legend.
They could not have picked a better actor to play this demon. It's a scenery chewing character, and Tim Curry can gnaw it with the best of them! Darkness makes for a great BBEG
Lord of Darkness
Armor Class: 3
Hit Dice: 12
(L)
Move: 180' (60')
Attacks: 1 gore/1 weapon
Damage: 2d6+2
No. Appearing: 1
Save As: C12
Morale: 12
Treasure Type: G
Intelligence: 16
Alignment:Chaotic
XP Value: 4,750
Monster Type: Planar Monster, Enchanted (Unique)
The being known as the Lord of Darkness, or simply Darkness, is the spawn and champion of a Chaotic Immortal known as Nox who desired to see the world shrouded in perpetual night and winter. Darkness appears as a 9' tall satyr with red skin, black fur, and massive curving horns. He wears a sleeveless black robe, and carries a black staff.
Darkness commands a horde of corrupted goblins and other foul beings that he uses as his hands, eyes, and ears on the surface world. Darkness suffers 2d8 points of damage for every round that he is exposed to sunlight due to his deep connection to Nox.
In addition to his natural strength Darkness is capable of using the following powers 3 times/day: Charm Person, Cause Fear, Detect Good (Innocence), Blight. He can also use the following powers 2 times/day: Know Alignment, Produce Flame, Curse. The mere presence of Darkness causes creatures of less than 4HD to automatically make a morale check or be cowed into inaction. Darkness is immune to Sleep, Charm, and Hold spells, Fire, Cold and weapons of less than +2 enchantment.
Credit: about-world-religions.blogspot.com
While the equinoxes are held as very sacred to our Order, with the changings of officers and passwords and the beautiful ritual in which the Hegemon is revealed as the true heart and center of the 0=0 hall... the solstices are not so popular in a GD context.
That being said, we are about to enter into Winter, though more truly we are already in the darkest time of the year, and as soon as Winter begins, the days will begin to lenthen and the days to shorten. On this day (Yule/Solstice) the Night is longest and the day is shortest. Many peoples throughout time and geography have celebrated this day as the promise of the coming light. The Norse, for example, celebrate with four candles on a wreath which would be lit in gradual succession until the day of Solstice.
In Golden Dawn terms, this day is the cosmic equivalent to the "place the neophytes in the northern part of the hall" portion of the Z formula... "the greatest symbol of darkness". As we see later on in the 2=9 formula, this is the place of Midnight in the day, Winter in the year: Kephera, the sun at night.
So, I would like to offer the following lines of the Hierophant as the watchwords of the day and, if you wish, perhaps an inspiration for how you will prepare your personal Solstice ceremonies in your temples and working areas:
"And the voice of my undying soul spoke unto me and said, let me enter the pathway of darkness, peradventure there shall I find the Light. I am the only being in an abyss of Darkness. From an abyss of Darkness came I forth, ere my birth, from the Silence of a primal sleep... and the voice of Ages answered my soul and said, I am He who formulates in Darkness, the Light that shineth in the Darkness, though the Darkness comprehendeth it not..."
Happy Holidays!
Frater BT
Esoteric Golden Dawn
Source: paganism-new-age.blogspot.com
You can do this simple pagan ritual to honour the moon on your own, or with others, indoors or outdoors. It is a perfect ceremony to do on the full moon closest to New Year's Eve.YOU WILL NEED:Candles in candleholders (tealights in tealight holders are best from a safety point of view), a wand (you can use an ordinary stick from the garden as a wand, it works just fine, or you can just point with your finger), a goblet of white wine or spring water, a plate with enough moon-shaped biscuits for everyone present plus one extra (shortbread biccies are perfect).PREPARE THE SPACE AND YOURSELF:Sweep the space where the ritual is to be held with a besom (or an ordinary broom or brush if you don't have a besom) to symbolically cleanse the area. Then place and light a candle in the east, south, west and north of the space, plus another candle in the centre.Stand within the prepared space and take three deep breaths in and out to clear your mind and ready yourself for the ritual.NOW YOU CAST A CIRCLE:Take the wand and inscribe a circle in the air all around the space by holding the wand out and visualising that you are drawing a protective ring of light. The circle will need to be large enough for you and anyone else you are doing the ritual with to move about in. You don't have to say any words while casting the circle, as it is the visualisation that is important. But, if you want to, you can say something like: "Let this circle of light protect all within it."WELCOME THE DIRECTIONS (OFTEN CALLED THE QUARTERS):Turn to the east and say: "I welcome the east, where the dawn breaks in the morning sky."Turn to the south and say: "I welcome the south, where the fiery sun is highest at midday."Turn to the west and say: "I welcome the west, where twilight lingers over the ocean at eventide."Turn to the north and say: "I welcome the north, where the darkness of the night cloaks the earth."Move in the centre and say: "I stand at the centre, where all times and all directions meet and are as one"RAISING MAGICAL ENERGY:This is usually done by singing, chanting, drumming or dancing. If you like, you can simply chant "Om".PRAYER TO THE MOON:Say:"Silver circle in the silent skyFor all of history you have watched over usAnd guided our paths in the dark of nightWe whisper to you our secretsOur hopes, and fears, and dreams.Grant us your blessings on this nightAnd light our way into the time to come."SPELL WORK (OPTIONAL):If you want to cast a spell or do other magic work within your circle, this is the time to do it. Suitable things could be a spell to send get well wishes to someone or a candle spell for whatever you want.WINE AND BISCUITS:Say: "Lord and Lady of the Moon, please bless this food and drink." Then take a sip (or a few) from the wine or water and eat one of the biscuits. If you are doing this ritual outdoors, the rest of the liquid in the goblet and the spare biscuit should then be poured and crumbled on to the ground as an offering. Say: "Please accept this offering of food and drink."If you are doing the ritual indoors, save the offering until you can get to a suitable outdoor space, such as your garden, after you have finished your ritual. ENDING THE RITUAL:Turn to each of the directions in reverse order and say: "Thank you for attending my rite, I bid you farewell"Then visualise the circle of light dissipating, or unwinding, and say: "The circle is open."Previous related postshttp://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/08/secret-powers-of-moon.htmlhttp://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/07/tarot-moon-symbolism-and-meanings.htmlhttp://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/01/spell-for-springtime-wishes.htmlhttp://www.badwitch.co.uk/2008/12/spell-for-new-year.htmlhttp://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/05/spell-for-healing-and-get-well-wishes.htmlhttp://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/12/do-you-leave-your-yule-lights-on-during 9.html
I'm pretty proud of this Halloween compilation, folks Yeah, I know, the last time I tried a mix tape Rapidshare shut me down. Well, I made mix tapes for my girlfriends in high school, and I'll continue to keep the flame alive and make mix tapes for my loyal readers! You just can't keep a mix taper down.Anyway, I actually took some time with this one. I think it would sound good at a party, but it might also be cool to just listen to in the car. Whatever the case, I hope you enjoy this selection of horror themed tracks. I think you'll find they're diverse enough to keep your attention. Happy Halloween!DOWNLOADTrack List ARTIST TITLE Various Artists Creature Feature Lovebug Starski Amytiville Movie Advert I Was A Teenage Werewolf Kip Tyler She's My Witch Ethel Ennis Mad Monster Party Richard Band The House On Sorority Row - Main Title Gene Moss Carry Me Back To Transylvania Franco Micalizzi I Due Volti Della Paura Steve Jablonsky Jump Rope (Nightmare on Elm St.) The Hamburger Brothers Omar The Vampire Movie Advert The Haunted Strangler The B-52's Devil In My Car Phantasm Motion Picture Phantasm theme Fred Astaire Me And The Ghost Upstairs The Exorcist Motion Picture Halloween Remix - Exorcist Theme Bill Buchanan The Night Before Halloween John Carpenter Prince of Darkness Cliff Richard Devil Woman Count Floyd (Joe Flaherty) Treat You Like A Lady Richard Band Re-Animator Daevid Allen Stoned Innocent Frankenstein Cab Calloway The Ghost Of Smokey Joe Jerry Goldsmith Ave Satani (The Omen SDTRK) Something Wicked This Way Comes Barry Adamson Movie Advert The Mummy Harry Robinson The Vampire Lovers Big Bee Kornegay At the House of Frankenstein Elvira, Mistress of the Dark Zombie Stomp Ennio Morricone Despair (The Thing SDTRK) Steve Jablonsky Main Title - Nightmare on Elm St. Twilight Zone SDTRK The Twilight Zone '85 Main Title Movie Advert The Astro Zombies Christine Pilzer Dracula John Carpenter The Fog (main Theme) Archie Bleyer The Rockin' Ghost John Carpenter Wake Up - They Live SDTRK Redbone The Witch Queen Of New Orleans The Del-Vikings The Voodoo Man John Carpenter Halloween SDTRK theme Lou Chaney Monster Holiday Ennio Morricone Cosa Avete Fatto A Solange Movie Advert I Was A Teenage Frankenstein/ Blood Of Dracula Caravan Cthlu Thlu DJ Jazzy Jeff ">Nightmare on My Street Billy Taylor Wombie Zombie Bing Crosby The Headless Horseman Wendy Carlos Main Title - The Shining Gary Warren Werewolf Movie Advert Horror Of Dracula Screaming Lord Sutch Jack the Ripper Lambert, Hendricks ">Halloween Spooks Jerry Goldsmith Carol Ann's Theme (Poltergeist) The Damned Grimly Fiendish Whodini Haunted House of Rock Jerry Goldsmith The Altar (The Omen SDTRK) Dickie Goodman Horror Movies Various Artists The Day The Earth Stood Still Movie Advert The She Creature/ It Counquered The World Dave Gardner Mad Witch Boots Walker They're Here Carlos Casal, Jr. Don't Meet Mr. Frankenstein Lord Dent and His Invaders Wolf Call Richard Band Re-Animator Theme Reprise The Crystals Frankenstein Twist Bert Convy The Monster Hop
Reference: asatru-religion.blogspot.com
Tools Needed: ... A Bath 7 Green Oak Leaves (Or Bay leaves if these are out of season) Lavender Oil A Purple Candle A Yellow Candle Jasmine Oil Purple Thread Instructions : Run the bath to a depth and temperature of your liking. Put the lavender oil and oak leaves into it, swish it around, then light the candles and climb into the bath. Close your eyes (but don't fall asleep). Begin to breathe, breathe in a warming Orange light of confidence, and breathe out murky coloured self-doubts. Imagine a yellow light above your head, which slides down your body, touching every bit of you from top to the tips of your toes. Continue to breathe in slowly through your nose and out through your mouth. Say outloud: "I am gorgeous, I am beautiful, I am Goddess" Repeat this six times in total. When you leave the bath, snuff out the candles and thread the oak leaves on the purple thread. Then, whenever your self-esteem fails you, heat jasmine oil in an oil burner, light the candles, hold up the oak leaves and repeat the chant. When the leaves eventually run out, begin again with new oak leaves and new candles. The oak leaves may be carried with you (in a small box or envelope) in your handbag / bag on (all sorts) of important dates. When touching up your make - up, or getting ready just get out the oak leaves and repeat the mantra to spur you to greater things. (Author Unknown)
