Wyrd

The Start of Something New

The wind wiles through the sky, rushing and squalling snow around. It is late February, and I am working on my newest zine, Wyrd. It has started out in an odd way, and it took a while for me to find the groove needed to write and illustrate this exploration into ritual and magic.

One of the things I am working on most this year is creative growth, and this zine is forcing me to assess my work process and how I create zines. The daily rituals I follow and beauty of the word I allow myself to embrace fully - it's a weird thing for sure, but I am finding my footing and allowing it to guide my work.

I lay out the bones for my daily readings, and they tell me how to navigate through this thing we call life. Reading the bones brings me comfort, they are a collection of spirits I find myself drawn to over and over again, and I work through interpreting them with a finesse and care that they have taught me over the years.

Wyrd started in early January, after a depressive episode left me feeling quite down I decided to take things back into my own hands and do a collection of illustrations I dub "The Quilt Blocks" as my beloved friend Theo put it, and I absolutely loved the concept. I had experimented with putting borders around my work before, as with Everything Stays, but this was more focused and inward. The paper called before me, and the paint splattered onto the page before I knew what I was doing.

This first of these illustrations was known as Mythos, the Crow. I think a lot about a dream my mother once had about me being subsumed by a murder of crows, and it stuck with me. This was around the time that the Morrigan started to reach out to me, and it forced me to confront a lot of myself - knowing when to cut and when to be cut, as I move through the great journey of life.

The Call

I feel the call of the Morrigan as much as I feel the call of Hekate, and they both run syncretistically in my practice, being tri-formed and presiding over fate, the realms, and witchcraft. Exploring my Three Hekate/Morrigan has been interesting, I've learned that I really do vibe with her energies as a Goddess of Fear, as well as a Goddess of the Liminal. My three Hekate are Brimo, Enodia, and Kleidouchos. Each with her own faces and meanings. There is more to her than these three, but they are the main three I honour in my practice. I really do value the crossroads and the lessons they have taught me throughout the years. Each of these three Hekate also corresponds to different aspects of the Morrigan.

Brimo (Crackling, Angry One) 
- The Protectress, The Guardian
- Nightmare causing fury, she is the Dark Night, the anger that spurs change, and growth. This Hekate corresponds to Nemain of the Morrigan. We do not know the exact origins of Nemain, but some say it correlates to the Irish word "neim" which means poison, venom, and baneful power. 
- It is this epithet that has some Apotropaic powers, which lend well to the guarding of things, as well as protection. 
- Nemain also means "Frenzy" which also corresponds to the fury, and energy of Brimo, Goddess of Fear. It is she whom chooses who lives and who dies, and is the washer in the ford. 

Enodia (Of the Way/The Crossroads) 
- She whom rules the Liminal. 
- An aspect of sovereignty and the carving of ones' own path, Hekate Enodia represents all possibilities and the liminality that exists between each choice. She is the pathfinder, the guide, and the Queen of the Crossroads, they are her domain. 
- This aspect of Hektate corresponds to Macha of the Morrigu - she has the knowledge of Pharmakopoeia, she rules over the Crossroads, and she is the protector of the land. 
- She guides us through where we need to go, and it is through this that we find our paths - Hekate Enodia IS the embodiment of the Crossroads, and our paths we each take. 

Kleidouchos (Key Bearer/Unlocker of Gates)
- She whom holds the keys to the Underworld, this is Hekate Chthonia, Guardian of the Underworld. She is keeper of knowledge and necromancy, and is the restless one. 
- This corresponds to Badb of the Morrigu, which translates to Crow. Crows are considered one of the Guardians of the Underworld in my path, and represent the liminality of Death. She is also the prophetess of Blood, and holds the Keys to life and death. 

Of course, these aren't going to all be a 1:1 comparison and there are differences between the Morrigan and Hekate that intermingle with each other in different ways. There is Hekate-Morrigu: Nurturer of Youth, who helps guide the souls of the young into the world, just as much as Hekate-Morrigu is the Washer In the Ford, whom chooses who lives and who dies. These are complicated figures, so taking that into account, the Hekate-Morrigu syncretisation works pretty well, but functions differently - Offerings are given differently, as well as prayer is done more of a psyche-up and trance inducer rather than a long litany. 

There are different ways that I approach this magic I've created for myself and yeah it is by no means perfect, but its mine, and that's what matters most to me. Working with The Morrigan and Hekate simultaneously is good for me, and that's how Mel and I used to do our workings together so it makes sense to me. They work really well together as spirits in a similar class, and having their different aspects to call upon is useful for my workings. 

The Creacher

I have been working a lot more with my familiar Creacher lately, and that has been very enlightening for me. This also corresponds to the work we have been doing in Mahigan's book club - we have been working our way through Matthew Venus' book "Ensouling the Effigy" which is an in depth look at spirit work, spirit vessels, and the witchcraft we perform with them.

To this end, I have been formally pacted with my Creacher, I have made some dedicated spelled oils for them, as well as a vessel for their spirit. This has been a lot of work but it has also been a lot of fun. I am still working on things like developing my own personal cosmology for how I view the universe, but that will come with time.

As for my work in Wyrd, there is a lot that is going to be jam packed into this zine and I am super excited for the work I've been doing for it - I'm going to be starting on the next spread right after I finish this blog post, even!

Part of it is the ever shifting nature of spirits and the different forms they take, and how that affects our relationships with our spirits, and the world around us. In my journeys in spirit flight, I have wandered to the top of a mountain where there is a village of Witches, waiting for others like them to make the pilgrimage. The nature of spirits is that they just ARE.

I'm excited for where this journey is taking me, and the new found depth in my practice has really been motivating me in my artistic workings as well. Art and magic go hand in hand for me, and that is crucial to understanding how I work as a person. For now though, I am going to be continuing on my journey into the Wyrd, wherever that takes me.