Queer Druidry

I am selling my flat at the moment, so have had to make the place look a bit less weird for when viewers come round. Because of this, I have not been able to have my usual seasonal altar.

While the flat is being sold, I have put a bust of Antinous and some seasonal flowers up on the mantlepiece. Antinous was the lover of the emperor Hadrian. He drowned in the Nile and was made a god. In this bust, he is assimilated with the queer god Dionysius, represented by the grapevines around his head.

The summer…

We woke up horribly early for a bank holiday Monday and caught the train to Hastings, East Sussex for their annual Jack in the Green celebration.

I have always loved the Green Man. He was the first god in modern paganism that I discovered, before I even knew there was such a thing as modern paganism. Something seemed so natural to me about worshipping a green god, growing up in such a green place as Wales.

Even now that I know that questions have been raised as to his validity as a God, even the name Green…

My altar for Beltane features two wooden phalluses with red and white altar cloths and ribbons. The candle holder tree above the altar is constructed of ironwork branches, upon which hangs a Green Woman’s face that I have re-painted to represent Blodeuwedd, the woman in the Mabinogion made from oak flowers, broom flower and meadowsweet. Alongside seasonal tulips for colour.

This is a very personal altar celebrating my desires in the context of the season.

Of all the seasonal celebrations in druidry, Beltane…

Last week, my boyfriend and I visited my parents in Wales. One of the ancient stone circles nearby is Moel Tŷ Uchaf.

It is a small, well-preserved circle on the top of a hill at the northern edge of the Berwyn Mountains. It is up a fairly steep slope, but otherwise easy to get to. As well as being a beautifully laid-out circle, on a clear day it provides a brilliant view of the surrounding landscape.

It was around 5pm when we visited and to the north-west, we could see a sliver of Llyn Tegid shining in the…

This full moon, I decided to make an incense blend for the full moon as a complement to the incense I have been using for the new moon.

I checked the correspondences in Alistair Crowley’s 777, Scott Cunningham’s Magical Herbalism, and Starhawk's Spiral Dance and decided on three ingredients: dammar, sandalwood and cyperus papyrus root.

I decided to keep the white dammar as it produces a lot of fragrant smoke. I added sandalwood, which has associations with the moon and the sphere of Yesod in the Kabbalah.

…

Tools - The Horn

Horns can be used in a variety of different ways in ceremonies. In the Lunasdha ceremony, I normally put uprooted corn into a horn before it is cut in the ceremony itself. I also have a horn that can be used as an instrument but out of respect for my neighbours, this gets used less often.

The main use for a horn in ceremony is as a drinking vessel. The trick of drinking out of a horn, without it splashing over your face, is to point the tip of the horn downwards as you take a sip. It does…

For my seasonal altar, I have a statue representing Ceridwen with a goblet for wine on one side and a bowl of seeds on the other.

Spring Equinox is probably one of the least queer of all the ceremonies that I do with my friends. At this time of new growth and new light into the world, we focus on the magic of seeds, some of which we plant in the ceremony.

Some pagans use seeds as a metaphor for human reproduction. They might use symbolism, such as the seed being planted in the soil being akin to sperm being…

I performed the same ritual this time as I did during the previous new moon.

After the opening ceremony, I picked a card from the Druid Animal Oracle and then visualised myself in my place of peace and stillness. I then went from that place to meet the animal and ask for guidance for the month ahead.

This time, I got the hare, which is very appropriate for this time of year. The only difference this time was that I marked out the circle in my living room with symbols of the appropriate element at each…

This full moon, I decided to create an offering mix. This is something that has been recommended by Emma Rustel Orr as a gift that you can give to the spirit of a place, when you perform rituals outside. I like the idea of this because it’s small and discreet and doesn't hang around for too long.

For my offering, I combined rose petals, oats (for any small creatures that might want a snack) and vervane. The water I used to bless the circle was from Glastonbury White Spring and the incense was dammar.

After…

This year, I decided to do more to recognise the phases of the moon. My intention is to have a small personal ceremony on the evening of the new moon and the full moon.

I’m still working out what to do for these ceremonies, so I’m feeling my way on these at the moment.

Rather than moving all the furniture in the living room to make room for a full circle, I set up a small altar on the hearthstone of the fireplace.

I used the red spring water from Glastonbury and Pontifical incense (which is black with flecks…