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On My Journey (Read 52543 times)

Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #500 - Aug 8^th, 2009 at 8:15pm	Print Post
	Found out a few days ago that "The Ethical Slut" has a new edition out. It sounds like more of a "Volume 2" arrangement than a "revised and updated" edition. I ordered it, of course, along with another book on the subject that arrived today. Now that Book One is no longer jumping up and down on my head LOUDLY demanding to be written, I can devote some of my energy to other things. Yes, I know! I still have to get Book 2 whipped into shape but I think I'll work better after taking a break from it. Besides, "All write and no 'play' makes Penth a dull girl! Not to mention: CRANKY AS HELL!!" Be advised that I'm doing all I can to control "the cranky!" And, given the kind of societal attitudes about sex and relationships that I've created for the books -- there will be exceptions of course but the overall attitude is set -- these new books could be considered "research." �Anyway, The Ethical Slut should arrive next week and I will delve into it. Another step on the journey, an unexpected sort of "awakening" and Reality Still Under Construction. We'll see where it leads....
	« Last Edit: Aug 8^th, 2009 at 10:09pm by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #501 - Aug 17^th, 2009 at 2:39am	Print Post
	The Ethical Slut arrived yesterday and I'll be reading it, probably along with the other book along the same lines that I've already started reading. The eyes are going to hate me! I'm also wondering why I'm thinking about the Warrior in Spirituality class I took a few years back tonight. A hint that it's time to take that particular study up again or is there some other reason? Need to think about it...
	« Last Edit: Aug 17^th, 2009 at 2:40am by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #502 - Aug 20^th, 2009 at 6:56pm	Print Post
	I've been reading the new edition of The Ethical Slut along with another book on "open" relationships. �I'm seeking the answer to a question. "What would the world be like if no one gave a who had sex with whom?" is how Skywise expressed it. I have a practical reason for doing this. �I've laid down the "bones" of such a world in my first novel. In it, society as a whole does not care about the sexual activities of consenting adults. There is complete freedom of choice. (The only "sexual" crimes involve children and non-consenting participants.) Monogamy is neither expected or required and what we would call "group" marriages are common. Robert Heinlein got the ball rolling on this subject with "Stranger in a Strange Land" but he killed off his hero, Valentine Michael Smith, near the end and we never got to see what kind of world would be born out of the movement he started. I guess, given the time in which the book was written, he could do nothing else. � � In the course of my research I've discovered just how much sexual conduct, either actual or perceived, influences attitudes and language in society. The most obscene and/or insulting words in English are those that make reference to sexual activity in some way. �When did Western society get so hung up on sex? I don't for a minute believe that it has always been this way. The question is, I suppose, moot. It is what it is and how it got that way is something for cultural anthropologists (which I am NOT) to figure out. I have my hands full figuring out how the society I've created should work! I'm learning a lot about myself in the process, most of which qualifies as Too Much Information that exceeds the rating standards for this site! It would probably upset some people too. Too bad. I think part of the problem with human society in general is that "society" puts too many restrictions on what an adult can do. There have to be some restrictions, of course, since humanity is a long way from universal sainthood, but restrictions on what consenting adults can do to or with each other, in private? No. Restrictions on what constitutes a "family?" No. Restrictions on who you may love and how, with legal and/or societal repercussions/penalties if you don't conform? NO! I should have started this particular part of my journey in my teens. For some reason that was not to be. Damn! Oh well..... gets out the GPS and continues walking.....
	« Last Edit: Aug 20^th, 2009 at 7:01pm by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #503 - Sep 3^rd, 2009 at 4:51pm	Print Post
	Got some insight this morning while prowling elsewhere on the Web as to why certain "female persons" acted as they did a few years back. They were bitterly, *insanely* jealous. Jealousy is an ugly emotion. �Envy can be just as bad but it doesn't have to be, depending upon how one does or doesn't act on it but jealousy? Jealousy is always bad. It is one of the worst, if not THE worst emotional poison to which we humans are susceptible. Concerning those above mentioned "persons" jealousy was their motivation when they did to me what they did. Jealousy and envy. They wanted what I had and acted accordingly, believing that their actions would somehow get them what they wanted. This is "starvation economy" thinking -- the belief that there isn't enough of "anything" to go around. Granted, a chocolate cake is finite and the number of pieces is therefore limited but other things are infinite, such as friendship or love. You do not care less for Friend A when you make another friend. You do not love your first child less when your second is born. Love and friendship are not divided into smaller and smaller allotments as a group of friends or a family expands, it *multiplies. �Everyone is loved. Everyone is cared for. Jealousy, the fear of being deprived of something, is unnecessary when where is more than enough to go around. And you know what? They did what they had to in order to accomplish their goal and ended up with nothing*. �What I had that they so desperately wanted for themselves slipped away from them and they lost what was theirs to begin with as well. Good lesson there on what jealousy can do to your life. It will gain you nothing and likely cost you everything. �Under the circumstances, I can't say that I feel sorry for those "female persons". �I certainly can't forgive them. I'm not that "enlightened" yet. �The best that I can to is to keep my fully justified anger from poisoning my soul. And lest I forget... � Reality Under Construction! Watch Your Step!
	« Last Edit: Sep 3^rd, 2009 at 6:22pm by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #504 - Sep 9^th, 2009 at 9:04pm	Print Post
	I find that 2+ years removed from the company of certain people, my level of paranoia has decreased considerably and it is now no more that what one normally needs to function in our current society. This is a good thing. I wonder how much of their influence on me was deliberate and how much was accidental. I have a pretty good idea about what was deliberate but I'm not so sure about the paranoia. Oh well, let it eat them alive since it was/is theirs to start with! I've got better things to do.


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #505 - Sep 13^th, 2009 at 4:03am	Print Post
	Started reading "A Sorcerer's Book of Art" by Greg Crowfoot this afternoon. Interesting. With Books 1 and 2 done, I think my "sabbatical" is about over. I haven't "done" anything in well over two years. I know that there are people who don't believe that but I can't help it if they are or have been delusional. �I know what I've NOT been doing and I'm NOT responsible for any that has landed on anyone's head during that time. Anyone claiming otherwise is either lying or delusional. �So with "writing" pressure off for the moment, I'm going to restart my education. �Since I have both motivation and a much clearer idea of where I want to go, I should be able to make some progress despite my "handicap." I'm also hoping that with enough work that I'll be able to lessen said "handicap." Only time and work will tell. � More on this later as the Spirit moves me.
	« Last Edit: Dec 5^th, 2009 at 8:58pm by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #506 - Sep 19^th, 2009 at 9:20pm	Print Post
	I've ordered a new book from Amazon. It comes highly recommended and it's about a subject in which I have considerable interest. I'm hoping that it lives up to it's reviews. �If it does and it turns out that it is what I've been looking for all this time.... situations could change in some very interesting and pleasant ways. In the meantime, study, girl, study!


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #507 - Sep 22^nd, 2009 at 1:39am	Print Post
	New book hasn't arrived yet. I'm impatient. I want to see if it is going to live up to its hype and my expectations. I've been thinking about communes, eco-villages, intentional communities, whatever you want to call them. They have a lot to recommend them when they are properly run. Unfortunately, it takes a considerable capital outlay if you intend to do it right and avoid at least one of the common reasons why many such communities fail -- under financing and excessive optimism about potential income. I think I'll "design" this particular dream. I have some ideas that I'd want to incorporate in any community I was a part of. Who knows? Maybe the Gods are just waiting for me to put it down on paper...


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #508 - Sep 28^th, 2009 at 12:12am	Print Post
	New book arrived on Saturday. Unfortunately, the contents of the book didn't match the cover -- a screw up at the printing plant that the morons at the sellers didn't catch. That book will be going back this week. I'm going to give them a chance to answer my email but it's going back regardless. I do NOT want that drivel IN MY HOUSE! On the upside, I got an email from amazon that the replacement book I ordered from them is on the way! This is a good thing! I got three other books on Saturday and one of them has a spell that I HAVE to do! It's gonna be a little while though. It's in Greek and while there is a translation, it is more effective -- according to the author -- when done in Greek. The problem is, the man didn't "spell out" the spell (which is in Greek) phonetically so we clueless "non-Greek" speakers could do it correctly. Much research ahead. Oh well, it will give me time to track down a supply of black candle wax and make the candles I'm going to need...


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #509 - Sep 28^th, 2009 at 12:44am	Print Post
	Well THAT didn't take long! I found a source for the type of wax I like to use -- pre-colored with all the additives already added and granulated -- and I can get it in boxes of up to 40 pounds. Don't think I'm gonna need THAT much! I'm not planning on making "man sized" black candles, just some nice, simple, black all the way through candles for my spells and rituals. Looks like I'm gonna be back in business soon...


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #510 - Sep 28^th, 2009 at 3:34am	Print Post
	Omm..... sorcery.... warriorhood..... dancing..... philosophical musings.... black... white.... gray in various shades.... honor.... expediency....the best way to do what needs to be done... No one said that it would be easy.... I guess that is what makes it worthwhile.


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #511 - Sep 28^th, 2009 at 8:30pm	Print Post
	I picked up a couple of items today that might help with the "speaking Greek" problem. Not sure yet and won't be until I break them out and try them. I'm feeling like a new chapter is opening up or maybe a new subplot would be a better analogy. Anyway, I'm feeling a change in the wind that requires something tangible to symbolize it. Thinking jewelry, probably a new ring. I'd wear it on my right hand, on the middle finger most likely since I can't currently wear a ring on my index finger and don't know when that will change. I have a pentacle ring that I wear there sometimes and I love it but I want something that isn't mass produced so I'll probably pull out my humongous Fire Mountain Gems catalog and start looking at ring mountings. �Since I wear a Size 10 on my middle and index fingers I'll be checking out the men's rings. Then I need to select a stone. Right now, I'm leaning towards something extremely red and probably large. That means that it'll probably be a synthetic stone. I kinda doubt that I could afford a ruby 5 (or more) mm across! Given the importance of the piece, I'll probably take my time with it unless I stumble across something that screams THAT'S IT!!! In which case, I'll pay attention! Looking at my previous post in this thread. Yeah. New subplot coming up with so much to think about. Wonder where this section of the road will take me.....


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #512 - Sep 29^th, 2009 at 12:53am	Print Post
	Just checked on my book. It was sent to the post office yesterday (the 27th) and so far, the USPS website has never heard of it. sigh I suspect that they left off the last two digits of the tracking number but at least I was able to find out where it was mailed from -- about 3 and a half hours to the south of here. That means I should get it this week. [Please dear Gods, let the interior of the book match the cover....] Went prowling at Fire Mountain Gems. I didn't find a ring mounting I like but I did find a suitable imitation stone -- a "ruby" -- in an impressive 10 mm size. Right now, I'm toying with the idea of making the ring mounting myself with a product called Art Clay which, when worked correctly, results in a piece of silver jewelry. It's made from reclaimed silver from old photographic film so it has the added benefit of being "green". So yeah, I'm thinking about it. Like I need another project!


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #513 - Oct 1^st, 2009 at 4:26am	Print Post
	Walking in the woods today, I had some time and quiet to think about what I've been reading in the book I got this week. The author makes some interesting points which provoke considerable thought. Among the things this author points out is "You cannot NOT influence someone." Which is, when you stop to think about it, rather obvious. Every interaction we have with another human being in some way attempts to influence them in some way or another. �So at what point do you draw the line and say "this" influence is acceptable and "that" influence is unacceptable? "Harm none" isn't much help. A real simple example is that someone owes you money and you need to be repaid. You want to do a spell to get this person to repay the debt. An argument could -- and likely would -- be made that such a spell would be coercive in that it would be forcing someone to do something that they didn't particularly want to do and would be "harmful" if for no other reason than the act of repaying the debt would cause the debtor to run short of cash which would at the least, be inconvenient. So you have the choice of forgetting about collecting the debt or doing a "coercive" spell to get what you are owed. Putting aside the legal considerations for a moment, which is worse? Doing a spell to motivate someone to pay a debt or paying them a visit with a couple of large buddies armed with baseball bats for a discussion "behind the barn?" Personally, I think that the spell is the lesser of the two evils since it would not result in serious bodily harm requiring hospitalization. Still trying to sort through it all to my personal satisfaction. Gonna take more than one walk in the woods to get this settled in my mind. I think that's good to review how one feels about ethics and what is and is not permissible in one's life and magickal practice, especially as you encounter new ideas and philosophies. �
	« Last Edit: Dec 5^th, 2009 at 9:02pm by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #514 - Oct 3^rd, 2009 at 7:21pm	Print Post
	Penthesilea wrote on Sep 28^th, 2009 at 8:30pm: I picked up a couple of items today that might help with the "speaking Greek" problem. Not sure yet and won't be until I break them out and try them. I'm feeling like a new chapter is opening up or maybe a new subplot would be a better analogy. Anyway, I'm feeling a change in the wind that requires something tangible to symbolize it. Thinking jewelry, probably a new ring. I'd wear it on my right hand, on the middle finger most likely since I can't currently wear a ring on my index finger and don't know when that will change. I have a pentacle ring that I wear there sometimes and I love it but I want something that isn't mass produced so I'll probably pull out my humongous Fire Mountain Gems catalog and start looking at ring mountings. �Since I wear a Size 10 on my middle and index fingers I'll be checking out the men's rings. Then I need to select a stone. Right now, I'm leaning towards something extremely red and probably large. That means that it'll probably be a synthetic stone. I kinda doubt that I could afford a ruby 5 (or more) mm across! � Given the importance of the piece, I'll probably take my time with it unless I stumble across something that screams THAT'S IT!!! In which case, I'll pay attention! Looking at my previous post in this thread. Yeah. New subplot coming up with so much to think about. �Wonder where this section of the road will take me..... I FOUND IT!!!! Sterling silver with a 12 x 10 mm lab grown ruby. �It's a replica but at that price ($118.99 plus everything) there aren't going to be a ton of them around. I'm going to have my finger "sized" before I order it, I'd scream if it turned out to be the wrong size. �I've included the pic so you can join me in drooling. Now all I have to do is find a way to afford it....
	« Last Edit: Oct 3^rd, 2009 at 8:30pm by Penthesilea »
	Sorceress_ring.jpg ( 15 KB \| Downloads )
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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #515 - Oct 7^th, 2009 at 1:23am	Print Post
	I was looking through my "magickal" journal today and came to a conclusion... It's time for a new one. The "sabbatical" is over. I am no longer the person I was when I started my current journal and the break was obvious to me from reading what I had written at the time. Of course, this comes as no surprise to Skywise and he approves of the changes. So much so that he's threatened me with divorce if I dare to try to go back to what I was! Not that I'm considering it. Nor do I think that such a thing is possible. �You can't "unknow" what you know and you can't force yourself back into a "skin" that you've outgrown. Life isn't a video game where, if a certain course of action doesn't work out well, you can go back to your last "save" and start over. �Nope. No "do overs" in life. You have to take the situation that you're in, figure out the best way to go and then go forward. I've pretty much figured out what I am and I've figured out where I want to go. I've got a good handle on how to get there and what I want to be when I arrive. There will be "course adjustments" along the way, of course, humans are involved so that's a given but I'm not expecting anything terribly drastic. Time to "step off" and see where this path leads....
	« Last Edit: Oct 13^th, 2009 at 6:57pm by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #516 - Oct 7^th, 2009 at 4:03am	Print Post
	Got my new journal ready to go. I pasted a PM I got from someone in January, '07 in it, at the front. Why, is my business....


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #517 - Oct 8^th, 2009 at 9:51pm	Print Post
	I've been going through the word document that I've made of this thread. It's interesting to see the various attempts at manipulation and how they did or didn't work. That's past though. I'm considerably more alert for that sort of thing than I was. I won't go so far as to say that it couldn't happen again. What I AM saying is that it would be a damn sight tougher than it was! Nike pointed out to me last night that a "particular communication" the contents of which is governing certain of my actions could be a forgery. I conceded that it could very well be but that I didn't think that it was. We agreed that when something finally happens that calls that communique into question, "Trust but verify!" is going to be the order of the day. I won't say I'll never be fooled but I do intend to make it as difficult as possible! Enough ruminations about the past. They are instructive but it is the future that I need to be concerned about. Immediate future..... dishes!


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #518 - Oct 9^th, 2009 at 6:59pm	Print Post
	I was lying in bed this morning listening to the rain and mulling over a fine distinction in ethics. Given that we all try to influence others as part and parcel of every human interaction and that we learn such behavior from our earliest days (a helpless baby MUST influence/manipulate the adults around it to tend to its needs or it won't survive) and do it without even thinking about it most of the time, at what point does does this influence/manipulation become unethical? Also, is the use of magick somehow, by its nature, less ethical to use than the use of the "standard issue" tools of the human being? If so, why? And "just because!" isn't a good enough answer. I think that the key is the difference between "persuasion" and "coercion." I need to mull it over some more but I think I'm on the right track here. After that, I'll be considering something I read in Christopher Penzcak's new tome about the difference between the "Right Hand Path" and the "Left Hand Path." At the moment, it looks like I'm a "Left Hander" (which isn't the same as being left handed, which I am! ) according to his explanation of the term. First thing is to determine if that impression is right and if it is, how I feel about that. �Not that I intend to change just to be "politically correct" but the label/idea, if correct, would take some getting used to. It is really too bad that a "live" discussion of the topic (what exactly defines a "left hand" path from a "right hand" one) could NOT be held without the "sunshine, lollipops and rainbows" crowd shouting down every opinion that doesn't agree with theirs. Need to read and mull more before I go further into my ruminations. �Later.
	« Last Edit: Oct 11^th, 2009 at 4:28am by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #519 - Oct 11^th, 2009 at 4:02am	Print Post
	Restless tonight. Feel like something's up. Something important is happening somewhere. There's something I need to be doing and I will do it when I figure out what it is! Reading new books, getting new ideas, more to think about, knowing where I want to go and who I want to be, planning on how to get there and be that! sigh The clock is ticking....


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #520 - Oct 13^th, 2009 at 6:45pm	Print Post
	Penthesilea wrote on Oct 9^th, 2009 at 6:59pm: I was lying in bed this morning listening to the rain and mulling over a fine distinction in ethics. Given that we all try to influence others as part and parcel of every human interaction and that we learn such behavior from our earliest days (a helpless baby MUST influence/manipulate the adults around it to tend to its needs or it won't survive) and do it without even thinking about it most of the time, at what point does does this influence/manipulation become unethical? Also, is the use of magick somehow, by its nature, less ethical to use than the use of the "standard issue" tools of the human being? If so, why? And "just because!" isn't a good enough answer. I think that the key is the difference between "persuasion" and "coercion." I need to mull it over some more but I think I'm on the right track here. I had a thought while on the way home from town yesterday. That happens a lot. Skywise is driving down this one long straightaway with fields on both sides and my mind wanders off and finds an interesting thought. Anyway, it occurred to me that there are situations where the use of magickal coercion -- dominating another's will as completely as you are able -- would be justified. �The first situation is entirely too familiar. An abused woman leaves her abuser. �She does everything "right." She makes the police report, gets the restraining order and arms herself with cellphone, pepper spray and maybe a gun. In situations like these, one of four things happen. The abuser gets an attack of common sense and leaves her alone. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief and moves on. Obviously, this is the best outcome. The other possible outcomes -- he dies, she dies or they both die with maybe some children or other innocent bystanders thrown in -- are where magickal coercion comes in. I believe that in cases where there is a good reason to expect violence, the use of magick to prevent it is justified even though it involves interfering with the will of another. Even then, though, using magick to induce someone to kill themselves is unjustifiable. The best course of action is to magickally convince them to lose interest in their target and to use as much "force" as necessary to accomplish that. If the Gods/Universe/Law Enforcement have other plans for them, that's a whole 'nother thing and using magick to request justice without specifying what constitutes "justice" is certainly allowable. � Another situation which is similar in nature is a stalker who may or may not be known to the victim. Again, making the stalker "lose interest" is the best course of action while doing all the "mundane" things one is supposed to do in such cases. It is an imposition of the spellcaster's will on the target but it does no other harm. �It could be compared to diverting a small child away from something they shouldn't be doing. So I'd have to say that using magickal coercion to prevent physical violence against yourself or someone else is an ethical and justifiable use of magick. � Not nearly as "cut and dried" as the "Harm NONE!" crowd would like it to be, is it?
	« Last Edit: Oct 13^th, 2009 at 10:51pm by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #521 - Oct 16^th, 2009 at 12:30am	Print Post
	I'm making progress on my studies, the War Queen's demands for cuddles notwithstanding! I have a few chapters left to read in the book I'm currently on. Once I'm done with it, I'll go back and start doing the exercises and such while I start on the next book. THAT one looks to be a bit more difficult and I'm thinking that I might have to get yet another book as a reference to it. Given the prices I'm finding for it on amazon, it's gonna have to wait until I get my ring! �I've gotten some references that should help me with the Greek pronunciation and fortunately, we already have a copy of the Goetia so I won't have to find a reasonably priced copy of that! Some of the above mentioned exercises I already have a handle on having had learned to "breathe" as a child in music class! �Other things are going to require more work and I may need some unsuspecting experimental subjects... � Nothing too drastic though, I promise!
	« Last Edit: Oct 16^th, 2009 at 12:33am by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #522 - Oct 20^th, 2009 at 12:02am	Print Post
	I'm just about done with the abovementioned book I'm reading and I've already ordered one of the books in the "Suggested Reading List." There is another one I'm going to get but it is going to wait until late next month since I'm STILL trying to get caught up on my reading! There's no hurry, the book in question has been in print since the 70's... Still intending to research the difference between the Right Hand Path and the Left Hand Path. I'm also mulling the distinction between "wicca" and "witchcraft." A lot of people, primarily wiccans of the "sunshine, lollipops and rainbows school", seem to take serious exception to the notion that the practice of magick can and does exist outside of Wicca and never mind the practitioners of Santeria, Voudon, Hoodoo and countless others! I'm not a Wiccan. It's been a long time since I considered myself one. I'm a little Pagan person living my life by my own ethics which are not exactly "mainstream" although I DO manage to get along in the mainstream culture pretty well. In fact, truth be told, I probably get along better with the cultural mainstream than I do with the majority of the "magickal" community which is, in its way, considerably more rigid in its beliefs than the non-religious cultural mainstream. Interesting thought isn't it? I'm a minority within a minority.....


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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #523 - Oct 20^th, 2009 at 7:15pm	Print Post
	The book I ordered yesterday has been shipped. This is good and since the shipper is in Illinois, I should be getting my book sooner rather than later. I've been reading in the Wookieepedia about The Sith Code and The Jedi Code. Each has something positive to recommend it. But, and this one is big one, neither side recognizes the need for balance. The Sith embrace the way of "self" which if taken to the extreme (as the Sith frequently did) results in failure. When you put yourself above all others, all the "others" will either make it their business to bring you down at worst or simply sit back and watch you self-destruct at best. On the other hand, the selflessness of the Jedi is out of balance as well. Total dedication to the "greater good" is a noble goal but like it or not, renouncing or seeming to renounce passion/emotion can make the Jedi seem "above" everyone else especially when their dedication to seeing the "big picture" makes it seem that the griefs and concerns of non-Jedi are of no consequence. Of course since the conflict between the two points of view is what fuels the Star Wars franchise with the Jedi as the "good guys" and the Sith as the "bad guys", no one is going to point any of this out. Those of us who are living in the real world, however, need to find the balance between total selfishness and total selflessness. �Finding the Middle Path, not between "good" and "evil" but between selfishness and selflessness is what we're here to do. In my opinion, anyway...
	« Last Edit: Oct 21^st, 2009 at 4:12am by Penthesilea »

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Penthesilea Forum Administrator Offline Warrior Queen, DarkLady, Phoenix, Ghostbuster Posts: 47422 Location: The Castle..... Joined: Jun 21^st, 2006 Gender:	Re: On My Journey Reply #524 - Oct 21^st, 2009 at 4:22am	Print Post
	Finished the book I was reading this afternoon. Now, I'll go back and start doing the exercises and such. It's going to take a bit of doing to figure out what I can do and how often but I'll manage. I'm going to start reading the next book now. I suspect that it will be a somewhat harder read but.... I'm tired of the "101" stuff and this next book isn't, by all accounts, a "101." More like a "301" since it purports to be about a completely different system of magick. Two more books on my "Gotta Get!" list fall into the "advanced" category as well. Between this and my writing, I should be a busy girl during the dark half of the year. �I'd be farther along were it not for "circumstances" but there's nothing I can do about that. I'll just have to do what I can in however much time I have left "this life" and hope that in the end, I've gotten the most vital stuff done. Why did I come to this so late?


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