Through our daily earthbound life, we recognise the sun rising in the east (northeast in the summer and southeast in the winter) and mounting the sky. The sun rarely passes directly overhead, and rather we see it moving toward the south, if you're in the northern hemisphere. The sun will then set toward the west (southwest in the winter and northwest in the summer). This all changes if you're in the southern hemisphere, where the sun will appear to travel through the north, rising in the southeast at winter and the northeast at summer, and rising in the southwest in summer and northwest in winter. The following diagram shows the perceived passage of the sun for each hemisphere. For this reason, I would place my altar in the South and draw the circle anti-clockwise if I were in the southern hemisphere. Whether we are in the southern or northern hemisphere, the altar is placed in the darkest quarter of the circle, where the sun is perceived to travel under the earth. Psychol...

This is just to let you know that you probably won't hear a lot from me over the next week or so. This is because I'm in the process of moving home. It's odd, I've been saying this all year, that I felt November Eve would be a big transition for me, with major changes in my life, and the closer I get to it, the more my life seems to be up in the air. It happens to be that my birthday is in early November, so this time of year is always a transition from one year to the next for me. It's at times like this that I think of our dark lord. Charge of the God, by Janet and Stewart Farrar  Listen to the words of the Great Father, Who of old was called Osiris, Adonis, Zeus, Thor, Pan, Cernunnos, Herne, Lugh, and by many other names: My Law is Harmony with all things. Mine is the secret that opens the gates of life and mine is the dish of salt of the Earth that is the body of Cernunnos, the eternal circle of rebirth. I give the knowledge of life ...

The Greek goddess Persephone is the embodiment of grain, lying dormant beneath the Earth with her cthonic husband. The Orphic mysteries tell us that Persephone gives birth to a son in the Underworld. He is the dying and rising god Dionysus. Destined to be king of the gods, he is slain and torn to pieces by jealous Titans. He must be born again to inherit his throne. This time he is conceived by a mortal virgin and born as a god-man on Earth. The ancient Greeks identified Persephone and Dionysus with Isis and Osiris. The Egyptian god Osiris was slain by his jealous brother Set. Osiris was mummified and became Lord of the Underworld. Isis conceived by her deceased husband and gave birth to Horus, who is regarded as a reincarnation of Osiris. Isis became conflated with Hathor, "Mistress of the West" who welcomes the dead into the next life. A hymn to Hathor says: Thou art the Mistress of Jubilation, the Queen of the Dance, the Mistress of Music, the Queen of the Harp Pla...