Bringing olden ways to modern days,
For Wiccans,
Witches,
Pagans,
And all who honor a nature-based path.
This is Desert Magic,
With Crow Moon.
Merry Meet,
And welcome back once again to another episode of Desert Magic,
Coming to you from the beautiful and magical desert of southern Arizona.
My name is Crow Moon,
And I'm your host.
Those of you who listen to this show,
Or my talks or workshops,
Have heard me say many times that for my entire life,
Halloween has been the most important day of the year for me.
Ever since I was a child,
I looked forward to Halloween more than my birthday,
And this is still true decades later.
I never fully understood the root of where that feeling came from.
Looking back now,
One might say that it has become a self-fulfilling prophecy,
So to speak.
But I still don't know,
And it really doesn't matter to me.
I love Halloween.
Now,
As a Wiccan,
I have the best of both worlds,
Because I'm able to celebrate both Halloween and Samhain.
And while I still don't understand the true origin of my love for this season,
I do remember quite well several events that took place early on in my celebration of it.
One such memory is that of the annual Halloween carnival put on by my elementary school.
When I turned over the calendar on my wall to October,
I would always smile,
Because I knew that both Halloween and the carnival were beginning to become more than a promise.
Of course,
I wasn't the only one in my class who held such excitement for this event.
Lunchtime conversations became more and more about sharing how we would be dressing up,
And so forth.
Then,
One year,
I received the news that my mother had been either elected or appointed to the position of Carnival Director.
At that point in time,
It had to have been the proudest moment of my life.
It didn't afford me any special privileges,
And I had no expectation that it might,
But it made me very proud.
So when the big day finally came,
We had to arrive early,
To which I put up no objection whatsoever.
As the carnival was setting up,
And she was in the midst of doing what directors do,
I stopped her and asked if there was anything I could do to help.
Yes,
She enthusiastically replied.
She pointed to,
Of all things,
A cauldron,
And told me it was my duty and responsibility to make sure that no one placed their hands inside it,
Because it contained dry ice to create the effect of smoke,
And she didn't want anyone to hurt themselves.
Without questioning her,
I stood beside it,
And immediately began my newly appointed role as Guardian of the Cauldron.
I remember little else about that evening,
Beyond the fact that I was absolutely thrilled to have a job of such importance.
Of course,
I realize now that the task I was assigned amounted to busy work to keep me occupied and out of the way of things.
Or was it?
Fast forward,
I now have several cauldrons,
And my job description remains much the same insofar as being in charge of what goes in them.
These cauldrons are not mere decorations,
And they are used far more frequently than once a year.
The memory I just shared with you makes a vivid return to me each year at October,
And also each time I reflect upon the story of Keridwyn and the Cauldron from Celtic Welsh mythology.
Keridwyn,
Who is now known as the Goddess of the Underworld and Transformation,
Was a witch who was well known for her spellcasting abilities.
The most famous legend about her recounts one of her spells going awry.
Keridwyn was always brewing potions in her cauldron for the purpose of helping others,
And on this occasion,
She prepared a potion for her son,
Morfen,
Who needed some assistance in the looks and intelligence department.
The spell required a year and a day to brew,
And once it was ready,
Only the first drops of it would carry out the desired result,
The remainder of it becoming toxic.
Rather than tending to it round the clock for over a year,
Keridwyn called upon a young servant boy,
Gwion.
He agreed,
And became what amounted to the Guardian of the Cauldron.
As you might already guess,
All did not go according to plan.
On the day that the potion was ready,
Gwion accidentally spilled three drops of it on his finger.
This,
Of course,
Burned his finger,
So he reactively stuck it in his mouth to cool it.
In doing so,
He unknowingly received what Keridwyn had intended for her son,
Particularly power and intellect.
Upon realizing this,
Keridwyn was furious.
Realizing what he had done,
Gwion fled,
And the chase was on,
And as it ensued,
Gwion began to use his newly acquired power and skills as he attempted to evade her.
In both stories,
We see that the Cauldron required being tended to and protected.
In both stories,
That which the Cauldron contained was not meant for everyone.
So looking at the Cauldron symbolically,
Perhaps we can view it as such when it comes to our magic,
Our intentions,
And the energy and effort we put into both.
What we brew might well be specifically for someone,
But we don't necessarily wish for just anyone to have access to it.
That can be just as much for keeping others safe as it is for protecting the integrity of our efforts.
For much of history,
Witchcraft has been viewed as a practice surrounded by a high degree of secrecy.
In the present day,
At least in my practice,
It has a lot more to do with privacy than secrecy.
But the fundamental reason for safeguarding remains much the same.
With magic,
And with all things,
It is important to always be mindful of safekeeping.
Should we decide to appoint someone to look after what is precious to us,
We must take great care in selecting who that might be,
If anyone.
This doesn't mean becoming overly protective or stingy,
But rather prudent.
Whenever we craft something,
Whatever that might be,
With a specific intention,
We are wise to always be aware that it is generally not for public consumption.
This even includes something many of us do without even giving it a single thought,
Over-sharing information.
We have become as quick to post personal information online as we are to chastise someone,
In person,
For encroaching on something about us that we consider to be none of their business.
But three drops of a potion accidentally falling onto someone's finger can kick off all sorts of reactions that we never intended.
And when we find ourselves in the position of being the guardian of a cauldron,
Let us remember to do our job well without becoming overly involved in the potion itself.
Around the cauldron,
Gathered are we.
Merry meet and blessed be.
To maiden,
Mother,
And the crone,
Make we now our magic known.
The night is ours at long last,
Hand to hand the circle is cast.
Love we reap,
And love we sow.
We tread where only wise ones go.
Upon the cauldron fix your eyes.
Through its smoke the truth will rise.
In the cauldron our intentions go under the moon's blessed glow.
Through powers of the stars this night we watch our magic taking flight.
The power is ours,
We use it well.
Together we weave and craft this spell.
For the good of all and to the harm of none,
My sisters and brothers,
The spell has begun.
During the month of October,
And always,
May your cauldron be filled to the brim with bright blessings.
I wish you a happy Halloween and a blessed Samhain.
Until next time,
The crow flies from me to thee,
To send the message,
Blessed be.
