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Cailleachs Herbarium
Exploring Scottish Folk Practices and Traditions
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Who the hell is Sidhe? – Fairy Faith and Animism in Scotland. A Challenge to Divinity
This post about the fairy faith been a long time in the coming. I can only apologise for that, I have been busy researching for a new book that explores these issues in more detail. I was asked to discuss…
ByScott
Snaim – The three knot charm
The weave, the weft and wool are part of our Scottish Heritage. It’s no wonder the use of wool made it into our folk magic heritage. The use of using three knots on a thread for the purpose against the…
Chapbook on Scottish folk magic and herbalism (for the Scottish Radical Herbal gathering 2016)
Well, the first Scottish Radical Herbal Gathering is almost upon us and I’m very excited to be delivering a talk with them this year on scottish folk magic with a free chapbook provided. The programme for the weekend looks amazing…
Scottish Gaelic Divination Prayer \ Charm – The firth
Those following along on social media will know I have been discussing divination for a while and researching the below bit of Audio exploring authentic Scottish Prayers or charms to use as part of my divination practices. I happened across…
Folk magic, witchcraft, whats the difference ?
I get asked “what is a Folk Practitioner or what is folk magic?” on many occasions. I also get asked “what is the difference between what you do and what a witch does?”, “Is it witchcraft?”, “Are you religious?”, “Do…
From Dead to Deity – How did the Celtic dead become gods?
I’m sitting on a train. It’s like a liminal space, I’m not moving but rushing forward at the same time. Travelling through the amazing Scottish landscape, it’s always a joy. Even though a brown, white and green dusk coloured blur beyond the window. The sound…
The good, the dead, and the fairy faith – Animism and ancestors in Scottish folklore.
Winter time is always a time for me to ponder on those who have passed. Their missing faces from the celebration table hit pretty hard at this time of year. I don’t mean to be maudlin but it’s a reality…
Folk practitioner tools vs. Witchcraft tools – A discussion on history
We have grown up with this myth that broomsticks, athames, crystals and the like are synonymous with witchcraft. However, this is not really the case in folk magic practices and these tools are, if seldom, mentioned in the trials of folk magic practitioners that we have access to. I hope this post might help in understanding where some of these ideas come from and how, in fact, they might not be as synonymous as people think they are to practicing folk magic in Scotland or for that matter witchcraft.
Airmed – herbal working ancestor – an inspiration
The inspiration for this site and what we are attempting to achieve came from a number of ideas that had been ruminating for a long time. One of these stories is about a Airmid from the Tuatha de dannann.