"animism"

They say moving house is one of the most stressful things. It’s right up there with death and divorce. Having moved to a new house over the Bealtainn weekend I can agree. Though luckily no one got killed and we are still married. It’s been a maze of solicitors, paper work, travel, packing and unpacking boxes and general DIY until my body ached too much and I had to sleep, stressed pets, stressed people and so many plants to move … I spare you the rest of the gory details. We made it through. All in one piece. Now it’s …

I have recently been reflecting about a conference I spoke at a while ago. A few people were discussing a problem they felt they had in getting to know plants. What is plant communication, the delegates were asking? What does it feel like? I didn’t have any answers for them as a lot of this tends to be subjective and I’m not an expert on this area at all. We discussed expectations and experiences though. What did they mean? What was their understanding of communicating with plants? I said in summary “If you’re a herbalist you are already connecting but …

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 the idea of the Sidhe or Síth in Scottish culture. During research for the upcoming publication many ideas have come forward. Some of these ideas I spoke about last year at the Scottish Radical Herbal Gathering. This post develops those ideas found in the post Dead to Deity. It’s also a think piece. It presents a different narrative to what …

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 we will all encounter at some point. It got me thinking. As this is the darkest time of the year, what those who came before us thought of at this time of year? What were the beliefs of the folks who saw fairies and ancestors as ever-present. Is it animism? Is it fairy faith? This is a thought piece rather …

Thank you for being interested in finding out About the Cailleach’s Herbarium world. Before you journey the mysterious and crooked path through the landscape of  Scottish folklore, herbalism and folk practices, it might be wise to ponder who the writer of these words is. You might want to drag some soap boxes to stand on with me along the way. When someone goes public with information, discussing beliefs and experiences people assume all sorts of things about them.  It is important to reveal some things. To help prevent bias and to allow some perspective to settle on the diorama being presented. …

Be the first to own Mill Dust and Dreaming Bread – A limited Edition 300 page hardback book Exploring Scottish Folk Belief and Folk Magic by supporting my kickstarter today! Support My Kickstarter Be the first to buy my upcoming book! Animism Airmed – herbal working ancestor – an inspiration by Scott 29th July 2022 by Scott 29th July 2022 Audio Tales for our times – Lore of the land *all episodes by Scott 29th July 2022 by Scott 29th July 2022 Ancestors Airmed – herbal working ancestor – an inspiration 29th July 2022 by Scott 29th July 2022 Dem …