The Electronic Foghorn March, 1993 Issue #34 The Official Newsletter of the Fog City Nest A Church of All Worlds Congregation ================================================================ WORKSHOP: MAKING RITUAL REAL: TOOLS OF TRANSFORMATION Have you ever performed a ritual where you cast your circle, called the quarters, and raised the power perfectly and still nothing happens? If your answer is "too often," then this workshop is for you. Wendy Hunter Roberts, a candidate for priestess in the Church of All Worlds, will present a workshop on "Making Ritual Real" on Sunday March 28, 1993 at 7:00. Wendy has been studying transformation for many years and has some great ideas about it. Event: Workshop, Making Ritual Real: Tools of Transformation Date: Sunday, March 28, 1993 Time: 7:00 pm Place: Gifts of the Goddess 973 Valencia Street, SF Suggested Donation: $5.00 Questions: Call Toni 282-1872 Wendy teaches a 6 week class in Transformative Ritual. For more information about classes that are forming, call her at 510-535- 0857. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Ostara Ostara falls on March 20 this year. We thought that we would attend a ritual put on by another Pagan group. This is a chance to learn something new and pick up a few ideas. Katrina Matos is researching several possibilities and arranging for us to go as a group. Call her at 415-759-5422 for details. ________________________________________________________________ Business Meeting The business meeting is on Sunday, April 4 at 7:00 pm at the Owl and the Monkey Cafe on 1336 9th Ave in San Francisco. Look for a stack of FogHorns on the table. If you want to participate in Nest events instead of just attend, this is the place to start. April 4th is also the due date for submissions to the April FogHorn. ________________________________________________________________ Earth Day - April 24 To celebrate Earth Day, Fog City Nest members can come help work on the Aids Memorial Grove in Golden Gate Park from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. The Grove is on Bowling Green Drive near the Tennis Courts. Bring a lunch, sturdy shoes, a warm shirt (layers you can take off), and work gloves with leather palms if possible. The Dept of Rec and Park provides the tools. In case of rain, 621-3260. Thank you to Maxine for researching this community project for us. ________________________________________________________________ Beltane We will probably have a Beltane ritual on Thursday, April 29 so keep that evening free. Don Eigenhauser will be coordinating it. ________________________________________________________________ Camping Trip The Camping Trip is scheduled for June 4, 5 and 6th. Tentatively, the trip will cost between $30 and $40 per person. We are making arrangements to use a place called Emerald Earth - 189 acres of land in the Anderson Valley in Mendocino which we will have to ourselves. There is a cabin if people prefer to sleep inside. We will be expected to do 2 hours of work per day on a project on the land. Further discussion of the arrangements will be done at the business meeting on April 4. ________________________________________________________________ WITCHES BROOM: HOUSEHOLD HINTS FROM HECATE Book Reviews by Maxine Grodjinsky Time for Spring Cleaning! Even if you're not a cleaning enthusiast (how many of us are?), you'll need to wash your dishes and your clothes at least once in a while. A new broom sweeps clean! Switch from using toxic household cleansers to those that are environmentally safe. Besides, experimenting with mixtures of natural substances is an interesting and fun thing to do. The problem, as described by the Clean Water Fund, a non-profit organization, is that "the average American uses forty pounds of unsafe household cleanser each year." Although people may want to eliminate their part in the problem, they often don't know how to go about doing so. The book, Clean and Green, by Annie Berthold- Bond is an enormous help towards providing the solution by giving 485 recipes for cleaning almost everything in your house in ecologically harmless ways. She developed these formulas in response to her own environmental reactions. Commercial products were evaluated by analyzing Material Data Sheets provided by the companies themselves. Once the market for toxic products disappears, manufacturers of unsafe products will no longer have reason to make and distribute them. The beginning describes the common commercial product as well as the natural ingredient choices that can be used to replace it. The list of unsafe ingredients the product may contain is followed by a description of the toxic health and environmental impacts of each. The list of natural choices include minerals, plants, and animals with the type of cleansing action of each described. One of the fascinating items refers to veolite, a mineral found near volcanic activity. Not only does it naturally absorb air pollutants, but the sun purifies it so it can be continually reused. The next important group of information is the source of supplies: supermarkets, health food stores, mail order companies and commercial brands. You can start your personal program with a few simple supplies from the supermarket. Advise on natural cleaning implements and helpful hints on methods are also given. Each of the next 17 chapters describes a basic type of cleaning need (example: kitchen, laundry, car, etc) and the type and sources of natural cleaning materials to use. One chapter specifically deals with stains, listed in alphabetical order. Chapter 21 on reducing the use of plastics covers such topics as packaging alternatives, avoiding plastic products and recycling plastics. Alphabetical lists at the end of the book are: mail order suppliers; manufacturers and distributors; organizations and other resources; and a bibliography. Clean and Green: The Complete Guide to Non-Toxic and Environmentally Safe Housekeeping; Annie Berthold-Bond; Ceres Press; Woodstock, New York; Copyright 1990. $8.95 plus $2 shipping and handling from Ceres Press, P.O. Box 87, Dept CG, Woodstock, New York, 12498. 914-679-5573. ________________________________________________________________ CRAB MEAT SANDWICH WITH ETHYLENEDIANE TETRAACETIC ACID HOLD THE CRAB MEAT. What's shoe polish made of? What kind of art materials are safe for children? Just who are Methyl, Ethyl Ester anyway? If you've been puzzling over these and similar questions, trying to decipher the multi-syllabic ingredients in products you buy, then you'll find The Consumers Dictionary of Household, Yard and Office Chemicals very helpful. Other information offered includes some recipes for equivalent non-toxic substitutes and referrals to organizations. A Consumer's Dictionary of Household, Yard and Office Chemicals; Ruth Winter; Crown Publishers, Inc.; 201 East 50th Street; New York, NY 10022; Copyright 1992. $12.00 I bought these books at Green Apple Bookstore. If you want me to pick up copies for you, call me at 431-4154. If you want a copy of the Bay Area Ridge Trail Guide send an SASE to: Maxine Grodjinsky, 150 Haight St. #604, San Francisco, CA 94102. ________________________________________________________________ In Search of the Meaning Behind the Labyris by Don Eigenhauser The labyris, or double-axe, is a symbol featured in jewelry ranging from pendants to earrings. You may own or have seen friends wearing this object today and wondered what the labyris represented to the pagans of the past. If purchased in the form of jewelry, we might rely on our mail order catalog or our occult shop for a brief definition of the history of this symbol. Unfortunately, descriptions of the labyris can be non-existent, ambiguous, or simply wrong! For example, Mystic Moon provides a labyris pendant in its mail order catalog in the category "Other Symbolic Jewelry": they define the labyris as "symbol of the feminine." Huh??! Of the various ads and catalogs displaying labyris jewelry, a more detailed description of the labyris can be found in "The Goddess Catalog," produced by Rainbow Serpent. Rainbow Serpent is a women-owned and operated importer of Greek figurines, who are now designing and producing some of their own goddess statuary, as well. In their catalog, the labyris is connected exclusively with the Minoan Snake Goddess of ancient Crete, the feminine divinity, and her priestesses. They further note: "The Labyris is often flanked by the Horns of Consecration and may have been the instrument used to kill the sacrificial bull. It may also be an ideogram of the butterfly ...(also) the Labyris becomes the sacred weapon which protects the Divine Womb." In their description of the labyris, we see some insight into the symbol, but from a Goddess-only bias. However, the mention of the Horns of Consecration and sacrificial bull give us a clue that the God may also be present in the symbol. Rainbow Serpent also writes about the labyrinth, as a symbol of the uterine maze, and specifically of the Palace of the Double-Axes, the Labyrinth of Knossos. In the Glossary of Witchcraft, Paganism and Occultism (3rd Edition) compiled by Otter and Morning Glory Zell, the labyris itself is not found. The definition of the labyrinth is though, and we see a further connection of the God. In the Glossary, Labyrinth is defined as "A maze design of Bronze-Age Crete, found throughout the world, and symbolizing the path of initiation. Also the underground complex of burial chambers and passages in ancient Knossos, at the heart of which dwelt the monstrous Minotaur -- half man, half bull." The name Minotaur translates literally as "Bull of Minos." Plutarch, in his work Moralia, writes of all-female and all-male Dionysian cult societies which worshiped their god as a bull. In fact, the myth of the Minotaur was absorbed into the Cult of Dionysos. Minoan art shows many activities engaging the bull and symbols portraying it -- including the bulls head with the double-axe between its horns. The placement of the labyris here is indicative of its use in the sacrificial slaughter of the bull to the God. As Arthur Evans pointed out in his book The God of Ecstasy, the labyris was also called Bouplex by the classical Greeks, which translates to "bull-slammer." He further cites scholar C. Kerenyi's book, Dionysos: Archetypal Image of Indestructible Life, for further evidence that Dionysos, himself, was called by the name "double-Ax." Frescoes showing priestesses with the labyris may be depicting Dionysos worship, not Snake Goddess worship! For in the sixth century BCE, Simonides called the labyris "the bull-killing servant of Lord Dionysos," and the labyris may be the first symbol to represent the synthesis of the Cretan Bull God with Dionysos in his trinity as animal-human-divine. Do not misjudge this article as a masculine usurpation of a feminine symbol; I wanted to use the labyris as a prop with which to make a salient point. As pagans, witches and feminists, we are all wounded and sensitive to the patriarchal infiltration of many Goddess cultures and her loss of status to invasive, foreign Sky Gods. However, in our zeal to reclaim Her and her valid symbology, we should not usurp the valid, masculine symbols of her consort. Dionysos, as an example, was an ancient Horned One, pre-patriarchal, and had a special place in the worship of our ancient women. The labyris may not be a "symbol of the feminine," but the feminine worship of Dionysos did please the Mother Goddess, as well. Blessed Be! ________________________________________________________________ Tarot Notes The Tower Patricia Croteau What is a tower? First of all it is a human construct, not a part of the natural world. Someone planned it and built it step by step. It represents the status quo and what you have built up for yourself. A tower is not part of the earth nor is it a part of the sky. It can remain unconnected, a place to hide from the world of experience. The academic ivory tower of theory far above the rough and tumble of everyday life is the classic example. The tower where Rapunzel was imprisoned is another example. The young woman was hidden away from the world of sexual experience and emerging womanhood by a parent not yet ready to deal with her little girl growing up. The lightening flash is the shock of clarity. The illumination enables you to see what is really going on. It allows you to see the sterility of the established situation. You have built up a routine which was useful but there is no longer any feeling behind it. Traditionally the man represents the active conscious force and the woman the receptive unconscious. They fall out of the tower totally out of control. There is nothing that can be done to stop the process of the Tower. The truth will come out and the time is now. In my own life I have seen the Tower turn up twice in my readings. Once was when I was in the process of a very messy breakup. Although it was a painful process it was the best thing for both of us. We had gotten into a co-dependent spiral and needed to break apart to continue to grow. The other time was when I was staying with a friend whose roommate had not been paying the rent. The roommate had also been hiding letters from the landlord. So early in the morning while all of us were sleeping, the landlord broke into the apartment with armed city marshals to evict everyone. Although my friend and I were able to make a deal with the landlord and the situation turned out happily for all, I still make sure I sleep in a sweatsuit and not just a tee shirt. With the appearance of the Tower you see the true nature of your situation. This can be uncomfortable and frightening at the time. The Devil card represents the status quo that has lost its meaning. The Tower is the shock that comes along to open things up. It comes to show you that there are other possibilities, other people you could be, other things you could do. While this is not a comfortable process it gives you the opportunity to grow. ----------------------------- Patricia is a Tarot teacher and cofounder of the Practical Tarot Collective. She can be reached at 1041 Page St. San Francisco, CA. or 415-241-8816 ________________________________________________________________ Letter to the Editor I have an idea I would like to propose at the next Nest business meeting. I am writing this letter so that everyone has some time to mull it over. I propose that the Nest have a weekly worship service. I see the service lasting for 1 to 2 hours and held in a rented space, probably in the Mission (cheap rent!) Why have a weekly worship service? Many reasons. It would give us all a chance to get together on a more regular basis. It would give us a chance to worship together (instead of just at the sabbats). It would be a way of introducing new people to our group. We would develop a standard service that could be used every week that would also have places for seasonal material. That way we would not have to come up with a whole new ritual every week. I see this service as being in addition to the monthly meetings we have, where we have more informational activities. I look forward to talking with all of you at the next business meeting. Never Thirst Tony ________________________________________________________________ Bridget Ritual Tony put on a great Bridget ritual with a big bonfire and much dancing. He later collected comments some of which I'm including here. "Simple rituals are a lot more effective then baroque things" "Liked the participation" "Liked the kids" "Fire making was effective" "Kids were distracting" "Would like to have heard more about Bridget" "Was not clear if this was a celebration or transformative ritual" "Quarters need to be clearer, more coherent" "Need clearer statement of purpose at the beginning" "Hard to find people on the beach" "Have more active calling of quarters" I thought these comments might be helpful in planning future rituals. _______________________________________________________________ The FogHorn is a publication of the Fog City Nest, a nest of the Church of All Worlds Donations, Articles and Letters to the Editor should be sent to: Toni Spizman 692 San Jose Ave. #6 San Francisco, CA 94110 or email at: navarra@well.sf.ca.us