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The Wicci Notebook

I write a lot. I've written a bit on this site about a variety of subjects. This section is just a collection of the original writing (essays, etc.) on this site.

The Tarot

Introduction

My introduction to Tarot happened one sunny afternoon in 2015, while standing in line at Barnes & Noble. My then-fiancé (now husband) encouraged me to buy the cards, after he saw me playing with the Running Press Tarot Kitplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigRunning Press Tarot Kit

Deck Notes

This is the first tarot deck I ever bought - it was an impulse purchase at my local Barnes & Noble. While we were waiting in the checkout line, I noticed this kit in one of the racks nearby, and my husband suggested I get it, since I mentioned I'd always been curious about tarot, given my upbringing. at the register. I played around with the kit a few times, but didn't really find it very interesting beyond the initial novelty of something I was taught as a child was necessarily satanic and evil.

I discovered Robert M. Place's Alchemical Tarot (5th Edition)plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigAlchemical Tarot (5th Edition)

Deck Notes

This was my first serious Tarot deck. I found it by accident and was very strongly drawn to the artwork and heavily symbolic imagery. The Alchemical Tarot isn't a particularly intuitive deck. I didn't find many of the images to be very intuitive without the context provided by the artist's book. That said, Robert Place does an excellent job of maintaining consistency throughout his artwork's images and symbolism. Similar symbols and images are used thr… in 2017 by what I can only see as kismet. I came across images of this deck while searching for something online, and I was immediately drawn to the esoteric woodcut style of Robert's artwork. I bought the deck, which comes with a little white book, but I didn't use it seriously until the next year, when I finally bought a copy of his in-depth Tarot book, The Tarot, Magic, Alchemy, Hermeticism, and Neoplatonism.

Robert's detailed breakdown of the evolution of sorcery, magic, and occultism in the west created a foundation for me to start investigating more deeply the various folk beliefs and spiritism of my American and European ancestors, and it's through this research that I've developed my own view of the Tarot and its usefulness in modern life. I definitely recommend Robert's book if you're interested in learning more about Tarot and the history of magic, with less of the ahistorical, metaphysical narrative that's common with many New Age authors and the original author of modern Tarot theory, Arthur E. Waite.

Notes & Thoughts

Introduction

My introduction to Tarot happened one sunny afternoon in 2015, while standing in line at Barnes & Noble. My then-fiancé (now husband) encouraged me to buy the cards, after he saw me playing with the Running Press Tarot Kitplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigRunning Press Tarot Kit

Deck Notes

This is the first tarot deck I ever bought - it was an impulse purchase at my local Barnes & Noble. While we were waiting in the checkout line, I noticed this kit in one of the racks nearby, and my husband suggested I get it, since I mentioned I'd always been curious about tarot, given my upbringing. at the register. I played around with the kit a few times, but didn't really find it very interesting beyond the initial novelty of something I was taught as a child was necessarily satanic and evil.

I discovered Robert M. Place's Alchemical Tarot (5th Edition)plugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigAlchemical Tarot (5th Edition)

Deck Notes

This was my first serious Tarot deck. I found it by accident and was very strongly drawn to the artwork and heavily symbolic imagery. The Alchemical Tarot isn't a particularly intuitive deck. I didn't find many of the images to be very intuitive without the context provided by the artist's book. That said, Robert Place does an excellent job of maintaining consistency throughout his artwork's images and symbolism. Similar symbols and images are used thr… in 2017 by what I can only see as kismet. I came across images of this deck while searching for something online, and I was immediately drawn to the esoteric woodcut style of Robert's artwork. I bought the deck, which comes with a little white book, but I didn't use it seriously until the next year, when I finally bought a copy of his in-depth Tarot book, The Tarot, Magic, Alchemy, Hermeticism, and Neoplatonism.

Robert's detailed breakdown of the evolution of sorcery, magic, and occultism in the west created a foundation for me to start investigating more deeply the various folk beliefs and spiritism of my American and European ancestors, and it's through this research that I've developed my own view of the Tarot and its usefulness in modern life. I definitely recommend Robert's book if you're interested in learning more about Tarot and the history of magic, with less of the ahistorical, metaphysical narrative that's common with many New Age authors and the original author of modern Tarot theory, Arthur E. Waite.

Philosophy

Introduction

I really enjoy discussing deep philosophical subjects. I write a lot when we go wilderness camping, and I've started digitizing my writings. I don't claim to be the source of truth on anything. My philosophy is based on what I observe in the world around me, what I learn about past civilizations, and what is synthesized from my observations. I might be wrong about everything…but so far, I have a pretty good track record.

If you're looking for Molyneaux-style pop-philosophy, where you're told reality is a mirage and thus everything is meaningless in the end, you're barking up the wrong tree. Nihilismplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigNihilism

Introduction

What is nihilism?

Many roads lead to nihilism, and those that do cannot avoid it as an inevitable logical conclusion of flawed ideologies.

Fundamentally, nihilism is the belief that everything is meaningless - that there is no creator, no purpose to our existence, and no rhyme or reason to the universe. Thus, nothing matters, is a dead end.

This is an always-evolving work in progress, because no, there is not a single truth that transcends all peoples throughout all time. If there was, Christianity wouldn't have had to use violence for centuries to establish itself as the prevailing moral and religious authority.

Subjects

Philosophy

  • Absolutismplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigAbsolutism

    “What can possibly be coming on this page?”

    Don't worry, I'm not a postmodern nut who thinks everything is so relative there are no established standards and norms that matter. I believe that morals are relative in the way that the production of oil is non-static. It takes a very long time to convert carbon into hydrocarbon, and it takes a very long time for the basic morals of a civilization to shift. Forcing that shift is wrong, because it is inherently tyrannical. Forcing people …
  • Nihilismplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigNihilism

    Introduction

    What is nihilism?

    Many roads lead to nihilism, and those that do cannot avoid it as an inevitable logical conclusion of flawed ideologies.

    Fundamentally, nihilism is the belief that everything is meaningless - that there is no creator, no purpose to our existence, and no rhyme or reason to the universe. Thus, nothing matters,

Religion

  • issues
    • academia
      • Historyplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigHistory

        What Is History?

        Much of human history is entirely unknown to modern humans - we have archaeological evidence of human settlements dating many millennia before the Christianization of Europe, but we have no historical record for much of the human evidence we find.
      • Academiaplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigAcademia

        This refers to individuals, groups, structures, authorities, entities, etc. who are are responsible for gatekeeping information. For example, academics include anthropologists, archaeologists, and historians, who are collectively responsible for building the narratives we use when discussing the past.
    • Social Issuesplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigSocial Issues

      While I do my best to keep this website apolitical, it's become increasingly difficult to do so. Much of the available literature and information on paganism is produced by those on the left and far left of the ideological spectrum, which has overtly influenced attitudes and writings relevant to practicing pagans and heathens. In the interest of balancing the ideological bent of mainstream paganism (and neopaganism), I will be expanding the site's Philosophy section where appropri…
  • magic
    • Magicplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigMagic

      “”divination

      Wicca

      I'm not a practicing Wiccan myself. There are elements of Wiccan doctrine that do not align with my philosophical views, at least as far as Wicca is a defined religious orthodoxy created primarly by Gerald A. Gardner.
  • religion
    • christianity
      • My Path Through Christianityplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigMy Path Through Christianity

        Introduction

        I wrote this a few years ago and finally published it in January on a semi-defunct blog I've used sporadically to write about religion and morality. You can to jump past the personal history stuff into the
      • Predestinationplugin-autotooltip__defaultPredestination
      • Christian Violenceplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigChristian Violence

        Introduction

        While most Christians in 2022 accept the reality that violence and terrorism were required to ensure the total religious conversion of the Roman Empire, the sovereign nations it conquered, and the other nations of Europe, many of those Christians are still unaware of just how brutal and militant this process really was.
      • Christianityplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigChristianity

        My Christian History

        I was raised in the Midwest as an Evangelical Christian in the 1990s and early 2000s. While my own relationship with the religion has always been tumultuous, I didn't develop a position of overt hostility toward it until 2016. This shift was the direct result of watching the progressive leftist agenda play out in real life, right in front of me. The significant parallels between Christianity and modern leftism have led me to recognize that Christianity is, and…
    • Religionplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigReligion

      Religion
    • Wiccaplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigWicca

      I'm not a practicing Wiccan myself. There are elements of Wiccan doctrine that do not align with my philosophical views, at least as far as Wicca is a defined religious orthodoxy created primarly by Gerald A. Gardner. Gardnerian Wicca is essentially a contrived set of beliefs informed by Jewish Kabbalah, some Christian mysticism, and a healthy dose of creativity.
  • Absolutismplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigAbsolutism

    “What can possibly be coming on this page?”

    Don't worry, I'm not a postmodern nut who thinks everything is so relative there are no established standards and norms that matter. I believe that morals are relative in the way that the production of oil is non-static. It takes a very long time to convert carbon into hydrocarbon, and it takes a very long time for the basic morals of a civilization to shift. Forcing that shift is wrong, because it is inherently tyrannical. Forcing people …
  • Nihilismplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigNihilism

    Introduction

    What is nihilism?

    Many roads lead to nihilism, and those that do cannot avoid it as an inevitable logical conclusion of flawed ideologies.

    Fundamentally, nihilism is the belief that everything is meaningless - that there is no creator, no purpose to our existence, and no rhyme or reason to the universe. Thus, nothing matters,
  • Philosophyplugin-autotooltip__default plugin-autotooltip_bigPhilosophy

    Introduction

    I really enjoy discussing deep philosophical subjects. I write a lot when we go wilderness camping, and I've started digitizing my writings. I don't claim to be the source of truth on anything. My philosophy is based on what I observe in the world around me, what I learn about past civilizations, and what is synthesized from my observations. I might be wrong about everythingphilosophy index