Midnight Sun January 2024

Scroll from the editor

Happy 2024 all! You may have noticed that this month’s edition of The Midnight Sun is a little later than normal! Well 2024 has come in with a quickness for yours truly, and not let up. Life happens sometimes, but here we are alive and well!

If you’re one to keep up with the stars you may already know this, but if not; It is officially the Age of Aquarius! 01/21/2023 marks the entrance of Pluto into Aquarius after having been in Capricorn since 2008. No, that’s not a typo. Entering Aquarius on January 20, 2024 it will be there through September 1, 2024, when it briefly retrogrades back into Capricorn but will reenter Aquarius on November 19, 2024 where it will remain until March 8, 2043.

That’s right ladies and gentlethems, 19 years.

The Age of Aquarius via Pluto’s transit will literally define a generation, much like Pluto’s journey through Capricorn arguably has (Capricorn has a lot to do with finances - while expanding that can mean great gain, restricting that can look like big greed - and while ole Cap doesn’t have an essential Dignity in Pluto, Pluto is the revealer of the hidden and inner workings or plots coming to light. Looking over global events since 2008, it does raise some eyebrows…)

In any event, take a look at where you might have Aquarius in your Star Chart, and know there will probably be some noticeable changes in that area.

As always, I hope that your month has been treating you well, and that 2024 is happening kindly to you!

~Frick, Editor of The Midnight Sun

_____________________________________________________

HK Jams Jan 2024 - Brand New Day

And now for something completely different; NOTE FROM THE EDITOR HERE!
Hi! Hex sent me this for the December Newsletter and due to holiday planning and travel, my brain yeeted out my ear and I completely forgot to share it; but I don’t want you guys to miss out on the wisdom, so I have Hex’s blessing to share it this month. I have not changed it from it’s original form, so where it says December - I know. That’s my bad ;)

Having "The Talk" With Your Partners

Wednesday, December 13, 2023

6:30 PM

Happy December, friends! Welcome to your December edition of Tea With Hex. We've come out of Spooky Season (that's a lie, it's always Spooky Season, change my mind) and entered Cozy Season. It's the time of year we think about things like warm blankets, hot chocolate, snuggles, big dinners, and vampirism. Actually, that was a good segue, let's keep that.

I'm sure I don't need to tell you, dear readers, how difficult it can be to find consenting donor partners for deeper energetic exchange than ambient feeding. If you're not familiar with some of those terms, I wrote an article about ethics and vampiric energy feeding earlier this year (Frick, if you can link here, that would be clutch). Ambient energy feeding doesn't really require anybody's consent, because we're taking in the energy that has become detached from the bodies it came from, hovering in the air like juicy little steak tips somebody cooked for you and then walked away from. Gobble that meal up while it's still warm, friends. However, ambient feeding doesn't sustain everybody super well; everybody's energetic needs are different, and there's nothing wrong with that. Knowing your body and your energy, and taking good care of them, is responsible energetic hygiene. Some of us are better sustained feeding directly from another being, no matter how good we are at refining energy from ambient feeding. It just be like that sometimes. Feeding directly from another being does require consent (see previous article link) from an ethical standpoint, and obtaining that consent from people can sometimes seem like a daunting proposition. How do you explain all of this [gestures broadly at himself] to somebody who isn't a vampire, or a witch, or somehow "other" in a metaphysical sense? Will they think you're a lunatic? What if they never talk to you again? All valid concerns. It's a weird hallway to navigate, but it's not impossible.

So, story time.

My gay polyamorous ass recently met a couple that I really enjoy spending time with, and we became boyfriends. I see them as often as I can, living two hours away, and we check in with each other frequently. They're both good communicators, they're into BDSM (so I know they understand things like consent and aftercare), they're emotionally intelligent, they're all the things.

Except metaphysical. I already explained that I'm a witch early on, as we were discussing things like zodiac charts (one is a Scorpio, the other is a Taurus), and that went pretty well. In a weird twist of astrological foolishness, the Taurus is actually familiar with some metaphysical things, moreso than the Scorpio. I know, right? So I started dropping vampirism and Kheprian-adjacent things into our conversations, testing the waters, and that was also fine. After careful consideration, I decided to have The Talk with them. I felt like we had arrived at a comfortable enough place to do that, they've become somewhat adjusted to my weird, witchy ass, so why not take the plunge about energetic vampirism? I was petrified, tbh. I considered having a glass of wine first, but I wanted to be stone-sober so I could make sure I touched on everything I wanted to.

I won't hold you in suspense. It actually went super well. I led with "have you ever watched Lost Girl", but they hadn't, so my blue Kool-Aid comment was lost on them. But they *have* watched "What We Do In the Shadows", so although Colin Robinson is kind of a caricature of psychic vampires (but not by much), it was an okay reference point. We talked a lot about ethics, and consent, and how I feed, and cycling, and why it's more satisfying with my partners. They asked questions, like what it would feel like, and whether there are after-effects. At length, they said that they consent, and that they're looking forward to experiencing it with me.

This isn't the first time I've had donor-consenting partners. But it is the first time I've felt comfortable having this conversation this early on, and this safe being vulnerable about it with more than one person at a time. It's also a really good "best case" example of how this conversation can go, so I wanted to share it in the spirit of "you can also do this". Don't be afraid to be honest and vulnerable with people who care about you. Give people a chance to understand you, they may surprise you. 

~~~

Mirror Technique for Past Self Recall

by M. Belanger

This is a low-risk solo exercise for excavating past life memories.

Select a mirror large enough to see your whole face. Set this up somewhere you can sit comfortably. Low lighting is ideal. I prefer a single candle. You may veil the mirror with a piece of black lace so long as you can still see enough of your reflection through the cloth - at the very least, the eyes.

It helps to set space - cast a circle or whatever works within your personal practice to create a protected container of energy that keeps distractions out and focuses your intentions within

Music, incense, any other tactile changes to the space are up to you - you know best what helps get you in a relaxed and focused state.

Then sit in front of the mirror. Look into it, but relax your eyes so you get that kind of soft focus (similar to scrying - and this is effectively a technique where you are scrying yourself)

Think of your innermost self - the deepest, oldest, most authentic part of you. If you associate a name with this aspect of Self, recite that name as you focus. If there is a feel or a memory tied to this aspect of Self, focus on that.

As if you were summoning a spirit, call that Self forth in the mirror. The first time, all you should aim for is a glimpse. Try to see them - see your face change, your eyes grow strange -- and then recognizable in a wholly different way

You can use this technique to begin dialogue with that Self. I recommend having a notebook nearby or having a voice recording function going on a device.

It can be helpful to set a timer with a chime or similar alert that will pull you out of trance but not shockingly so. Give yourself 10-15 minutes for the first session. Extend sessions as you get comfortable with the technique. Always have a notebook handy (or notepad on your device) to record your experiences once the session is done.

Midnight Sun December 2023

SCROLL FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to the December 2023 edition of The Midnight Sun!

Well, folks, we’ve done it! We’ve made it another year. If you’re reading this, congratulations on another rotation around the sun. Whether this is your first issue, or you’re a long-time reader of The Midnight Sun, thank you for being here!

This is a momentous occasion for this publication in particular, for a few reasons! It’s the year anniversary of the new format, and we have another Community Submissions section!

As 2023 comes to an end, with all the lessons, all the hardships, all the things that we have to look forward to in the untapped potential of 2024 speeding towards us with promise and excitement, I encourage you to take a look back at the things that have happened to, for and around you this year. What have you learned? What have you shared with others? What will you take along with you in the New Year, and what will you be leaving in 2023?

I know I have plenty of lessons that will come with me, and both things I am glad to leave behind, and things that I am sad to be leaving behind, but most of all things that I am excited for, things to look forward to, and how I intend to craft the raw potential of 2024 as we dance forward.

Have a happy, safe, and lovely holiday. Whatever, wherever, and however you celebrate, may you experience the season how you enjoy, and we will see you in 2024!

~Miranda (Frick)
Curator and Editor of TMS

HK Jams - Dark Yule

NOMINATE THE MIDNIGHT SUN FOR A WITCHIE AWARD!

Nominations are open now, and will be open until December 15th, 2023

If you like the Midnight Sun, or really any of our social media content, The Witchcraft and Occult Media Awards are open for nominations! Really, for any Occult or Witchy media or content creator you want to see recognized for the hard work and teaching, or entertainment or sharing they do, this is a wonderful way to express your appreciation!

Check out Modern Witch for more information, and don’t forget to look into the Modern Witch’s Academy event Witch’s Sabbat (where the winners will be announced) for even more content by folks who care and are leaders of the community in education and all manner of occult practices!

Celebrating Yule, why we do what we do!

by Suz

Contrary to what some might think, Yule does not belong to any ONE group or religion. Most who celebrate the holidays have familiar traditions shared by many, the roots of which can be traced back to various northern European traditions, particularly that of pre-Christian Germanic and Scandinavian peoples as a celebration of the winter solstice.

When the days grew colder and nights longer, the people of ancient times would light candles and gather ‘round fires. They would share food and enjoy festivities, dancing, singing, and decorating their homes. Celebrated at the darkest time of the year, Yule is a celebration of light, welcoming the sun's return with good fortune, abundance, and excitement for the coming year.

Here are some Yule traditions that are still celebrated today, though the true reasons behind them may have been lost along the way.

Decorating homes with Evergreens and Holly:

Evergreen boughs were cut and brought indoors to symbolize life, rebirth, and renewal. They were thought to have power over death because their green never faded. Holly leaves were said to represent hope and their red berries, potency. Because of its prickliness, it was used to ward off evil spirits before they could enter a home and cause harm, most often decorating openings to dwellings such as doors, windows, and fireplaces.

Mistletoe:

Mistletoe's green leaves and white berries represented fertility and were often worn as an amulet or hung above the headboard. The tradition of kissing under the mistletoe started in ancient Greece, during the festival of Saturnalia and later in marriage ceremonies, because of this association with fertility. During the Roman era, enemies at war would reconcile their differences under the mistletoe, which to them represented peace.

Decorate a Yule Tree:

In Pagan tradition, the Yule tree represented the Tree of Life or the World Tree. An outdoor evergreen was decorated with fruit and seeds to give thanks to nature and support animals. A gold star was often added to the top to symbolize solar energy and the five elements of the pentagram. Christianity moved this tradition indoors, often decorating the tree with candles; this has since been changed to fairy lights for obvious safety reasons!

The Yule Log:

The custom of burning the Yule Log began with the ancient Scandinavians and continued through Celtic traditions to honour the gods. Both would keep a continual hearth fire to prevent spirits from entering the home with the last remnants set aside to burn with next year’s fire. It was also popular belief that the longer the Yule log burned, the faster the sun would come to warm the earth.

Other familiar Yule traditions:

Candles represented eternal flame within the home. They symbolized the light and warmth of the sun and were used to chase away evil.

Wreaths symbolized the completion of another seasonal cycle. They were made of evergreens and adorned with cones and berries, hung as decoration throughout the home, and given as gifts to symbolize the infinity of goodwill and friendship.

Bells were often rung during the Winter Solstice to drive away demons feared to surface during the dark side of the year. They were rung in the morning to chase away the dark and herald in the warmer, brighter days following the solstice.

Elves first became associated with Yule because the ancients believed that the Spirits that created the Sun inhabited the land of Elves. By including elves in the Yule celebrations they thought to assure the elves’ assistance in the coaxing of the Sun's return.

Ginger was not available until the 11th century. There were strict laws regarding specialty breads, so gingerbread was only allowed to be produced during the holidays, thus its association with winter and Yule.

Caroling was popularized by young children honouring the Winter Solstice with song. They would go through the villages, singing door to door, and in return, would be rewarded with tokens, sweets, and small gifts that symbolized prosperity shared.

Whichever traditions you celebrate with your family and friends this Yule, consider their origins and our ancestors. Honor them by celebrating and sharing kindness, prosperity, and bounty this holiday season.

May we all find peace and prosperity in the coming year, health, wealth, and happiness!

Much love,
Suz

Celebrating Your Harvest – A Lesson in Sharing

Hello, reader! Welcome to HK’s year anniversary of the Midnight Sun, in this new format! I hope you have enjoyed the last year of articles from House Kheperu, and that you learned some valuable lessons and maybe had a few giggles. My coffee is peppermint flavored this morning as I recall the last year of memories, happily and contemplatively sipping from my steamy mug. There has been so much change in just a year’s time, it’s enough to make my head spin! I look forward to seeing what other horrors, mysteries, pleasures, and experiences the next year will bring.

I don’t really do the whole Christmas decoration thing, apart from a small Christmas tree (one of those smaller 2ft tall ones with the multi-light led strings) that illuminates my room in a swath of colors. It really helps me sleep! However, all the festive and bright colors that others bring to the table are pleasant to look at and are generally a good pick-me-up. Our ancestors were often looking for such things too, as their harvested grain and stored meats sat and were carefully rationed, they sometimes found that there was an abundance of product from all the harvesting that couldn’t all be processed for long-term storage before it went bad… and that means party time~!

Our ancestors lived in times that were far harsher than we live in today. They didn’t have a fancy thermostat, or an electric heating blanket, or clothes that could be purchased with the push of a button.. The world gets extra dark and cold this time of year, and we all need to find reasons to carry on through it. They came together, in times that allowed it, to share the abundance. They hand-crafted gifts, wrote poems and songs, played new games they’d come up with, and shared in good memories and happy vibes with each other; also, a few extra barrels of beer and plenty of ripe meat most certainly helped the mood as well! What can you bring to the party?

This is a lesson that we are social creatures and when times get tough and dark, we need each other even more than ever. Don’t isolate yourself in the dark, instead realize that it’s dark for everyone, and each of us has a little light in us to share with those we love. This is also a lesson in balance; if you don’t have an abundance for the dark times if your harvest wasn’t ripe, then it’s okay to reach out to those loved ones who are sharing their plenty and join the celebration.

However, one must also ask the question “What can I change for next season? What do I need to plant in myself, so that in the dark times I can also be a provider?” Always be seeking, always be learning, and apply what you learn, whether times are bright or dark! Become what you want to see in the world.

I wish you a lovely holiday season.
May all those who need warmth, find their hearth and home.

Ten Reasons Why Vampires Must Feed

by M. Belanger

Vampires feed on life: it’s why the very word has been adopted by people within the modern vampire community. But, although most living vampires can agree on being vampiric, the reasons behind their vital hunger are hotly debated. Here are ten of the most popular theories for why vampires must feed.

High Metabolism: In the same way that some people must eat substantially more than others to maintain themselves, this theory posits that vampires have a higher energetic metabolism than is standard. When the usual sources prove inadequate, vampires meet their higher needs by consciously taking energy from people.

Complicated Digestion: Not everyone can eat the same foods. Additionally, a host of conditions can impact how efficiently our bodies make use of what we eat. Some vampires believe this also applies to energy. Whether they are limited in the types of energy they can “eat” or encounter issues with how efficiently they “digest” energy, the end result is a consistent need to take energy from people for sustenance.

Energy Leak: Related to complicated digestion, there are those who believe their vampirism stems from a fundamental inability to hold onto the energy one gains. Whether through auric damage, past life wounds, spirit attachments or some other metaphysical cause, these vampires believe they bleed energy and must feed to replace what is lost.

Learned Vampirism: Let’s face it. Everyone can (and does) take energy. Vampires stand out because they need a substantial amount, and they typically take this from people. But the mechanics for taking energy are simple, and anyone can learn how to do it. Several groups teach exactly that, using vampiric techniques as a way of consciously preying on other people for personal power.

Spiritual Symbiote: Most people don’t go out of their way to acquire a parasite, but that’s exactly what happens with vampiric symbiotes. There are some within the vampire community who seek out intelligent and powerful disembodied beings with the intent of allowing those beings to feed through them in exchange for a measure of control over those spirits’ abilities. Is vampirism by proxy a good idea? That’s up to the people who practice it.

Wounded (Self) Healer: The concept of the “wounded healer” is inextricably tied to Western interpretations of shamanism, but there are surprising parallels with vampirism. Key to modern vampires who follow this path is how their own innate need to take energy also makes them potent energy workers. Where feeding is healing the self, the very ability also opens a profound skillset for healing others.

Alien Origin: Does this mean ETs? For some, it does, but soul origin is how many others understand this approach. In this theory of vampirism, vampiric folks started out somewhere else and their souls do not interface perfectly with their human bodies. This results in higher energetic needs than mortal bodies are accustomed to meeting, leading to vampirism for support.

Chronic Illness: Not everyone experiences vampirism from birth and not everyone experiences it positively. Folks with latent or developed energetic gifts who suffer from chronic illness may find themselves taking energy from others to keep themselves going. If the medical condition can be resolved, the energetic need diminishes, making their vampirism temporary.

Cut from Source: In several traditions, there is a belief that spirits return to their source, either for a period of replenishment or to be completely reabsorbed, then remixed in a new incarnation. Some vampires believe they broke this cycle. Whether this severing was an accident, consequence, or intentional rebellion, the result is identical: cut off from a passive supply of universal energy, they must feed to support themselves through each incarnation.

Energy Body Alterations: Some groups connect their vampirism with alterations intentionally performed upon their energy bodies now or in the distant past. The purpose and techniques for achieving such alterations vary, but the concept is basically body modification for the soul. Change can be desirable, but, according to this belief, too much tinkering can result in vampiric conditions.

COMMUNITY SUBMISSIONS - DECEMBER 2023

This month’s community submission is a work of fiction, from a member of our wonderful Discord community! Be sure to send kudos if you’re a member, and if not, see the icons below to join us on Discord so you can!!

Steve

by Shalyn Dey

Once upon a time a puppy found himself lazily awakening to a misty sunrise in a

verdant forest. This puppy had unusual coloring for a Husky-Pitbull mix. He was a

brilliant orange mixed with feathery brush strokes of black, as well as having luminous

white fur on his face, chest, belly and paws. This puppy also had Heterochromia, which

was best known by humans, as a gene mutation resulting in two different colored eyes;

in Steve’s case, his eyes were brown and blue. Interestingly, most humans of this time

had no idea that this trait not only indicated a being of high intelligence but that the

lighter color of these eyes was often imbued with mystical powers; exactly what powers

depended entirely on the soul in possession of them.

Steve, as he remembered his name to be, was vastly confused, as he could not

recall anything but his name. Finding himself alone in this forest, Steve soon began to

feel a pulling sensation from his heart; this sensation was so great that he could do

nothing but follow it. After hiking through the lush and humid greenery for half of the

day, he found a crystal clear stream for which he joyously jumped into for a refreshing

swim to cool off. Having lost track of time playing Tag with the various fishies, he came

to realize he had actually drifted about a mile and a half downstream. Upon leaving the

cool waters, Steve curled up on a large flat rock that was bedded with soft moss and

perfectly exposed to a wide beam of warm sunlight that broke through the tall canopy of

ancient trees. In his state of contentment, he easily drifted off to sleep, completely

unaware that the pull on his heart had ceased.

- - -

Yet again, Steve awoke to find himself in an unfamiliar place. As he slowly came

to, it was hard for him to tell which sense was activated first; was it the sounds or smell

of the crackling blaze before him? Panicked for only a moment, he opened his eyes to

see that the fire before him was safely maintained within a circle of large rocks in the

sparkling sand. Wait…sand? Fully awake and alert now, Steve looked around to see

that he was no longer in the forest, but on a beach, under the light of a full moon, next to

a span of cavernous cliffs…and he was not alone.

Through the dancing flames, Steve’s gaze instantly found a pair of soft emerald-

green eyes, under a mass of chaotic crimson hair, staring steadily back into his own; his

soul shivered. He was not afraid of this creature – quite the opposite. In this instant, he

knew she had been waiting for him; she had been waiting lifetimes for him. The joy that

filled his heart made him feel as though it would burst from his chest…but instead, it

was he who burst from where he lay in the cool sand to launch himself over the flames

and directly into her waiting open arms. He licked her face and neck with so much

loving affection as she sputtered and giggled and ran her clawed hands through his soft

fur, as tears of joy spilled from both of their eyes. Through the magical power of vision-

sharing, granted by Steve’s glacier blue left eye, the pair stayed up all night sharing the

lifetimes of stories and trials they’d each gone through in order to be reunited once

more. The familiar had finally found his Vampyre – his soul was finally home.

A Short Story by Shalyn Dey, July 2023

From all of us to all of you;

Have a Safe, Happy Holiday

And a Blessed New Year, too!

Midnight Sun November 2023

SCROLL FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to the November 2023 edition of The Midnight Sun!

It’s finally feeling like fall! Members of House Kheperu inhabit locations across the country, so while some of us had snow on Halloween, others of us are having our ‘one week of fall’ before winter hits, and all kinds of weather in between.

This month marks our annual House Member get-together for planning and hang-out time, and you should check out our other social media if you have an interest in seeing what some of that might look like!

This month brings a bounty of information; M. Belanger shares their personal recipe for a sore throat remedy that does more than sooth, The Soap Box this month is on Manifestation, Tea with Hex is Part 2 of Practicing Safe Hex continued from last month, and Suz brings us a look at Thanksgiving, From The Other Side of the Table.

Be it traveling to see family and friends, or them traveling to you, self-care in the winter months can be very important through the holidays. Remember to drink water, eat, breathe (intentionally with thought behind it), and take a little time for yourself where you can.

Harvesting the bounty in your life looks different for us all. As we prepare for the winter this year, may you find comfort, warmth and only the challenges that create healthy growth and transformation headed for the new year!

~Miranda (Frick)
Curator and Editor of TMS

NOMINATE THE MIDNIGHT SUN FOR A WITCHIE AWARD!

Provided by The Witchcraft Occult Media Awards

Nominations are open now, and will be open until December 15th, 2023

If you like the Midnight Sun, or really any of our social media content, The Witchcraft and Occult Media Awards are open for nominations! Really, for any Occult or Witchy media or content creator you want to see recognized for the hard work and teaching, or entertainment or sharing they do, this is a wonderful way to express your appreciation!

Check out Modern Witch for more information, and don’t forget to look into the Modern Witch’s Academy event Witch’s Sabbat (where the winners will be announced) for even more content by folks who care and are leaders of the community in education and all manner of occult practices!

Xosh’s Winter Throat Gargle

by M. Belanger

I know, I know – it’s not winter everywhere, but this home remedy is handy all year round and now is the time to start this year’s batch. I’ve made this throat gargle for years, and I always keep a bottle around to help with seasonal colds and sore throats. Like most home remedies, this gargle is not a replacement for a doctor’s care but can be used in a supplementary capacity to help ease symptoms. It will help clear up congestion, soothe the burning of a sore throat, and make your recovery time seem to go a little quicker.

This home remedy is an herbal tincture and most recipes for tinctures are going to suggest that you get a strong, clear, tasteless spirit like vodka to use as your base. Certainly, you need high-proof alcohol for a tincture because of the alcohol’s preservative effect and how it draws out the active elements of the herbs. Between forty to fifty percent alcohol by content is recommended, which comes out to 90-100 proof. Once you’ve steeped the herbs in the alcohol, you can store the tincture for as long as you need.

However, you don’t brew herbal remedies for their taste. Years ago, when I first started making herbal tinctures, I experimented instead with flavored alcohols because so many traditionally prepared tinctures were literally hard to swallow. There are plenty of flavored high-proof alcohols – many of which were initially brewed as medicines themselves – and their tastes can be paired with the herbs to create something a little more palatable than, say, valerian root-infused vodka (from the smell alone - 0/10 do not recommend).

For my winter throat gargle, I use cinnamon schnapps as the base (my initial choice was Goldschlager because it was high proof and popular among my friends at the time). For this recipe, not only does the cinnamon flavor make the herbal blend more palatable, the natural heat of the cinnamon adds to the effect of the final result. The cloves are important for their numbing effect: clove oil has long been used as a topical dental analgesic.

To create this home remedy you will need:

• 6 oz of cinnamon schnapps, 90-100 proof

• 1 20 oz glass canning jar with lid (amber glass preferred)

• 1 cup dried garden sage (the sage you cook with, not the kind you smudge with)

• 1 heaping tablespoon whole cloves

• 1 heaping tablespoon hyssop

• 2 teaspoons angelica root

• 1 stick cinnamon

The canning jar should be thoroughly washed and dried. Through the wide mouth, add the sage, cloves, cinnamon, hyssop, and angelica root. Open the cinnamon schnapps and pour the entire bottle of liquid over the herbs. Place the lid on the jar, sealing it tight. Shake gently to stir up the herbs, then store in a cool, dark place for a week. At the end of that week, take the jar out and give it a shake again. Store it for another week. Do this one more time, for a total of three weeks of steeping. At the end of this time, you can strain the herbs from the liquid using a fresh cheesecloth or clean wire strainer (I personally leave them in, although this results in the brew getting a little bitter as time wears on).

Using the Gargle

For a raw, sore, or scratchy throat and related congestion, pour a shotglass worth of the tincture, then gargle thoroughly, holding it in the back of your mouth for as long as is comfortable. It will not hurt you to swallow the liquid, although I recommend spitting it out unless you enjoy the effects of a shot of 90 proof liquor. You can do this two to three times a day as needed.

Non-Alcoholic Variation

If, like me, you can’t actually drink alcohol (allergies are funny!), it is possible to brew a tea with these same ingredients. If you do, add a tablespoon of sea salt to the final brew and gargle while it’s still warm – ideally, as hot as you can take it. In this case, you will not be able to store the liquid, but instead will have to brew a fresh pot each day.

Also, with the salt added, do not swallow. That much salt tends to be emetic.

Manifestation

Pulls out Soap Box

“Do you know you can get everything you want and why you’re not getting it? Follow/Buy my thing and I can teach you how to manifest and not fail at it!”

Hoo buddy, that shit grinds my gears.
I don’t fault anyone for trying to pay their bills in this economy, but man the marketing for stuff, preying on vulnerable spots of FOMO and promises of teaching someone how to better their situation in life… really crawls directly up my ass and dies. 

Manifestation and the practice over the last decade or more have been sold as a product and things you can only learn if you take the 13-step course for a variable amount of money, from a wide variety of folks who know what they’re doing to charlatains with charisma. 

You wanna know how to manifest things in your life?
Make-Believe.
No, I’m not kidding.

Back when you were a kid, playing in the woods or your yard, being pirates, princesses, dragons, ninja turtles, where you could see the world in your mind - or if you didn’t see the world game in your mind, you at least worked with your friends or siblings to play a game together within the defined space, you were all doing, playing, being the same thing as a group, and doing your little piece of it. We blended together Thundercats with GI Joe and Barbies, Disney with The Addams Family and Willow (No? Just me?) and it worked - we figured out a way to make it all work that most of us accepted for the span of time we were playing. 

Some of us (likely many of you reading this) then went into Adult Make Believe; Dungeons & Dragons, Vampire The Masquerade, LARP of all kinds, and any table-top or Live-action roleplaying games that gave us a shared rules structure so Steve didn’t say “BANG BANG I SHOT YOU!” and Marie couldn’t say “NUH-UH I’M BULLETPROOF” without having rules in place to resolve the conflict.

But Frick, you say, Those are games and just make believe! What does that have to do with manifesting?

Everything.

How many times were you playing make-believe as a kid, your parent asked you “What are you playing?” only for you to answer “I’m RAPHAEL THE NINJA TURTLE!” and then your parent called for dinner time saying; “Hey Raphael the Ninja Turtle! Dinner’s ready!”

Or even more immersive, you make a character for a LARP game, and not only do the other players and your friends call you by that character name, and treat you like that story while the game is on, but folks that get to know you through that game them call you by your character name cause they’ve used it more, and that’s literally how you became familiar to them?

I have in the past had trouble speaking in public with confidence. So, I made a vampire character for a game that had the skills on the sheet as a backup, if I needed to do so I could make the challenges and back it with numbers even if I couldn’t act it out. In the process, I learned… actually how to speak in public and improv speeches and discussions with confidence and charisma. “You can be anyone on the internet” Set aside the warning that often comes from that, and put it in a different context. I have friends who use my internet handle more than they use my government name - because Frick is how they got to know me. Hilariously, my sister-from-another-mister best friend who doesn’t know all of my internet-made friends? They use HER nickname/handle, Frack, since they know of her through me, and to them; that’s just her name.

These are manifestations of my will in reality - I was make-believing to be someone with confidence in public speaking and became that. We chose Frick and Frack, and now we are known as Frick and Frack. 

You want to manifest things in your life? Think about them. Think about yourself already having them - what it feels like. How would that look? How would you look? Make a character sheet with the rules of your favorite RPG if you need to - and carry that sheet folded up in your pocket if you need to. Wear the mein, the persona of Being The Person That Has The Thing You Want.

Confidence?
Self-Esteem?
The Job Of Your Dreams?
Insights?
Networking?
Charisma?

All that and more, walk around like you’ve already got it. Feel it in your mind even if you don’t see pictures in your imagination - know that you already have it. Don’t think about wanting it, don’t think how nice it will be when it gets there - that manifests the fact that it’s not there yet and will keep it in the “not here yet” phase indefinitely because you are manifesting the waiting, not the having.

Manifest the having.

Make-believe, Role-play, things that we use the power of our creativity, willpower, and desire to don raiment as if we already are these things? THAT is Manifestation and can be used in the day to day life. There may also be other effective methods, more that you can add to it and ramp up the effects - do your research, and find things that help you get to that headspace. Enchant items, charm your makeup or skincare routine and put things on your altar. But fundamentally? The power of your mind is all you need.

You are all you need.

And now, when you see those ads for teaching you to manifest for beaucoups of money, you can just chuckle to yourself and say, “Thanks, but I’m already a Ninja Turtle.”

Puts soapbox away

Keep it Honest, my friends.
~Frick

Practicing Safe Hex, Part Two

Sunday, November 5, 2023
8:00 PM

Hello friends! Welcome to the November edition of Tea With Hex. This month we'll be continuing the subject of "practicing safe hex" and discussing methods of utilizing baneful magic with relatively minimal personal risk to yourself and your energy. Last month, we discussed power, secrecy, and energetic cleanliness. This month, we're going to talk about preparation and execution.

You see, magic takes the path of least resistance, and to make sure that path is the one you want, you need to clear the way. In witchcraft, we talk about using "correspondences", tools and favorable aspects that resonate with the intent of your spell. In candle magic, this refers to the colors of candles and ingredients (like herbs and oils) that may be included in the wax. Different colors are associated with different concepts, such as red with strength and love, green with prosperity, and white with purity. Herbs and oils are similarly associated with different concepts; lavender can bring luck, rosemary is good for peace and happiness, and cinnamon awakens passions. Planets and their associated planetary hours are also good correspondences to utilize.

For baneful magic, we turn to other correspondences. For binding spells or magic designed to weaken or disorient, you'll want materials that are aligned with the planetary energies of Saturn and Pluto. Saturn has long been associated with Cronus, the Greek titan who represents time, the greatest limiting factor of all. Indeed, Saturn is his Roman name. Pluto is similarly the Roman name for Hades, the Greek lord of the dead. Morning glory, belladonna, myrrh, cypress, all of these and more bear the magic of restriction and death. Black is their color, and night is their time.

Speaking of time, there are some interesting theories regarding what you may have heard referred to as "the witching hour", the time of night when magic is most powerful and accessible. Some say the hour before midnight is the best time for positive magic, and the hour after midnight is best for dark magic. Others say 3am is the witching hour, the number three being a number of power. Science has also told us that the hour between 3am and 4am is when the human body is at its weakest for folks who are asleep at night, and when the majority of natural deaths occur, making it a liminal time. I can't say that I favor one philosophy over the other, as I've had great success using both. Staying up until 3am is difficult for those of us who have day jobs, but I've found that making the sacrifice of a little sleep is something spirits pay attention to. This is also something that speaks to our subconscious, an act that tells our spiritual selves that we are doing something meaningful and important.

The workspace we utilize for hex craft is just as important as the materials. In chemical manufacturing, there are fume hoods and containment boxes that are used to keep the worker safe. In much the same manner, a space that is used for baneful magic should be warded for the protection of the practitioner. You don't want the dark magical energies you'll be calling upon sticking to your ritual space. Runes and sigils can be crafted for this purpose, as well as tools such as wind chimes, the sound of which will purify a space of negative energy. Crystal grids can also ensure that baneful energies don't stick to your space.

Executing your hexes and dark magic requires more than just correspondences and herbs. It will also require a significant investment of your own personal power. This is where many practitioners stall in their process. I'm sure you've heard people say things like "Oh, he's not worth the energy or effort" in reference to deciding whether to work spells against somebody. Once you've uttered those words, forget about working a hex. If you're conflicted, your magic will be working at odds against your will, and no spell will be successful in a crossed condition. You have to be committed to the magic you work, for good or for ill. Your intention must be clear, and you have to mean it, without looking back. There can be no half-measures in magic. Intent is not all there is to successful spellwork, but it's certainly a driving force. The most effective hex craft you will ever cast will draw from a well of deep anger and indignance over mistreatment. Righteous fury packs a serious punch, and very little can stop it once you get that train moving. It is, however, important not to live in these emotions after you have worked your magic. Anger is healthy and useful, but you can't let yourself live in White-Hot Livid Pissed Land. Letting anger, hate, or pain consume you will erode the aspects of your life that you enjoy. So instead, once you have channeled those energies into your spellwork, release them, and let them go where you intend, disconnected from you.

I hope that this two-part series has helped inform your awareness of baneful magic, and prepared you for the time when you might eventually want to pursue it. Remember, your will is a potent tool, for both light and dark, and your power is your own. 

HK JAMS - Reaper’s Harvest

Dive into this month’s harvest jams. Curated by our very own Abri for a reaper’s delight audio adventure.

Thanksgiving from the other side of the table

By Suz

As a child of the 80's my earliest memories of Thanksgiving are school related. Making the infamous hand-print turkeys out of construction paper, and being sent home with a craft supply list that included brown paper bags to cut up and make an Indian costume for a horrible presentation. Already an established introvert and shy kid I loathed having to stand on risers and recite stories that as someone who grew up with a Native American family, I knew were what my mother called "polite lies".

What are polite lies you ask? According to my Cherokee mother, polite lies were what were taught in school because the School Board felt the truth was too brutal for children to comprehend or understand. My parents didn't believe in polite lies. Growing up with a Cherokee mother who was an English and Spanish teacher and a father who taught History I was told the stories and histories without the polite filter. I survived it just fine, thanks for asking, but it did make it difficult to mingle with the other children and mill about in our paper bag outfits.

When the teacher would ask us about our Thanksgiving day festivities with family they tended to skip me. After the first couple of times I had to explain we didn't celebrate Thanksgiving they stopped asking. The word genocide coming from a third grader tends to make teachers nervous. (Yeah, that was a trip to the office.)

I grew up on Cherokee land, in my Grandfather's house and when I asked him why we couldn't have Thanksgiving like my friends he told me "As Natives we have a responsibility to live in balance and harmony with all living things. We are thankful every day, not just one day a year." but he was always up for some turkey and ham. From third grade on he made sure I got a dinner but he also made sure I knew that we were grateful every day.

Do I celebrate Thanksgiving as an adult? No in our family we refer to it as Fat Thursday, but we do take advantage of the holiday and get together with family and friends to share a large meal without once thinking of the Thanksgiving in 1621. I think it is the same in many Native households.

It is ironic that Thanksgiving takes place during American Indian and Alaskan Native Heritage Month. An even greater irony is that more Americans today identify the day after Thanksgiving as Black Friday rather than as National Native American Heritage Day.

I am not trying to shame anyone and I am not going to go into the dark history of the holiday, your google-fu is as strong as mine and you can look it up if you really want to know.

Enjoy the day and the holiday! Eat till you are bursting with gratefulness and stuffing! Just remember that the polite lies are still lies and teach the real history to the young. They are more resilient than they are given credit for and should know the truth behind their traditions.

The Gentle Revolution

Excerpt from the Tome of the Darkside Ritualist

In a world often defined by its fast pace and relentless demands, the concept of gentleness may seem incongruous with the drive for progress and change. However, embracing gentleness as a guiding principle can, in fact, be a catalyst for sustainable and powerful transformations. House Kheperu just had their annual Private Gather and at this event we perform the Rite of Im Kheperu, the Rite of Transformation. For many, this is a powerful rite in which there is a potent and immediate sensation of force, a wash of power that targets specific points within an individual, customized to their needs, that help to propel them further into the transformation their life holds. 

This is the second year for me as Darkside Ritualist and I have discovered that the gentle, slow, time-released method of change seems to result in more potent and powerful change. Why is it then that we do not acknowledge the boon and massive potential of gentleness? Why is it potentially viewed as weak or less potent?

Gentleness acts as a balm for the tumultuous journey of change, creating a safe and supportive space where individuals feel secure enough to explore new possibilities. Unlike the rigidity of force, gentleness invites openness, reducing resistance to change. In this nurturing environment, people are more likely to embrace transformative experiences, unlocking their true potential. It also encourages more authentic growth and strengthens the foundations one will need to support continued change and transformation. This is important for a heartiness in one’s life. Rapid change may propelle you further faster, but may be subject to less resilience when faced with challenges of deeper change.

At the core of gentleness is empathy, the ability to understand and share the feelings of others.  When applied to the process of change, empathy establishes a profound connection between individuals, fostering a sense of unity and collaboration. Sustainable change often requires collective effort, and gentleness facilitates the creation of communities driven by compassion and understanding. It is why House Kheperu takes our community seriously and we custodian our Discord and greater communities with care. Gentleness is a necessary and needed ingredient to grow, and our support network is critical in that process. Within the House, our members act as support for each other and in-turn we are able to turn to our communities and also hold that space while encouraging others to do the same

Forceful approaches to change can often be met with resistance, as individuals instinctively push back against coercion. Gentleness, on the other hand, breaks this cycle of resistance by appealing to the innate human desire for kindness and understanding. When people feel respected and heard, they are more likely to engage willingly in the process of change, leading to lasting and meaningful transformations.

Gentleness does not equate to weakness; rather, it cultivates resilience. In the face of challenges, a gentle approach encourages individuals to respond with strength and grace. This resilience is essential for navigating the complexities of change, helping individuals to bounce back from setbacks and persevere in their journey towards sustainable transformation. The gentle method isn’t the only answer- there are times that rapidity, force, and swift changes are necessary, but I believe that gentleness is often overlooked. Even some steel can be brittle when incorrectly fired and the most powerful among us may be subject to crumbling when their foundations were wrought from rapid and unsupported development, devoid of gentleness.

In a world where the need for positive and sustainable change is ever-present, embracing gentleness emerges as a powerful and transformative strategy. By creating safe spaces for transformation, fostering empathy and connection, breaking the cycle of resistance, and cultivating resilience, we lay the foundation for a future marked by meaningful progress and enduring positive change. The journey towards a better world starts with a gentle touch and a compassionate heart.

Midnight Sun October 2023

SCROLL FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to the October 2023 edition of The Midnight Sun!

SPOOKY SEASON!

It’s here, I’m ecstatic, and we have an excellent, content-packed edition for you lovely folks this month! BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY!!!

♪♫ It’s the most wonderful tiiiiiiiiime of the year ♫♪

Well, okay - in MY opinion it’s the most wonderful time of the year. Your mileage may vary and I am not here to yuck anybody’s yum, BUT, GUYS! It’s the first October edition of TMS in the new format, and I really wanted this one to be special.

We have two member spotlights, The Ultimate Spooky Playlist Dangerween, Practicing Safe Hex is the chef’s kiss topic of Tea With Hex this month, Suz brings us The Thinning of the Veil and how to engage the energies this time of year. Yours truly has a Soap Box about the Provocation of Spirits, Abri is back with the Tome of the Dark Side Ritualist, M. Belanger shares a recipe for historical Spirit Offering Cakes, and Izzy has a new Contemplation for us around the eclipse!

New this month, we have a whole new section I am thrilled to bring our readers;

Community Spotlight!

We have such a talented, knowledgeable, and creative community, in celebration of our first Spooky Season newsletter of the new format I reached out to these wonderful souls to see what things they might like to share! We have a look at Halloween in Norway by Christopher Northlight, a delightful Mulled Cider Recipe by V.S Nightborn, and Spooky Season Decor submitted by Crow!

If you would like to be a part of the community and submit to the Community Spotlight, join us on Discord for updates and theme announcements!

I hope that you all have a super wonderful October and Spooky Season, a safe Halloween, Blessed Samhain and Celebratory Day of the Dead or a lovely holiday for whatever you celebrate. STAY SPOOKY MY FRIENDS and we will see you next month!

~Miranda (Frick)
Curator and Editor of TMS

HK JAMS - Dangerween

Need something to listen to while you are creating your special Halloween teas and treats? Want something to move your hips to as you prepare to haunt your doorways with containers brimming with treats? Or maybe you are a creature of the night needing some tunes for your ear buds while you stalk the dark forests. No matter what you are up to, we got you covered this month.

Practicing Safe Hex, Part One

Friday, October 13, 2023
10:29 AM

Hello friends! Welcome to our October edition of Tea with Hex. For the spooky season, I wanted to share a workshop I've presented several times at public conventions, and perhaps you'll see it at next year's Gather. Prepare for notions and potions that will blow your mind.

My philosophy regarding baneful magic has always been that of frank honesty. I don't believe in "abstinence-only education", because that's silly. At some point, you're likely going to want to do it. The right circumstances will arise, you'll get that roiling feeling in your stomach, and in that moment, you know what you want. People all over the world do it every day, it's perfectly natural, and it's important that you know what you're doing when the time comes and that moment strikes.

Somebody done pissed you all the way off, and today they're gonna learn. It's time for a hex. And we're going to talk about how to enact one safely and effectively.

First of all, let's talk about power. I've written a few times about the importance of embracing one's power and not running away from it, including the darker aspects. You're a whole being, composed of dark and light, and pretending that if you threw your soul up in the air it would turn into sunshine is vapid and dishonest. If you refuse to accept your darkness, your light is fake. Additionally, you're denying 50% of your own power, and thereby only using your magic at half strength. That's certainly not optimal. For decades, witches, magicians, and will-workers were expected to shackle and hide away the darker aspects of their personal power to make us more palatable to the public (thanks, Satanic Panic, I hate it). But at some point, as a community, we started buying our own press, and if we acknowledged or used our darkness at all, we only did it in secret, in the middle of the night, with the doors locked and the curtains drawn, and we certainly didn't talk about it.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. As the world political climate has shifted, we've had more platforms than ever to talk about our power and how to approach it honestly, but we've also been forced to hide our identities as occult seekers more than we would like. We have more places to exist in relative safety online and to discuss magical topics like this one, but that doesn't mean that it's safe for everybody to live openly in the world as what we are. That does not mean that we should continue to deny our truth to ourselves or to run away from our power.

So, for our second lesson in hexcraft, let's discuss secrecy. Sure, your boss at work doesn't need to know you're a big ol' witch, but that's not exactly what I mean here. In Robert Greene's "48 Laws of Power", he outlines 48 tactics which, when practiced with finesse, will help you keep the upper hand in all manner of situations. One of my favorites is number four: "Always say less than necessary." You don't need everybody and their mother to know what you're capable of. Revealing the map of your power to all and sundry will ensure that anyone who's paying attention will know how to counteract your magic easily. The less everyone knows about how your magic works, the more effective it will be. Furthermore, stop talking about the spells you cast, and at whom, and for what purpose; talking about them weakens their potency. For a spell to maintain its maximum effect, when you are finished with it, let it stay between you and your spirits.

One of the tips I share with people is the art of hiding your power in plain sight. What do I mean by that? I make art out of my magic. My home is filled with objects and paintings that are actually wards, sigils that form energetic patterns throughout the space, and various other magical constructions. It's subtle, and effective. Nobody would look at these items and suspect that they contained spells, or that they were maintaining some effect for me. Guests in my home often feel the energy present, but they can't identify where it's coming from. It's child's play to create such a talisman to ward off anyone who wishes you ill intent and place it at the front door, for example. You'll find that guests who are not actually your friends don't stick around long in your house, or in your life, if you work the magic correctly.

Lesson number three: cleanliness is next to godliness. Not just a phrase your gran tossed around when it comes to magic. Negative energy sticks to clutter, chaos, and dirt. If you work baneful magic, this is doubly so. We'll discuss methods of minimizing the "splash zone" of your magical working space in next month's article, but for now, suffice to say that the less disorder you have in your home, the more effective your magic will be, and the "cleaner" your personal energy will stay. No matter what you do, if your house is messy, your energy will be too, and your ability to focus your power will suffer for it.

I highly recommend turning "cleaning house" into a ritual all its own. Wipe down counters with a vervain and salt wash after cleaning them with traditional cleaners, squeeze lemon juice down all your drains, throw a spelled lavender sachet in the dryer with your bedsheets after you wash them. Infuse acts of physical cleaning with magic, and you'll have a space clear of negative energy hanging around, dampening your workings. These practices are crucial after you've been performing baneful magic, because you don't want residual energy from that nasty poppet hex you made for your ex getting all over your carpets.

We've laid the groundwork for some serious exploration of the darker side of spellwork next month. Until then, walk in your power, and be free from the shackles of love and light. Neither darkness nor light can exist without the other, and we need not run from either of them.

House Kheperu Member Spotlight

Shae

I live as a shifting balance between three paths… so I will give you my guiding quotes for each:

Preist: “All knowledge is worth having” - Kushiels Dart, Jacqueline Carey

Counselor: “Opportunities and choices. Opportunities are what we are presented with, what we choose to do with those is our choice” - Sebastian , Anne Bishop

Warrior: 
Stone and Sea are deep in life,
Two unalterable symbols of the world:
Permanence at rest, and permanence in motion;
Participants in the Power that remains.” ~Thomas Convenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R Donaldson

What interests you about energy work?

I feel like I have always done energy work to some degree. It is also a survival skill for me. Without being able to work with energy I couldn’t keep my own subtle system in any kind of consistent balance. 

It is also something that I have always done intuitively. As a child i would create energy balls and then imagine myself taking a bite like from a candy apple. I would roll the feel of that around in my mouth. Feel the texture, the shape, the solidity of it. Then I would swallow to down and feel moderately better inside. Finally I would take the little that remained… that energetic apples core and reach down to place it into what I called my “thigh pantry”. There it would slowly replenish back into a full ripe fruit as I moved through what I now think of as the regular subtle energy environments of the day. Anytime I needed an energy snack I always had one at my fingertips. 

Energy surrounds us at all times. Emotive, solar, radiant heat, artistic passion… there is vibrancy and potential within the ambient chaos of any energetic environment. I enjoy tapping into that chaotic potential and allow Will to give it shape, form, & purpose. 

I honestly don’t know if I can go through a day now where I am not consciously interacting with the energetic space around me. After all, we are all catalytic sparks spreading ripples in the pond around us. 

What is your favorite movie?

This time of year Night Breed is a film I aways enjoy pulling off the shelf. I still have my original copy and it is one of 3-4 titles that are why I still have a VHS player. 

Clive Barkers - Nightbreed, is on the surface a journey of someone seeking to understand themself. It is a tale filled with monsters and creatures who hide themselves away from the world and the light of day. It is also the tale of how these creatures interact with the rest of world and why they find they need to hide away. For though they do not fit in, their skin or particular needs make them rejects from a modern societal world, they just want to live and be who they are without persecution. 

And they are persecuted. For what mankind fears it others and hunts. “Get the monsters or they will take more victims”. These people do not conform to what society says is the morally right way to be. They exist as otherkin shunned by humankind and forced into forgotten places. Within the scope of this tale we also find those in authority wearing the face of compassion, ultimately being the source of more horrendous cruelty than anything the “monsters” participate in. 

In the end we are left both with the question of who truly are the monsters and who the victims. As well as finding hope that even if we do not belong to some, there are still places and family we can find…can build…that allow us to be our truest most authentic selves. 

So join me this season and let’s take in the tale of Nightbreed again. Let us remember what it means to find community, to stand in the face of cruelty, and to live within our own power.

by Suz

Around the world, late October through early November marks a time when the veil between worlds is considered to be very thin and can be breached more easily from either side. The use of the term "veil" signifies the metaphysical barrier between the world of the living and the world of the dead. Many cultures observe this transition with celebrations and holidays to mark the beginning of winter.

Ancient Celts marked Samhain as the most significant of the four quarterly fire festivals, taking place at the midpoint between the Fall Equinox and the Winter Solstice. In Greek mythology, the thinning veil was represented by a door to the underworld that only became accessible at this time of year. Persephone's descent into the underworld represented the changing of the year from light to darkness noted in the change of harvest from Fall to Winter and the lengthening of night. The Mexican celebration of Día de los Muertos observed on November 1 and 2, honors and recognizes the souls of those passed on who are believed to visit their earthly families on these dates. Celebrants decorate elaborate home altars with flowers, candles, and their loved ones’ favorite foods. Festivities extend into cemeteries, where families visit the gravesites of family members, often delivering picnics and playing festive music.

Some cultures believed donning masks and costumes was a way for the living to blend in so that they could move freely among the spirits without being seen, eventually translating into more current Halloween traditions. That same thinning of the veil still occurs today. For those more attuned or aware of spirit all year round it may start as early as June or July. The shifting of sensitivities to spirit begins to show themselves in different ways for different people.

If you’re being affected by the thinning veil, you may feel anxious, nervous, or like you’re being watched. You may also receive messages in dreams. For me, it usually begins with audible voices. Someone calling me from another room or shouting my name when I am sleeping. Other signs for me are seeing people or shadow-people in my peripheral. People that should not be there. It is a time when those who are not usually as sensitive to spirit may find themselves feeling things more acutely.

If you want to embrace the thinning of the veil and try to communicate with spirit there are several ways to do so safely, provided you are respectful and set solid boundaries and protections for your space. Set up an Ancestors Alter Light a candle, set out pictures of loved ones and mementos that remind you of those who have passed. Offer incense or tidbits of a favorite food or drink. Speak to them by name, remind them of fond shared memories. Even if you cannot hear their answers out loud, take note of changes in temperature around you. Feelings and instinctual understanding. Write them down so that you can review things later. Often emotions will surface, let them come. Shed those tears but remember to take note of the feelings of love as well.

If you are new to this, this is not the time to confront or hash out old grudges. That is not what this article is about, that is a different discussion. Please keep that in mind. Set Boundaries When you set energetic boundaries you are simply stating the rules. Let them know this is a visit not a request for a roommate. Thank them for coming and if you are so inclined invite them to return but only when it is agreed upon and consensual. Use Divination Tools There are a lot of divination tools that are beginner-friendly. If Tarot seems too complicated try a pendulum or dowsing rods. Both are tools that will give you yes or no answers and with practice can be very useful. Tarot is a more advanced divination tool.

Reading the Tarot is a way of translating the language of the Universe through symbolism used in the artwork of the cards, their placement, and through intuitive interpretation. A traditional reader must learn the symbolic meanings of the tarot the different layouts or placement of the cards and what they represent. An advanced reader may also include an intuitive reading of the cards and their meanings specific to the person they are reading for, that is why you may hear the rule that you can never read your own cards. You can if you stick to just the traditional symbolism but it is hard to give yourself an intuitive reading that is not clouded with your own wants and wishes. Another divination tool is the spirit board or Ouija board. Marketed as a "game" these are useful tools in the hands of those who know how to protect themselves and those with them. Those who do not know how to shield and protect themselves and others participating should perhaps choose a different way of communication.

Doors can be easily opened, but you must know how to close them properly and safely and know the safeguards. Movies and television love to illustrate this for us under the guise of entertainment. In turn, if you want to step back from the Thinning Veil and distance yourself from the spirit world you can set energetic boundaries with personal shielding or by doing a house cleansing. Setting boundaries is for the living and the dead alike. People in all stages of life and death are ultimately still human, and they want to be both respected and connected. Asking for space, boundaries, and peaceful coexistence is fine, but demanding that spirits leave the house might make things worse. If you want to use tools to help with cleansing, you can try burning herbs or incense. Palo Santo wood and sweet grass are both excellent and sustainable alternatives to white sage. Saltwater, bells, and crystals can also be used for cleansing, especially for those who are sensitive to smoke.

You can also carry or wear traditional grounding stones like onyx, black tourmaline, tiger's eye, and smoky quartz to help your energy stay rooted and focused. Set one of these stones next to your bed if your dreams feel more active or if you find you’re having trouble surfacing from sleep. Death is not the end of strong bonds with your loved ones and their presence should not frighten you. That tapping sound or the touch of an unseen hand may just be someone who loves you trying to let you know they are still with you, watching over you.

Watch for the subtle things, signs, and symbols that significantly repeat in your life. But most of all, have fun! Connecting across the thinning veil and touching the world of spirit does not need to be scary or anxiety-inducing. Take time for yourself, and take comfort in knowing that spirit is with you, always.

House Kheperu Member Spotlight

M. Belanger

We're all stories, in the end.

What interests you about energy work?

Energy work is spiritual alchemy. It is change we carry within us and doing it changes us. It reveals layers of who we are, who we were, and how we interface with the universe. It is a continually undiscovered country I shall never tire of exploring, mapping, and sharing.

What is your Favorite movie?

Star Wars - the original. I saw it in the theater only a few days before the final heart surgery that would either save my life or end it. As a tiny person (I was four), those opening credits were breath-taking -- magical. The music, the adventure - it was a story I played back in my mind as I went under for the surgery, and it was a glorious story to carry with me as I slipped into the dark.

Provocation of Spirits

Pulls out Soap Box

Alright, pull up a chair, time we had a heart-to-heart.
I’ve done some content creation around this a few times before - on my podcast That Spooky Life, on our Tiktok for House Kheperu, and when I was sitting down with the idea for this column I realized I already had a good solid article for diving into. This, despite it being October, is actually the first Soap Box I thought to pull out and speak to.

You ever seen a Ghost-hunting show where they start yelling at the ghosts to do something, like show themselves? Throw something? Demanding that anything that is present in the space perform for them so that they can ostensibly ‘record evidence’ of the paranormal. This is adjacent to the idea that if a spirit gets angry, it will pull in enough energy to manifest or be able to interact with it’s environment. Then, the demanding parties get all melodramatic and freaked out when there’s just the barest little knock, or item movement. Or heaven forbid, something actually happens.

In my TikTok video, this is the part where I ask the viewer; “Does it piss you off?” Spoiler alert - it pisses me off. While Provocation can at times be a useful tool depending on circumstance, the fact that it for so long became the pre-imminent tactic in modern media, teaching other Freshman and Sophmore Investigators to think that’s just how you’re supposed to do it, since it was so very prominent in modern Ghost Hunting culture? Is infuriating.

Needless to say…Don’t fucking do that.

There can be a time and place for such tactics. Full acknowledged and I am not debating that point. I’ve done it in places before where something that felt malicious was hiding, specifically trying to make others seem like they were lying or avoid notice to sew dissent either with the person who called me in or amongst the crew that I had at the time. I was also willing, in those moments, to make myself the target - more on that later. But full stop, Provocation should not be in the top 3 or even 10 of the tools and techniques you should start with when investigating or documenting the paranormal.

My go-to question is always, “How would you feel if someone came invading your gramma’s house and started screaming at her to prove she was there and throwing things and bullying her?” Because, my friends, that’s what it is. Bullying and it perpetuates that such interactions are acceptable, even outside of the paranormal. Is it the root cause, or even a large contributing factor? No. But when there is SO much media that presents such things, it normalizes that aggressive and forceful interaction with things we don’t understand is an acceptable go-to, first-step means of engagement.

Spoiler alert; it’s not. Not to spirits, not to people, rarely ever. Defend yourself, sure, but be the aggressor without first exhausting other options available? No. 

Now, there are times, like I said above, that it can be necessary. I’ve seen professional Investigators for whom I have a lot of respect use Provocation in situations. Sometimes if you’re trying to determine what kind of energy a spirit, ghost, or egregore might have, or thrive in, or determining what type of entity it even is - Provocation can tell you if this paranormal experience is brought on by aggressive emotions, or that maybe it’s poltergeist activity. It has its uses. And yet even when the respectable experts in the field use it? Go back and watch those episodes again. Even after everything that was dropped to the editing room floor (as it were, since no one uses actual film anymore), it was STILL not the FIRST tactic they used. Like, not even top 5 or 10. 

If you kick in the door and start shouting, and there’s just some quiet, confused spirit accidentally moving things, just trying to peacefully interact with their family and don’t understand how to not be spooky? You probably won’t get much. Or, say there is a demon. It’s not gonna show itself on command. Worse, if you do manage to piss off a powerful malevolent spirit, what then? Now, you have a malicious force focused on you, that can influence your mood, mind, and energy. 

Good job. 

Not to mentions, powerful malicious entities that most would think of as “demons” feed on that kind of vibe - so likely, you’re just making them stronger and opening yourself up for them to nom on you or those around you. All the while, there’s no award for being the biggest jerk, but the consolation prize can be disruptive and harmful to more than just you.

Your family

Your friends

And lest we not forget the people that either work or live at the location you’ve just stirred. You can leave - they might not be able to. That’d the biggest jerk move. The worst cases are the ones where a new group comes in because a family or collection of folks is having an intensely bad paranormal experience, only to find out that they’re not the first, there’s broken trust with investigators over the first group that came in “because they stirred it up and then left”. Likely, because they came in, used a bunch of unnecessary Provocation, and then dipped.
It’s rude as hell, and in some extreme cases, dangerous.

So allow me to assure you once more it is not, nor should it be, your go-to method of investigating the paranormal. Because even in the instances it’s not dangerous?

It still makes you look like an asshole.
Puts soapbox away

Keep it Honest, my friends.
~Frick

Im Mesheru

Time of Dusk

Liminal Gates to Change: Excerpt from the Tome of the Darkside Ritualist

We need not confine our aspirations for change to specific times of the year; the power to undergo transformation lies within us, accessible at any moment we choose to embrace it. The intricate tapestry of our destinies rests firmly in our hands, woven with the choices we make in the fabric of our daily lives. So, why do we often fixate on designated moments in time as the catalyst for change? I believe it boils down to intention.

Recently, House Kheperu marked the occasion of our transition from the Lightside to the Darkside of the year. This transition, while significant, has historically been a subdued ritual, centered around acknowledging the shift, reminiscing about the Lightside, and setting intentions for the Darkside. However, as our ritual unfolded, and I assumed the role of Darkside ritualist, a profound sensation enveloped me.

This Darkside period feels poised to usher in profound transformations. We anticipate challenges as we embrace the extended, shadowy nights of winter. The intricate threads of countless human lives, in constant motion, form patterns—a series of waves, ripples, and events that reverberate through many of us, leaving their indelible marks. They change us, forcing us to confront the shifting sands of existence.

While it may all appear somewhat abstract, here is the essential takeaway: when faced with sudden and overwhelming change, remember to center yourself. When anxiety fills your mind with the static of countless possibilities and thoughts, find your grounding. Recognize your innate strength, and acknowledge your capacity to meet the challenges that may arise during this Darkside season. Equally important, do not let anger or frustration with these changes be directed outward toward others, nor let them consume you from within. Channel that potent energy—frustration, anger, rage, and overwhelm—into constructive actions. Engage in cleaning, creating, seeking new experiences, or embarking on adventures that help you navigate the shifting currents of life with purpose and resilience.

— Cat ‘Abri’ Rogers

Darkside Ritualist, House Kheperu

Spirit Offering Cakes

by M. Belanger

As we approach the Pagan holiday of Samhain on my side of the world, some practitioners may find themselves scaring up recipes for soul cakes or other food offerings for spirits and ancestors. As someone with Irish ancestry, soul cakes have always intrigued me. Recipes vary and are worth exploring. You can start with the one hosted at foodireland.com.

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But if you're willing to dig a little deeper into the past, there is a culinary adventure to be had in recreating offering cakes that are arguably the oldest recorded food recipe found on an Egyptian tomb (15th century BCE).

Made of tiger nut flour and shaped by hand into cones, these are simple and unexpectedly tasty treats to share with the spirits of your choice. Note: despite being made of tiger nut flour, they contain neither nuts nor wheat gluten. Tiger nuts are actually the rhizomes of cyperus grass. They are hard and dense, aromatic, and posses a nutty, mildly sweet flavor. They can be roasted or boiled, eaten raw, or ground into a coarse meal. The ancients used them not only as food but as medicine and also in incense-making: they're one of the ingredients named in a surviving recipe for the precious temple incense, Kyphi.

To recreate these offering cakes, you can pick up some quality tiger nut flour here, then all you'll need is a little honey and, if desired, ground cinnamon or cardamom (add a splash of rose water if you're feeling really fancy).

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As a vegan alternative, it is possible to substitute blackstrap molasses or date syrup, but be aware: the honey in the recipe is not merely there as a culinary sweetener. It functions as a binding agent and a preservative, but more than that, it was a sacred substance. The inclusion of honey in these offering cakes is very intentional. Replace it if you must, but take some time to appreciate what it meant to the originators of this recipe.

Here's how to make these simple, soulful cakes:

Ingredients

1 cup tiger nut flour
2 tablespoons honey (approximate)*
optional: cinnamon and/or cardomom to taste

*if substituting molasses or date syrup, add the liquid very slowly as both change the dough's consistency considerably.

Creation

Prepare a clean, dry surface for kneading and rolling the dough. A sheet of baking parchment on a large cutting board can be handy for this, as the dough gets sticky and it makes cleanup much easier.

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In a mixing bowl, measure out a cup of tiger nut flour. Add any ground cinnamon or cardamom now, if desired. Mix the dry ingredients together.

Make a little well in the center of the dry mixture and drizzle in about a tablespoon of honey (or molasses). Begin kneading the dough with your fingers, folding in the honey and adding additional small drizzles a little at a time until all the flour is moist and has the consistency of Playdough. If your mixture gets too tacky, add a little more tiger nut flour and work it in. This is a recipe that does not have to be exact.

Baking

These cakes are baked at a very low heat, just enough to get them to set. After experimenting, 250-275 degrees F, depending on the oven, seems to be the sweet spot.

Shape the dough into little pyramidal cones with your fingers and arrange them on a baking sheet. Place this into the oven and set a timer for twelve minutes. The dough will very slightly change color as the cakes cook, getting a slightly darker skin on the outside. Baking times for cakes made with molasses or date syrup may be a little longer. When they are properly cooked, they are dense and chewy, not crunchy.

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If you prepare the cakes with honey, you can leave them on your altar indefinitely as the honey acts as a preservative. But, if your family spirits are anything like mine, they'll want the opportunity to enjoy a cake or two through you, so be adventurous and enjoy this taste of the past as you honor the people whose lives came before our own.

An Operation of the Silent Sun 

Hello, readers! I have been in a reflective mood here of late, and this month I’m planning on something magickal, as there is an interesting event coming to pass over the weekend. On October 14th, there will be a total solar eclipse over my area in the USA, so I plan on inviting this moment of silence with a special rite to welcome the changing of Light Side to the Dark Side. The intention behind this ritual is to welcome the aspects of Winter that I find appealing – the silence, serenity, and acceptance of the cold beauty that it brings.  

I will share a rite this month dedicated to the acknowledgment, invocation, and welcoming of that silence. I call it The Operation of the Silent Sun.  

Components

3 Candles.  
Visual safety for viewing the solar eclipse during its pinnacle.  
Noise Cancelling headphones. 
A comfortable, quiet area where one won’t be disturbed.  

Directions

Preparations for the rite should include setting sacred space in the manner of your choice. This is to have a welcoming, serene, and accepting quality for this interaction, what we are inviting is the calm, still certainty of silence, and welcoming the transition from the Light to the Dark, and what that means to you, personally. The rite is to be conducted in total silence. We observe, we acknowledge, and welcome what changes this eclipse will bring, but without any input from ourselves. Sit back, experience, and document what the eclipse brings you! 

Don your headphones and viewing protection, arrange the candles before you in a straight row, and wait the coming of the Silent Sun.  

Phase One – In the minutes before the eclipse, you will light the far-left candle. Settle into your body, take some deep breaths. Get comfortable, and ready to receive the energy of the eclipse.  

Speak

“I welcome you, Silent Sun. Show me what it is, that you want me to know.” 

As the eclipse builds, quiet your mind and let the impressions come. Feel the environment, the change in the air, the energy of the event build. Keep an open mind. Whatever comes, take note of it.  
 
Phase Two – At the zenith of the eclipse, when the black sphere of the moon is completely visible, light the second candle.  

Do not speak. Do not think. Only listen. The thoughts are a distraction. Let the Silent Sun speak to you without words. Remember. Accept. Document. Bask in the presence of the event, and simply BE.  

Phase Three – As the moon’s shadow departs the sun’s field, light the third candle. Continue to accept the impressions that come, from within and from without. Find your voice again, let your thoughts flow, let your emotions come back online.  

Speak

“Thank you, Silent Sun, for sharing what it is you wanted me to know.”  

Let the candles burn all the way down. Bask in the reset of the experience, and enjoy the lovely view!  

In December of 2022, we did a hard re-formatting of The Midnight Sun and moved it here to our website, we enlisted a new editor, and in December 2023 it will be our one-year celebration of the new format. We're not quite there yet, but the new format has brought about new capabilities, and a number of other firsts with these changes. And this month is one that we are all very excited about!

First Spooky Season Midnight Sun in New Format!!!

We are thrilled to share how creative, fun, talented, and spooky you have all worked to be, and hope to include more community spotlights going forward in future newsletters!

Halloween In Norway

Community Spotlight submission by Christopher Northlight

Halloween in Norway?
What may we see?
Witches, ghosts and warlocks, or a troll having tea?
A fun night of treats or a mischievous child, running amok with devilish smiles?
Or perhaps a more reverent remembrance of time, of our past loved ones whom we visit when the clock chimes.
Over the mantel or in a mound give thanks to the ones who have come before and honor their ground.

Halloween in Norway is a relatively new phenomenon, as it was not widely celebrated until the late 1990s. It was introduced by American influences, such as movies, TV shows, and commercial products. However, Norway already has its own traditions related to death and the supernatural, such as All Saints’ Day on November 1st and All Souls’ Day on November 2nd. These days are observed by visiting cemeteries, lighting candles, and placing flowers on the graves of loved ones.

It is similar to Halloween in the USA in some ways, such as dressing up in costumes, carving pumpkins, and decorating houses with spooky-related items such as cobwebs and lights. However, there are also some differences.

For example, trick-or-treating is not as common or widespread as in the USA. Instead, some children may go to organized events or parties at schools or community centers. Another difference is that Halloween in Norway is more influenced by Scandinavian culture and folklore than by Celtic or Christian traditions as is the case in the United States. Some of the typical costumes that Norwegian children wear are vikings, princesses, pirates, superheroes, and various animals.

Regardless of where it is celebrated or how, Halloween is here to stay and may the holiday add a little spookiness to your day!

MULLED CIDER

Community Spotlight submission by V.S. Nightborn

Mulled Cider Recipe

-1 apple, sliced
-3 blood orange slices
-3, 6, or 9 sticks of cinnamon
-whole cloves
-Whole allspice
-Hawthorn berries
-Rose hips
-3, 6, or 9 star anise
-whole cardamom
-Fresh pomegranate seeds (can be swapped for whole cranberries during winter)
-Local honey (or brown sugar if you prefer)
-A small amount of Pomegranate, orange, or cranberry juice
-Apple cider (or red wine if that’s your vibe and you are of age)

I don’t offer too many measurements because I have a tendency to change the flavor balance as the mood strikes, as the seasons shifts, or if I am mulling something other than an apple cider. In autumn I tend to lean heavier on the cinnamon, allspice and clove. In winter, I tend to be heavier on the cardamom, anise, and rosehips.

Personally, cider mulling always becomes an act of magic and I enchant my cider for connection, coziness, abundance, and security, and I occasionally add different spices or florals if I feel the need to switch up the vibe or have different goals.

I always start by toasting the spaces in the pot a little, then I add a small amount of cider plus the desired amount of honey or sugar. I bring that to a boil and then add in the rest of the cider and the fruit ingredients. I keep it in really low heat for about an hour before serving. If you don’t want the fruit to get too mushy, you can add that in in the last 10 or so minutes on the stovetop/in the slow cooker.

Spooky season decor

by Crow

Midnight Sun September 2023

SCROLL FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to the September 2023 edition of The Midnight Sun!

Summer is coming to an end!
Honestly? I’m looking forward to it. It has been a wonderful season full of reconnection, shared memories, and new experiences… but I am over being sweaty!

Do you have any plans for how to close out summer? Final barbeques? Labor Day plans? Let us know in the comments how you intend to bid summer farewell!

This month’s newsletter brings us new ideas and perspectives, with some brain candy and food for thought. Suz talks about harnessing the power of the Autumnal Equinox, and Izlude shares a personal Contemplation. Yours truly busts out the Soap Box on Objectivity, and Hex brings the Tea for some insights on how to get what you want without sabotaging your goals.

Wherever your Summer ends, I hope it is pleasant, and that as Autumn descends you find a renewed drive into the future!

~Miranda (Frick)
Curator and Editor of TMS

Harnessing the Superpower of the Autumn Equinox!

by Suz

We live busy lives! We do more in one day than our ancestors could do in a month! Think about the sheer amount of information we process or number of things we do in a day, compared to what people did just 20 years ago. The increase in speed and quantity has risen exponentially, and it’s not slowing down.

How do we do what we love, take care of what we love, achieve success, and have an impact in the world in a way that includes, instead of sacrifices, our personal health and happiness? I think one of the main reasons we feel so out of balance is because we are out of sync with the natural rhythms of the earth. To have balance we must be in harmony with both the physical and spiritual worlds. It just makes sense.

We live on Earth. We are physical matter just like the Earth, but we are not in tune with the Earth. We are more apt to be attuned to the speed of the Internet than the steadiness of the trees. We count time passing and set goals on calendars constructed by man, rather than instructed by nature. It’s as if the earth is moving one direction, changing speeds in a well-patterned synchronicity, while we keep running harder and faster at a pace we call “normal”.

As we consciously link our awareness to the cycles of nature, our understanding of our own cycles begin to deepen. When we are in sync with the Natural Universe- body, mind, and spirit moving with the natural cycles of the earth, we harmonize automatically and work, health, wealth, relationships, and life become more sustainable, supportive, and successful. Marie Kondo swears if our dresser drawers are neat our lives will run more smoothly and I have to say, it does make things easier. Maybe there is superpower here!

Winter, Spring, Summer, and Autumn are times of the year that mark a shift in the earth’s energy, each with its own rhythm. Winter solstice in December, the natural world slows down. Spring equinox in March, new things are born. Summer Solstice in June brings intense creative energy. Autumn Equinox, in mid- to late September is a time to reap what you’ve been putting your energy toward these past nine months. It’s a time when day and night are roughly equal in length, so it’s a powerful time to rebalance, restore, and refocus your energy. Before we all had the Internet and before the Industrial Revolution, when we were more agriculturally based, we tended and harvested our fields based on these powerful turns of the seasons.

While most of us are no longer farmers, we each have “fields” that we tend; they just happen to be the fields of our work, relationships and families, home and wealth, and personal health and happiness. Spiritually speaking, fall represents the harvest time of year, a time to acknowledge growth and expansion as a natural evolution of our organic being. Our lives go through cycles of growth, harvest, death, and rebirth just as we see in nature. During the Auutum Equinox, I invite you to pause and tap into the specific energy that is available to you. Restore and Rebalance- Become conscious about what your body is telling you it needs, so you don’t run yourself ragged and fall over in a heap on December 31.

This balance will help you stay devoted to your well-being as you move into the fall and the holidays, so you can complete the year with a full tank. Reflect and receive- Look back over the year and see all you have done and become. Recognize and give yourself credit for all you've achieved, and accept that there may be some things we carry over to the new year.

One of the biggest reasons we feel overwhelmed, and stay stuck in the patterns of overworking, overdoing, and burning out, is because we don’t pause long enough to really acknowledge what has happened and all we've accomplished. Refocus- Choose to move forward consciously and energetically from a place of less stress. Get clear focus on what matters and where to apply your energy more efficiently for the remainder of the year. Yes, there are many things you could do during the last three months of the year, and many you want to do, but what really matters most? What will yield the highest returns, and the most nourishing life harvest?

Honor all that you have in your life and shift your consciousness from one of lack to one of prosperity and gratitude. The Autumn Equinox is a meaningful time of year to honor the harvest. Whether that be a "real" harvest of the things planted in your garden or the harvest of efforts and intentions for your life path that you set earlier in the year. Activate your new cycle of growth.

As our world stands upon a precipice of enormous change and transformation, each one of us has a choice to make. How will we participate in the great turning of our times moving forward? May this season bring you and yours all that your heart desires and I hope the changing of the season inspire you!

Hello, readers. Welcome back~ I just had a look at the monthly weather forecast and I am pleasantly surprised to see that the temps will not be climbing above 90f for the rest of the year in my region. That’s exciting! Now, we’re all very different and have our own preferences, but this particular body doesn’t handle the heat so well. One can always put on more layers to handle the cold, but one can only get so nude!

September is one of those transitional months in House Kheperu’s spiritual system, as the number 9 represents the completion of cycles, transformation, and enlightenment within it. Within this month is seen the winding down of summer energies and we begin to settle into patterns of introspection and self-reflection. It’s Libra season, and with the Autumn Equinox occurring during the month this is a fantastic time to start finding balance between our inner and outer worlds before we slip into the Dark Side of the year.

I wanted to share with you folks a powerful experience I’ve had this week. Summer is abuzz with activity, forging new relationships, working with new people, and seeking new threads of connection as business ensues. Many of these working relationships and budding connections draw upon personal reserves of energy and attention, and as summer begins to close it is found that many of those new buds need to be pruned. This is a personal process in which I decide which relationships I am going to continue to invest in versus which no longer serve me. During this time of introspection, it is also time to look into the past and find those old buds which never blossomed as well. Too many buds that never blossom weigh down the plant and take up space and energy that are needed for the future.

This is not an angry process, nor a selfish one, for even healthy adversarial relationships (yes, that is a thing!) provide much-needed experience, as strife brings strength. If you do not include people in your experience who disagree with you, you will find yourself in an echo chamber of YES as you surround yourself with people who only agree with your opinions. That will not bring growth to the plant in the long run, as nature is wild and multitude; the plant will need to learn to assert herself in her environment in order to flourish. This does not give space for toxic people, (there are plants whose roots are toxic, and there is an entire underground war happening for resources under our feet in the dark!) but does give permission for healthy-minded folks with differing opinions to challenge you. That leads to understanding and growth for both.

During a particular night of contemplation on such things, I realized that I needed to take action. I had forged relationships that weren’t nourishing me but were rather draining and one-sided. There were people in my past haunting me, resurfacing to remind me that they were still existing and had no change in their opinions or experienced any sort of growth, and as far as I could see, for no real purpose other than to cling on like a drowning man, using me as a buoy for their sanity. I could feel the hesitance within my very Self to even converse with them, so using my intuition as a guide I sent them a final farewell and began preparations.

In my pretty little Magick box I have some red thread, a special pair of scissors, some candles, and an orb of obsidian. I sat in the dimly lit room, turned on some meditative music, and mustered my Will and focus. Before me I gathered the tools for the rite on a small decorative altar-table, and seated in my comfy chair I placed the orb beneath on its pedestal, pulled some red threads and cut them carefully each representing a connection I felt no longer served me, and lit a final candle before the orb. As I twined the thread between my fingers, one by one, I held it taut above the candle and focused on the persons, situations, places, events, any sort of energy that was on my mind that I wanted to sever. I imagined the cord of connection, sinking into the physical thread between my fingers, and lowered it slowly towards the flame. As it touched the flame, in that millisecond before the break, I felt the severance of energy as the threads snapped. One by one. Until all was clear, and I could think of nothing else that needed to be pruned.

I slept deeply and awoke the next day energized! It was as if I had been carrying these burdens that my tired aching muscles had finally got relief. I now go into the Dark Side of the Year carrying only myself, and the connections that I truly want to carry, and I feel far better for it.

So, I ask you reader, what are you carrying for others that you no longer wish to bear? If you carry other’s burdens needlessly, you are only weakening yourself AND them, as they will no longer have the strength to carry themselves. It’s just fine to lean on friends and family, no person is an island, but we each must bear the weight of our own souls. That’s what it means, to live, and to bear lively, nourishing fruit. Let it go~

Objectivity

Pulls out Soap Box

You are not as objective as you think you are.

I don’t care how objective you believe yourself to be, reality is subjective. I’m not either, to be fair. I’m not casting stones without acknowledging I am also throwing them at myself. We all experience reality through the filters of experience, trauma, interpretation and personal lexicon. We can all work to be as objective as possible, and you might be far more objective than the person sitting next to you over all. They may also have an experience or subject that they are actually more objective then you are, despite being far more buried in personal experience and filters than you function from in everything else. 

The best we can do is try.

Sometimes, your best isn’t very good. But you can always get better, and as long as you’re trying and working to get better, you are bound to make progress - on anything. Everything. Objectivity included. Sometimes, you’re trying so hard to be objective, you can lose compassion. For others, and for yourself. That’s also not good. We’re not robots. We are a weird kind of organic machine that is falliable and subject to emotion, which defies logic. True objectivity is not only lack of favoritism towards a side, bit a true freedom from bias. 

And there’s the rub.

It is impossible to have a human experience without bias. Even if you are able to process to a more objective space, your initial experience, impression, and therefore the processing itself, will have that flavor of bias. Bias is how we learn, and shape our reality. That individual, unique convergence of personal experience, intuition, impression, recall and perspective is what makes us all exceptional. How I percieve and engage with reality, is not how literally anyone else who will ever read this engages with reality. We can have similar experiences, similar traumas, similar ways in which those things manifest within us, but they are only ever similar. They are not, cannot be, and honestly are lucky to not be identical. Even indentical twins have two different experiences of the exact same event or occurrence. 

It’s part of what makes the embodied ordeal so fascinating and beautiful. 

So you cannot be without bias, because you live in your head. It is impossible to be completely, purely objective… about anything. 

What you can do, is work to be as objective as possible. To remember that just like you, everyone else is also incapable of pure objectivity, and while frustrating, heart-breaking at times, painful and infuriating as that can be from moment to moment… it’s actually quite beautiful. Thumbing one’s nose at the idea of “everyone wanting to be a beautiful and unique little snowflake” is a popular thing amongst certain demographics, because while we all live in a society where we need to be able to agree on certain fundamentals and coexist peacefully where we don’t agree.

I also acknowledge that we are all, in fact, as individual in our interface with physical reality as the snowflakes that fall from the sky - even those who don’t think they are. We also are the same in that we are all human, biased, and alive on a round rock hurtling around a yellow star in the void of space. And those are both as true as they are good. Because diversity and overcoming the conflicts inside of these truths from our lack of objectivity, freedom from bias, and inability to become beings of pure logic and reason, is something that makes this world interesting, and beautiful. 

So. You are not as objective as you think you are. Neither am I. But as long as we keep trying to be reasonably objective with an eye to compassion, then we’re headed in the right direction. 

Puts away Soap Box
Keep it honest, my friends

~Frick

Thursday, September 14, 2023
7:54 PM

Hello friends, and welcome back to Tea with Hex! This month, we're going to talk about how to get what you want without sabotaging your intentions. Oooooh, spicy, right? Yeah, let's get into it.

"A watched pot never boils." We've all heard this adage. There's actually even more wisdom in this than you might think. You stand there, staring, going "This damn pot of water needs to boil. This water isn't boiling." And it's going to take way longer for it to boil than it should. Do you know why? Your will is focused on the water not boiling, that's why.

Drink something.

See, the Universe responds to the energy of your Will. It bends potential based on the frequency that you're resonating on, because like attracts like. This is one of the foundational principles of all systems of magic. When you focus your Will on something *not* happening, you're telling the Universe that it should not happen. You have moved yourself and that situation into a place of lack, and so the Universe will respond accordingly and ensure that lack persists, because that is your energetic wavelength. Suddenly you'll find things stop working, things start breaking, things evaporate right out of your grasp. Everything is going wrong. Why? You're (probably) not hexed or cursed. You're just fixated on what you don't have, what isn't happening, not enough of this or that, and now all the things that are meant for you can't get to you. You have sabotaged your own energetic wavelength by sheer force of Will. How's that pot of water doing, eh?

I would like to instead propose a different philosophy.

Suppose you adjust your energetic wavelength to one of expectation. Everything that is meant for you is already on its way to you, it just isn't here *yet*. Those things are already written to come, in the season that you are meant to receive them. Notice, I said season, not time. We have an inclination, an imperative imposed on us by the world around us, to measure every minute, hour, day, in exacting detail. Time is extremely unforgiving. The moment passes, and it's gone, and still you lack. Ponder, instead, that there is a *season* for all things. I think that's one of the reasons some people are so annoyed by astrology, because if you study it long enough, it's impossible to ignore that we are actually ruled by seasons, not seconds, and this whole construct of time becomes meaningless. If you're not wired a certain way that's probably a maddening thought. Our existence is predicated upon cycles and seasons. Situations present themselves as they have before, and as they will again, and as they will again, on and on. When your intention and your work are aligned with the season of those things, and you expect that their fruition is already on its way to you, you are in synch with the Universe. You are in a place of resonance and alignment with the energies of abundance.

"Time flies when you're having fun." That's another adage. By this point, you'll likely have sensed a theme. We have far more control over the quality of our experience than you might think. Watching that pot of water and fixating on how it's not doing what we need it to do, is a form of time dilation. Whereas if we were to leave the pot of water, and go find something to enjoy, we have adjusted our frequency to one of pleasure, of fulfillment, a place of "the pot of water *will* boil", if we bother to think of it at all! If we don't, and just focus on our present situation of being fulfilled, time will fly, and what is meant to happen in its season will find us faster.

The Will is a powerful tool. It can work against us if we're not careful. But if we recognize and understand our own power, and its relationship to the gears of reality, we can truly be the architects of our own happiness. I hope this helps you, dear friends, unlock the pathways for your abundance to find you, and may you always receive what is meant for you.

Midnight Sun August 2023

SCROLL FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to the August 2023 edition of The Midnight Sun!

Y’all, it’s hot.

If you couldn’t tell from the “y’all”, I live in the South. So while your mileage may vary a little bit, it’s still been record temperatures all over. I hope you’re staying cool and hydrated!

This month’s Leo Season kicks off with SOLAR FLARE themes! We have a Hot Hot Playlist for you fresh out of the Spotify oven from the loving hands of House Members. Suz brings us some mindfulness and tips on reconnecting with nature, we have n excerpt from the FAQ to be included with the updated, in-progress Psychic Vampire Codex from HK founder and author M. Belanger, yours truly has a soap-box on “Can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen”, and the member spotlight of our very own sweet baby Leo and Tarot Student Extraordinaire - Buck!

Whatever your Summer plans are, or if you’re headed back to school for yourself or spawn, may you have much water to drink, your frozen treat of choice, and may your AC stay functional as the MVP until the Spooky Season hits us with that good Fall breeze!

~Miranda (Frick)
Curator and Editor of TMS

HK JAMS - Spirit of Flame

It’s hot out but are you inspired internally? Spark fire in your soul with this blazing August playlist. Move, dance, chill, and create with fire.

Compassion, Empathy and the Natural World

By Suz

"Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive."

~ Dalai Lama

It has long been assumed that selfishness, greed and competitiveness lie at the core of human behavior, the products of our evolution. It is easy to see how these assumptions have guided the realms of human affairs, from policy making to the way the media portrays our social lives.

Compassion is a natural tendency and essential for human survival. Without it, the survival and flourishing of our species would have been unlikely. Logic would follow that compassion for our environment and Nature itself would be important to human survival, right?

Even though our personal circumstances, cultures, upbringings may be different, we fundamentally all have the same yearnings, rights, desire to be happy and not suffer. And we must feel these things at heart level. Only then can we cultivate compassion towards others.

We are all part of a deeply interconnected, social mind, with huge potential significance for our future. Shadow work, Empathy and why it is so important! We must understand and be aware of our dark side and cultivate empathic imagination. We are not prisoners of our genes, we have choice and freewill, and the natural human condition is to be kind. Empathy is a complex emotion that helps people build connections with others — when we imagine how it feels to be another person, we can start to understand their suffering and joy. In nature, children can start to learn empathy by appreciating and caring for plants and animals. Understanding how nature works may make us feel more connected and appreciate the importance of the delicate balance.

As humans we have become largely disconnected to our relationship with nature and therefore, earth. Seen as a commodity more than a living, breathing work of art - earth has been, unsustainably, stripped down to her resources and in many cases, seen more prevalently on screen than with our own eyes.

How do we reconnect? Intentionally, Mindfully and Daily!

Like your morning coffee, daily workout or mental health practice, in order for us to realign to Nature with compassion and empathy, we must stand on the soil, notice the leaves, hear the birds and reclaim the essential importance of that relationship. Relationships take work, and we call her Mother Naure for a reason.

In Japan, they have practiced the art of Forest Bathing (known as Shinrin Yoku) for years, as a mental health practice and way to realign with higher meaning. At its core, these practices are a daily physical reconnect to the earth and her beautiful nature - most importantly, through the lens of empathy. Indigenous people all over the world hold a deep reverence for nature.

Native Americans operate under the conviction that all objects and elements of the earth—both living and nonliving—have an individual spirit that is part of the greater soul of the universe. This culture is fiercely devoted to respecting and honoring the spirit of the land and everything with which it provides them. The belief that ALL life is sacred and comes from the land implies that Mother Earth is also divine. Within Native American culture nature is the foundational anchor of which all life and spirit is built.

"Every seed is awakened and so is all animal life. It is through this mysterious power that we too have our being and we therefore yield to our animal neighbours the same right as ourselves, to inhabit this land." ~ Sitting Bull

So how do we cultivate this compassion and empathic connection with the Natural world around us?

• GO OUTSIDE! Take daily activities outside- coffee, meals, walk barefoot or lay down on the grass.

• Make a daily practice of taking 5 minutes to notice the sky.

• Plant something and nurture it!

• Get thee into a FOREST!

• Meditate on your connection to the natural web of life and your part in it!

• Go to that cute little farmers market and buy locally grown fruits and veggies or grow your own but then as you eat them, contemplate what life might look like without them.

• And the hardest one for modern man- Take an extended break from technology. (Don't grumble at me..do it!)

Perhaps part of our shadow work should be more contemplation of what our lives would look like without the Natural world. Pretty bleak... So appreciate what we have now, savor your connection to the Natural world we so often forget to notice. Life is so beautiful and each one of us has the responsibility to make it colorful and magical. Look around. We can see the beauty in nature, animals, birds, trees, sky, sun, moon earth. This beautiful world is all for us.

Enjoy living here and help others to find their joy in it.

House Kheperu Member Spotlight

buck

“Adapt or die”

What interests you about energy work? 

My biggest interest about energy work is how I can take a space and fill it up with happy good feeling energy and make it feel safe. I use energy work to sooth, comfort and protect. For myself, my family and my friends. Using energy powers for the forces of good!

What is one of your favorite movies? 

The Little Mermaid was always my favorite Disney movie growing up. I love the music and I resonate with the feeling like I didn’t belong and wanted to go somewhere else. I wanna be… where the gays are! And the live action was freaking amazing, and I want to watch it over and over and over.

The Psychic Vampire Codex Returns

by M. Belanger

The Vampire Codex, under one name or another, has been a core text of Kheprian teachings since its initial creation in 1994. Released first as the Codex Sanguinicus through the International Society of Vampires in the middle 90s, it’s seen publication in a startling variety of formats, from pamphlets and zines to an AOL homepage, a digital resource on sacred-texts.com and, of course, the familiar 2004 Weiser edition.

If you’ve been searching for a copy of the popular Weiser edition, you’ve probably noticed that it’s out of print. That’s because we took the rights back in preparation for a new release. A second edition of the Psychic Vampire Codex will be released in September – unchanged in content but updated in language to bring this nearly thirty-year-old text into the 21st century.

If you order a copy, you will notice one shiny new section: an appendix of frequently asked questions. This FAQ functions as a synopsis of the book’s foundational concepts, covering questions about the nature of vampirism, the ethics of feeding, and the triumvirate system. Here’s a little taste:

Excerpt from the Psychic Vampire Codex FAQ

Does learning how to take energy make me a vampire?

Everyone – arguably every thing – both gives and takes energy. Every breath, every touch, every interaction involves an exchange. The energy of life, regardless of what you call it, fuels us on a fundamental level, supplementing any magickal or psychic work we might perform. Because of this, learning how to take energy is not an exclusive talent of psychic vampires. Rather, bringing our relationship with energy into conscious control is beneficial to everyone.

Are vampires born or made?

To dispel a widespread myth: There is no exclusive, secret ritual out there that will transform you into a vampire. That’s a trope for the movies. However, a variety of initiatory experiences have been mistaken for “turning” rituals. Engaging in a profound energy exchange (either feeding or being fed from), participating in magick or ritual, spirit contact, reconnecting with someone from a previous life, spontaneous dreamwalking – all of these experiences can trigger an awakening easily mistaken for being “turned.” But these are simply moments that lift us out of our everyday existence and provide an intense enough experience that we have little choice but to question the nature of our reality and our place in it.

            So, how does one become a vampire? The condition of being vampiric – i.e. needing to feed upon energy – is often innate: you’re born this way. But that’s not true in every case. People can become temporarily vampiric as a result of severe energetic damage, chronic illness, even spiritual attachments. If the underlying issue is resolved, the vampiric tendencies may slowly go away. Sometimes it’s not possible to resolve the issue, so the vampirism becomes a person’s new normal. That doesn’t make them any less real than someone born with the same innate needs.

            Note that I’ve tried to use the term vampiric as opposed to vampire. There’s a reason for the language shift. Within the greater vampire community, there has been a long-standing debate about whether vampirism is an identity – something you can choose – or an innate characteristic – something you’re born with. People don’t choose to be vampiric – the need to feed upon energy is something you have or you don’t. But being a vampire – that can be an identity. It can be a choice – or a calling.

            Let me explain.

            The vampire as a concept in popular culture has developed into a powerful magickal archetype. The folkloric roots of the vampire may not hold the same appeal as the vampire as presented in current literature and films, but the same could be said of the witch – a magickal identity many people have grown to accept.

            To this end, one can choose the vampire as a personal identity and as such, it constitutes as valid and powerful a magickal archetype as the witch. When approached as an identity – an empowering magickal archetype – one does not need to strictly be vampiric in order to be a vampire. Just as not everyone who is innately vampiric will identify themselves as vampires.

            Identity is complex.

Can’t stand the heat?

Pulls out soap-box

Can’t stand the heat? Then get out of the kitchen…

…As the saying goes. What does that idiom really mean, though? I heard my gramma and my mom, and many other polite Southerners say this over the course of my life. As a neurodivergent child, it baffled me to frustration as my brain screamed “WE’RE NOT IN A KITCHEN I DON’T UNDERSTAND!” I do remember having to ask my mom why the hell everyone used it when we weren’t in a kitchen when I was like… ten or eleven.

Of course, the idiom translates to “If you are unable to tolerate the pressure, stress, or otherwise circumstance causing you discomfort, then it is time to stop, move on, remove yourself from the situation, or give up that particular thing”. Which, can at times be good advice if taken literally. Giving oneself a break, stepping away from heavy or stressful circumstances, and having the self-awareness to analyze these things can be important. Though to my experience this is usually stated in a derisive, judgemental fashion to varied degrees of “If you can’t perform, go away because you’re useless.” Not always, and not often how my grandmother meant it - she use it in a far more literal-adjacent tone of “We need to finish this thing, if you can’t help right now please move. I’ll let you know when we’re done.”

But societal implications and traumas aside, the idiom is not the soap box today. Today’s rant comes to us from an awareness of when this phrase and all of its baggage pop into my head; when people take on more than they are capable of handling, accomplishing or doing, from a place of “should have known better”. 

There IS value in “fuck around and find out”. Many of us don’t know our limitations in all situations, and won’t, until we find the thing that makes us stumble, drop the ball or inadvertently break something (because what is pushing your limits without challenge?). Those situations can be frustrating, but can also be necessary - and it’s okay to make mistakes! That’s not what I am referencing here. The situations that bring out the soap box are when I see folks not respecting the limits that they should. That they know, or strongly suspect. Those moments of saying yes because of insecurity, lack of self-awareness, or no objectivity can lead to disappointment. Be in oneself and/or from others unnecessarily, resulting in situations where the position could have been filled more efficiently, or responsibilities split elsewhere. Even fully detrimental to an overall project or endeavor.

It’s important to develop that objectivity, that self awareness. It’s also important to challenge yourself. It’s ADDITIONALLY important to know when and where to do so. Going back to our idiom “If you can’t stand the heat…”, I’ll point out that things become tempered to heat resistance… often by exposure to small-scale, controlled bouts of heat. However if not controlled, intentional bouts, those same things can crack, be warped, or damaged.

And this comes for me too - it is not from a place of judgement or criticism, more from a place of “learn from my mistakes, friend, and be kinder to yourself than you were taught to be.”

So while I do think divorcing the idiom from generational trauma and legacy burden is likely impossible, it could be a good lesson. “If you can’t stand the heat… go find smaller scale things in which you can temper your heat resistance in more controlled, intentional environments.” Practice self-awareness. Practice objectivity. Know your limits and know where it is a healthy environment for yourself and others to push those limits. Practice transparency and communication. If you’re not sure, ask! “Hey, I think I could push myself to grow here, but on the off chance I’m not ready for this yet, what is the risk level?”

I’m all for fuck around and find out, good or bad. It’s how we learn and grow sometimes. But if there’s a serious, stressful, high-octane, high-stakes situation where it could be detrimental to the people around you if you fuck around, find out and fail… then prepare to own those actions and shoulder the consequences. You are responsible for your words and actions. You are responsible for learning to temper your heat resistance. And if you crack or shatter, it rarely does you nor the people around you, any good. 

Puts soapbox away

Keep it Honest, my friends.
~Frick

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The Vampire Jack Townson - Fame Has It’s Price

Pre-orders available now! Set in a fictional world not unlike our own, join the story, intrigue, and lore from the mind of Jack Townson, the Vampire King of Tiktok!

Check it out on Amazon here!

The Psychic Vampire Codex - NEW EDITION!

Presently in progress with author and House Kheperu founder M. Belanger, it has been officially announced that the groundbreaking grimoire The Psychic Vampire Codex will be revised, updated and added to in the coming year. Stay tuned here, or at M. Belanger’s website for updates!

Happy Leo Season!