Pagan Tama
Top stories of the week in Paganism and Shinto:
- UK: Pagans want to celebrate with an address to Scottish parliament
- UK’s only official ‘village witch’ puts spell on tax man and claims expenses for magic
- US: Druidism now recognised as distinct religion at Indiana Department of Correction
Read more below…
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Spring Equinox coverage
Spring Equinox 2022: Fairies, cherry blossom trees and why you should visit Stonehenge
The Telegraph*
Spring is finally here, but why are there two different dates – and what actually happens during the equinox?…
How to celebrate the Spring Equinox, according to a Wiccan high priestess
Vogue
In her memoir, Wild Once, psychology lecturer and Wiccan priestess Vivianne Crowley shares practical advice on how to tune into the natural world – and general magic – around you…
Spring equinox meaning: What the vernal equinox means, how it’s celebrated and when it falls in 2022
iNews
Like the solstices which mark the beginning of summer and winter, equinoxes were used by early civilisations to divide up their year…
What is the meaning of the Spring Equinox in life and spirituality?
New York Post
Throughout the history of mankind, cultures, religions and spiritual traditions have stood in reverence to the Spring Equinox…
The Spring Equinox is coming – here’s how to mark the occasion
Metro
This turning point in the year is also known as Spring Quarter Point, Oestar, Ostara, and festival of balance and awakening…
What the Spring Equinox on March 20 means for your zodiac sign
Allure
Happy (almost) astrological new year. With the spring equinox and Aries season comes abundant pleasure and restorative balance. What else will it bring for your sign?…
Pagan News
UK: Pagans want to celebrate with an address to Scottish parliament
The Times*
The Scottish Pagan Federation is celebrating its 50th anniversary and will mark the milestone by requesting to have a representative deliver Time for Reflection in the Scottish parliament debating chamber…
UK’s only official ‘village witch’ puts spell on tax man and claims expenses for magic
Daily Star
Cassandra Latham-Jones, 71, is the only official ‘village witch’ in Britain and was able to use the term to write off expenses for her magical potions and ritual ingredients…
US: Druidism now recognised as distinct religion at Indiana Department of Correction
The Indiana Lawyer
The Indiana Department of Correction is now allowing followers of Druidism to study and worship as a distinct religion pursuant to a court-approved consent decree…
Manifesting is Gen Z’s answer to New Age spirituality
Vice
An age-old practice being given a refresh, thanks to TikTok…
Stories during siege – an update on Ukraine Pagans
The Wild Hunt
“We will tell you that it is surreal speaking with someone in Ukraine and hearing explosions. It has happened more than once and it is certainly something none of us ever thought we would be doing while reporting for The Wild Hunt. And yet it is here and happening with shocking regularity.”
How magicians are fighting Putin
Unherd
Last Wednesday at 3.33am, Moscow time, as the new moon waxed in the sky, the resistance to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine took the form of a mass binding ritual: a spell to frustrate and confound the Russian leader, to be repeated on a rolling basis until he falls from power…
Shinto news
How Kyoto’s shrine of severing ties helped our reporter escape from a “black company”
SoraNews24
Enshrined at Yasui Konpiragu is the spirit of Emperor Sutoku, who ruled Japan in the twelfth century and is said to have become a vengeful spirit upon his death. Asking him to help you sever unwanted ties in your life is very effective, but it comes at a price: bankruptcy, injury, illness…you name it…
500-year-old ascetic dance kept alive
The Mainichi
In this series, Japanese photojournalist Satoshi Takahashi has been focusing on the diverse heritage of his home prefecture, Akita, in northern Japan. For this ninth article, Takahashi visited children in the capital city, Akita, who are studying to preserve an ancient dance and music performance locally known as “bangaku,” a type of “kagura,” a show dedicated to gods…
Hinako Omori: A Journey . . . — Nature And Tech Make An Atmospheric Album
Global Circulate/Financial Times
Hinako Omori’s debut album is influenced by the Japanese practice of forest-bathing…
“Yōkai”: Illuminating the history of Japan’s imaginary beasts
Nippon.com
Yōkai are a beloved presence in Japan, from anime like Gegege no Kitarō, Yōkai Watch, and Demon Slayer to the recent fad for the pandemic-busting Amabie…
Mermaids in Japan – from hideous harbingers of violence to beautiful enchantresses
The Conversation
A report that scientists have begun tests on a 300-year-old “mermaid mummy” to identify its origins, has stimulated an interest in the existence of mermaids in Japanese folklore…
The very short, symbolic life of the cherry blossom
HowStuffWorks
In Japan, the annual spring explosion of blushing pink cherry blossoms has been celebrated for more than 1,200 years…
Other News
Italy: Ancient sacred pool identified in Sicily
CTV News
For a century it was thought that an artificial lake in Motya, an ancient city on an island off the coast of Sicily, was a military harbour similar to one in the nearby Phoenician city of Carthage. But new analysis has revealed it was a sacred pool at the centre of a huge religious compound…
Norway: Three centuries on, a shaman’s precious rune drum returns home
The Guardian
Instrument confiscated by the Danes is given back to the Sámi people after a lengthy campaign…
Egypt: Archaeologists uncover five ancient tombs decorated with paintings at cemetery near Cairo
Sky News
Officials said the five tombs belonged to senior officials, including regional rulers and palace supervisors, in ancient Egypt…
‘Witch Hunts’ Past & Present
UK: Calls for Scotland to pardon witch-hunt victims gather pace
The Guardian
Calls for a legal pardon for the thousands of people persecuted as witches in post-Reformation Scotland are growing, as the drive for posthumous justice gains international notice…
Angola: Granddaughters kill 85-year-old suspecting she was a ‘witch’
Macau News Agency
An 85-year-old woman was beaten to death by her relatives in the Angolan province of Lunda Sul, for allegedly practising ‘witchcraft’, the Angolan police said on Monday, adding that two of the people involved are under arrest…
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