I have been blessed to apprentice to many great masters, those who acknowledge the light, dark and the grey pathway, those who wield magick working with their dedicated deities, where magic seeps from their bones, those who you can feel their power and devotion being directed through their hand, all whilst life swirls around them with their dedication unwavering, not those who dip in and dip out of spiritual pathways rather masters who stand with conviction in the hidden pathways and practices.
This blog and ritual is dedicated to a mentor Andrea Faith, who passed through the veils 6 days ago, a Magician and Occultist who taught me much about myself particularly when I had no idea what control was, no idea really what ritual magick was; however I was a willing servant to my patron Goddess and heeded the soul call for dedicated ceremonial practices.
This is a picture of Andrea performing Ritual... Goosey Bumps all over!!!
Young I was, around 21 (around 2003) already practicing magic as a soul practitioner for 4 years, open to expanding my connections within the community of like-minded, wayward soul searchers. Here is where the deep shit really took hold and I was addicted, channelling many of my dark addictions toward spirituality. I found a small group that was rapidly growing about 20 kms from my home, my first night with the Women of the Wise was in perfect alignment as I connected with fellow sacred Sister and bestie Tara from Full Moon Tarot & Divination!!
This group was an eclectic learning circle of pathways of witchcraft, divination, ritual, shamanism, fae, Pathways of Isis… we expanded our learnings taking on Andrea’s Pathways of the Goddess which included on top of our fortnightly meetings, undertaking a year of Dark Goddess practices, a spiral into self, whilst holding the Dark Goddess’s Cloak as she guides you into your depth. I still remember taking the final journey work of the culmination of the year a Dark Isis journeywork in Andrea’s home and the grasp this woman worked as I had a massive breakthrough with Dark Isis compelling me as I opened so many personal chasms within self.
You see post a year of working in the dark there was an opportunity of stepping in further and little 22-year-old me had no fucking idea what I was stepping into really… a weekend of celebration, ceremony and bitch slaps from the Goddess who was about to take me to my utter depths and beyond ~ More to come on that.
We travelled a gaggle of women in a small bus to Andrea’s home in Glenn Innes… yes 6 hours from my home, the place of the great standing stones in the middle of winter (bbrrrr).
Anyways the opener was the Dark Isis ritual and pathwork, then we packed up and went to the Standing Stones opening portals to other universes, opening our hearts ready for ceremony, it snowed and sleeted and I didn’t care, I danced, I revelled in the freezing cold. It was warm in the portal she activated, and the downloads were coming through thick and fast. From here was a hurricane of ritual including Dark Moon, Reconsecration of the Womb, Dedication to our Patron plus many other ceremonies that will remain close to my heart and deeply personal.
At the end of this weekend I was invited to undertake an apprenticeship of sorts, I would personally call it spiritual ass kicking to the max. I don’t believe there is many times in life that you embark on a pathway of magick that has the power to allow you to strip yourself bare, allow the dark night of soul consume your life, your body and physical empire. Accepting the apprenticeship to work within Andrea’s Ceremonial Magick ways for 3 years trigged so many Tower and Death moments… why you may ask because I needed it! I called it in! I accepted that I would need to peel my skin back, rip my heart out and be in the loss for some time to come out rebirthed but it was a long, long, long dark tunnel and she midwifed me as a birthed, writhed in pain, cut away ulcers in my etheric field and let go of many of my identities.
During this time, I was initiated into the Servants of the Light by Andrea, for those who knew me knew I was completely dedicated neophyte of High or Ceremonial Magick (aka Ritual Magic – for more information check out the Golden Dawn) and to my Patron Goddess Hecate. A personal pathway that only those who have truly dedicated to a Patron know the depths you are expected to go to… there is always an exchange and loss!
So, as I sit here remembering many conversations, many personal moments as she would sometimes allow me to lay upon her bed with her and her precious animals, those personal moments she would talk to me of her death… see she was an Occultist consider this ~ She was dedicated to Isis, so she had done a lot of work around death rites and was very comfortable with her passing but leaving her beloved daughter Leah and her animal familiars was a pain unbearable, one that you could see in her eyes as she shared.
So, I contemplate how do I put all of these experiences into a Blog and share the myriad of emotions that are coming up, I cannot even begin to understand how being friends and dedicating to Andrea’s teachings have culminated in where I am right now ~ So Grateful!
A little personal to know the multifaceted nature of this being!
She often preferred her pets to people, she was an inspirational artist even with her hands often in pain from arthritis, she loved voice singing filled her with joy, she was an amazing card reader and innately knew many things just from being in your presence, and I was always appreciated her garden where she use to sing to her plants. She was an activist in areas she felt compelled to move beyond magick, she was a pillar in her community particularly in the arts, she had a wicked sense of humour and laugh that was contagious and almost wicked (which I loved). She was a firm believer in magick and calling in deities, she was fierce in her belief regarding dedicating to God/Goddess true deity, their dark elements included, for we cannot expect to serve half a deity or love only half a person.
Today I draw upon these teachings dedicating an altar, the altar below is not traditional, that comes after in private, as altars are personal and powerful access to the core of our own souls. Check out the pictures in the smoke as I called and prayed to her soul. Check out the Lady in the Smoke (second pic)!!! She is here!!!
Look at the Magician in the Smoke :)
Fly high on the wings of Isis dear Elder, Zora xxx
Andrea Faith ~ Born 20 December 1944 ~ Elder and Crone
Goodbye
by Gwydion Pendderwen
Do not stand at my grave and weep.
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning's hush,
I am the soft star that shines at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry.
I am not there. I did not die.
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