17th Spell - For Sale, Vampire Blood, Cheap

Lore and I were headed out to Sprouts for some groceries, but it was on our way that we walked passed the Dollar Tree, and within its clear glass walls stood a magnificent display of Halloween-themed decorations. Its cheap plastic Shangri-La was the most glorious I had seen since the Sabbat came to mind.

“Lore!” I exclaimed, grasping her arm with a bright smile. “Can we go inside before we go to Sprouts? Please? Pretty please?”

Lore glanced down at me, and, in a tone that said she would humor me, replied, “Yeah, sure. Lets go then. We got time.”

It was within the store that we purchased a goblet that read “Vampire Blood” on it. It matched the ones I had gotten that said “Witches Brew” and “Spider Venom” last time. Also, since our ice cube trays were starting to crack, we spotted a silicone one that made ice cubes in the shape of pumpkins.

“Oh, this is cute!” I exclaimed as Lore picked it up. “Lets get it!”

We wandered around the store for a bit more (mainly because its always interesting to see what's lurking in a dollar store). I asked Lore if we needed anything from here before we went to Sprouts. As we headed down an aisle, we paused by all the leg razors, and I snagged a pack before heading to the line.

The cashier scanned all of our items, and looked down at them for a brief moment with a perplexed look on his face. Lore looked down as well, before she burst out laughing.

“What?” I asked, confused, before the cashier picked the items up as he placed them in the back, going, “Huh, Vampire's Blood goblet—I wonder who's blood that's gonna be—oh, and some ice cubes to keep it all chilled and some razors...looks like someone's gonna be cuttin' tonight.”

The other people in the line looked as us as all three of us started laughing. The collection of items reminded me of a 3am Wal-Mart purchase... but it was only 7 in the evening at this point. But strange things like this happen once in awhile. Lore and I snickered about it with one another as we made our way into Sprouts.

Monday is the big day! ♥ May all your Samhain's be merry!

Love, Soull~

Looking for something to do for Samhain? Check out my guest post on the Pagan blog A Witchy Life to brew up some ideas to make your Halloween fun!

Patron Deities 101 - Amaterasu

Glad to see you could join us in class today! Here at Magick Users University, we strive to promote education as well as fun in our classes! Today, we'll be bringing you a new patron deity!

Today's honorable goddess is...!

*~ + AMATERASU + ~ *

天照

She'll outshine you, always.

+ About Amaterasu

Amaterasu is a Japanese goddess who represents (or is) the sun for the Shinto religion in Japan. She is one of their principal deities, to the point where people worship her solely. That group is widely known as “the Cult of the Sun”. Shinto is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people, which carries and connects the traditions of ancient Japan and modern day Japan.

Her full name is Amaterasu-omikami, (天照大神-天照大御神) which means “the great August kami who shines in Heaven”. Kami means “spirit”, though the word “god” is also used synonymously (so one could assume it would mean a “higher” spirit than of say a mortal).

She is known to be a beautiful and radiant goddess, born from the left eye of the god Izanagi as he purified himself, whom then went on to become the ruler of the Higher Celestial Plain. She was so bright ad radiant that he sent her up a long ladder to the Celestial Plain, where she has ruled ever since. However, the world was shielded in a period of darkness when he brother, the god of storms, created a stirring on earth so noisy it frightened the beautiful Amaterasu, and she hid in a cave and covered it with a rock. It blotted out her rays, covering everything in shadow.

However, the trickster god's dancing beckoned her out of her cave. A mirror had been hung in front of it, and, curious to see the beautiful light she saw (which was merely her own brilliant reflection) closer, she came out, bringing light to the world once more.

+ So what makes Amaterasu patron goddess material?

She is an important part of Shinto religion, thus making her a very prominent goddess and deity. Being the goddess of the sun, you can be sure that Amaterasu will bring beauty, light, and clarity to your life and magick, along with also things like warmth, radiance, and growth.

+ Holy Statistics, Soull!

Name: Amaterasu (天照)

Alternative Names: N/A

Nationality: Japanese (Shinto)

Type: Sun Goddess

Physical Appearance: A typical Japanese beauty with pale skin, black hair, and constantly radiant

Colors: Red, white, and gold/yellow

Day of the Week: Sunday

Attributes: Radiance, beauty, sun magick, warmth, and growth

Want to see any specific gods or goddess in Patron Dieties 101? Leave a comment here, or if you're into more Zany antics, check us out on Tumblr!

16th Spell - The Horrors of the Cauldron Starter

There's a monster in my kitchen.

Its been there since Saturday night, sitting there innocently on the countertop, as if it just belongs there. As I tend to stay out of the kitchen (as it is the Kitchen Witch, Lore's domain), normally, I am left undisturbed by the beast, as long as I keep close to the entrance and dare not wander towards the oven or microwave area. Not that I would want to.

I would be breathing the same air.

My own morbid curiosity keeps me going into the kitchen to spare a glance towards it. Lore is the only one who can tame the creature. She has to feed it everyday, or else... it will die.

"Let it die," I grumble as Lore leaves her place close to me in order to feed it. I was crestfallen that I had mentioned the time last night ("Wow, its almost eleven!"), and my red-headed companion rose, quickly, to feed it.

"It needed to eat at 10:30," Lore stated, and moved into the kitchen.

"It needed to die at 10:30," I muttered under my breath, pouting towards the screen of my computer. Lore luckily didn't hear me. I tapped the side of my Toshiba laptop in thought. I could heard her rummaging around, pulling out its food. Gods. Was it truly necessary to keep it alive?!

"Wanna watch me feed it?" She asked from the kitchen. I could almost hear the grin in her voice. She knew. She had to have known; it disgusted me.

"No," I called back in a pointed tone. I may have even stuck my tongue out in her direction. I don't remember. "No, I don't. It stinks."

And it did. The beast reeked. Every time I wandered past the kitchen area, just a smidgen into its domain, it would fight back, assault my senses with its overwhelming stench. While Lore had been napping, I walked just shy of it, and when I caught its stench, my body reacted: I swung at it, mercilessly, beating the ever living pungent out of its invisible stick-army.

[ Insert gratuitous flowing combat hair ]

However, my curiosity had gotten the better of me once again. At Lore's offer to watch her feed the beast, I ended up pulling myself away from the couch tentatively. I padded to the kitchen, peeking over her shoulder just as she paused by the counter, grasping a hold of its cage, and unleashed it.  

It...

It was...!

"It's breathing!" I let out, and instantly shrank back as the monster unleashed a bubbling pop from the bowels of its chunky, porous flesh. Lore let a smile pull on her face as she started scooping the monster out from its cage, and I watched with wide eyes as it stretched out, long and just, ugh. Gross. "You have to feed that thing?"

"Yeah, or it'll die," Lore stated, slopping parts of the monster into a plastic bag. I watched her with morbid fascination as she explained. "...If you let it sit without food for too long, it'll die. It eats flour. So, I hafta scoop some out," She did so whilst explaining, "And toss it in here, and then, refill the rest of the bowl with fresh flour so it can feed on it."

"That..." I let out, backing out of the kitchen. "...Is gross."

"The best part," Lore told me later, "...Is that its used to make really awesome pancakes and cinnamon rolls. Gives it flavor. But hey, think about it this way. You feed it, and in turn, it feeds you."

"Oh yes," I stated from over the ice cream I had been eating. "...That sounds lovely." Gods, I hate yeast.

Despite my best intentions to keep the beast Lore affectionately named "Len" out of my head, I had dreams of the monster gumming at my feet.

EDIT: (10/7/11)
I walked into the kitchen today in order to start putting away the dishes. The container the beast was in, as I walked innocently by, f**king exploded. EXPLODED out of its container. I screamed (kind of? It was more like a squeal-yelp-howl... thingy) and ran out.

It was reaching out to grab me with its arms, dammit!

---

 Happy Samhain/Halloween!