IDGAF Goes Live

Hi everyone!

Today is the day I get to tell you about the "IDGAF Project" I've been working on as of late.

IDGAF is a new eclectic (witchcraft) tradition that I co-founded with 3 friends. This is my take on it:

IDGAF is a free non-hierarchal initiatory tradition that focuses on being an active participant in your spirituality, with continual learning at its core. Land stewardship also plays an important role. It is accessible and inclusionary, open to anyone of any background, regardless of what traditions you're currently a part of or what deities you associate with. We only ask that you be an active participant in your spirituality - you won't find any "Sunday Pagans" here.

Sound interesting? I'm sure you're wondering about something...

Yes IDGAF stands for "I Don't Give A Fuck".

We were/are tired with the rigid structures and inaccessibility of many modern Witchcraft traditions, and felt like there was too much pressure on what you should and shouldn't do, or what other people are or aren't doing...so we decided that in an expression of empowerment and celebrating the freedom to do what you want, we named our tradition the "I Don't Give A Fuck" tradition, or IDGAF for short. It's not meant to be flippant, but more tongue-in-cheek. To quote our site "It's throwing off the expectations of others, it's bypassing the drama and infighting and coming to a place where we can all just celebrate what it means to be spiritual, whatever colour we choose to call it".

I realize that we will likely loose the interest of some people because of the name, because people may not take us seriously when they find out what IDGAF stands for. In fact, we've already had a bit of backlash because of the name. Don't judge a book by its cover.

Heather, a co-founder, actually put it perfectly in her blog post today:

"IDGAF is not about being flippant. We aren't joking. It's also not about being callous, uncaring towards others, or negative towards the community. You can care about others, be kind, considerate, and polite, but not care what others think about you. 

We saw a void and we filled it. 

There is a considerable push and expectation towards being "initiated" - it gives you "street cred", it gives you belonging. But so many initiatory traditions are closed; or they are for followers of a certain path only; or they are expensive, costing a lot of actual money or amounts of time and dedication that some people just can't manage. This doesn't make them bad. If you can afford the money, are willing and able to dedicate the time, if you walk that path or know the right people; may you find learning and fulfillment  there. These traditions are not for everyone. Neither is ours. 

We wanted to create something accessible. It's free, it's eclectic, and it's tongue-in-cheek. We don't give a fuck what specific spirituality you practice, as long as you Practice. We don't care what gods you work with, so long as you work with them and don't leave them gathering dust. We don't care what learning interests you, so long as you learn. We're after your dedication, not your dogma.

"I don't give a fuck" is meant otbe a statement of personal power, presented in a friendly, saucy, informal way.

I don't five a fuck. I am who I am. What calls to me, calls. I walk my own path. 

That's what we mean.

There will always be those who tell you "you can't". IDGAF is your statement, your declaration, your affirmation: "FUCK YOU". Yes I can!"

I'm excited to see who chooses to walk with us, who can look past our silly saucy name and see our intention. In intention and purpose is our power."

And so, here I am. This blog will serve as a place where I can post about my initiation process, hence the "Book" pages you'll see on the right. It's a place where I can come to vent about issues I might be having, or to share something I've experienced, or to just share my views on something in general. So today, I leave you with that.

Oh! Happy Ostara (spring)!

Here's the link to our site, just in case you're interested: IDGAF

Sacred Smoke

Happy Daylight Savings Time day guys! /sarcasm 

I'm not sure about anyone else, but when the time "springs ahead", I always miss that precious extra hour of sleep that gets lost somewhere in translation. It's kind of nice to get up for work when it's actually light outside, but I think I'd like that extra hour back a bit more. 

Anyway...

I'm don't know about anyone else, but I absolutely love burning incense. (maybe I'm also a bit of a pyro, but that's beside the point) I'm not exactly sure what draws me to it, but aside from the wonderful scents, I essentially get transfixed watching the smoke from the incense swirl up around me in neat shapes or patterns, or sometimes, no shapes at all. I also think it's really neat that you can sort of "see" the smell of the incense. 

I've recently come to think of burning incense as a type of offering. I'm not 100% sure on this, but I think that in some Eastern traditions, doing just that is actually a type of offering. I look at it like this: You can do candle spells and imbue the candle with your intentions, so why can't you do the same thing with a stick of incense? The biggest difference between the two for me, is that incense seems somehow a more pure form than a candle, so that when I burn incense I may not actually use it the same way I would in an everyday spell. I feel like the smoke sends a more direct message deity, and so I tend to burn incense with the intent of it being an offering (of thanks) rather than asking for something when I burn it. I feel like the smoke can reach the heavens (so to speak) a bit faster than a candle, and so in that way it's more direct. I haven't used incense as a type of spell yet, but I think that in future I might if the circumstances warrant it - like, if I'm really in need of something, I'd burn a stick of incense and "pray" over it (spells are a form of prayer, in my mind at least). I also can't see why you couldn't combine candles and incense to create a more powerful message. 

I'm not sure what makes me feel like incense is more "pure" than a candle, but I do. I guess it could be that candles can get really messy when you burn them, and that sometimes the flame doesn't burn clean (if you know what I mean), but at the same time you're left with a pile of ash when you're done burning a stick of incense, so in that way it's not exactly clean either. I'm also an air sign, so it could just be that I'm connecting more with that element when I burn incense, and so that why I feel this way, I'm not sure. 

I also tend to use a lot of sage and smudge in my practice, but I think it's for different reasons than incense. I look at sage as being more sacred and cleansing, and so I only use sage to clear a space that feels gummed up energetically, or before rituals, or even just to freshen up a space's energy if the place feels stagnant. 

So yeah, burning incense...it's kinda my thing. 

Just a Quickie

I'm off to work very soon, but I figured I'd come back to update you on the altar situation.

I moved it to its permeant home after work yesterday, and at first I was so frustrated I was ready for a break down. After tweaking it this morning, and doing a little somthin' somthin', I feel a lot better about where it is.

Normally I don't like to have my altar in the bedroom if I can help it, but I like to burn incense and we have snakes and a gecko, so I couldn't do that where it was before, thusly, I moved it into a space where I could burn incense. Unfortunately it's really close to some wall outlets, and is in a spot that's prone to getting a bit messy from time to time. The mess-prone area I can work with to keep clean, but the wall outlets I can't get around. Like I said before though, I feel better about where it is now that I've put myself into it a bit.

Here's a few updated photos for your enjoyment...or not. Maybe you don't like photos. Maybe you don't like altars...I dunno. Anyway, here they are.

Still similar to what I had before, but I added a bit more me to it. The two statues on the top corners are of Ganesh (or Ganesha depending on who you ask), a popular Hindu deity said to be the remover of obstacles. I also have a small collection of Buddha statues that you'll see around my wooden incense burner. There's also a bottle of really old dried and crushed up flowers on there, I can't get into the story behind that right now because I really should get by butt off to work. 

Anyway, I'll hopefully be back tonight to add to this, or make a new post. Bye for now!

Altar Your Mind

I think it's important to have an altar set up to focus your practice. Many other non-pagan traditions use altars as well, so it's not just pagans that tend to keep them. They're great daily reminders and serve as a place where you can go to connect with the spiritual or divine. They can be really elaborate with lots of statues and tools, or they can be very simple and sparse depending on your situation. If you're in a place where you're uncomfortable letting on that you're pagan or, if you know it would be unwelcome knowledge, you can always make a shoebox altar. It's literally a shoe box filled with your stuff that you keep in your closet or under your bed, so that you can take it out and use it when you need it. Shoebox altars are also great because they're portable.

That being said, my altar needs some work. I've only recently just set it back up after not having had one in a few years. I think I'll end up moving it from its current spot, so I'm not going to get too involved with its layout until I know exactly where I'm keeping it. So far it's pretty simple. I tend to keep my working altar pretty simple anyway, because I feel like I can always dress it up more if the occasion calls for it. 

I'm also a fan of having one main altar where you do the majority of your workings, but also having multiple other mini altars set-up around your place. Maybe it's just a piece of your bathroom counter that's got a few sea shells and a candle, or maybe you've got a collection of statues arranged on a shelf somewhere. Those can be altars too, if the intent is there. 

So, as a part of that IDGAF thing I mentioned, here's a photo of what my altar looks like right now. 

Like I said, it's nothing spectacular, but it's something. I'll explain to you what I've got going on. On the floor is a small wooden sugar skull wall hanging I got last weekend (well, I guess it's been two weekends ago now). In the middle I have a rhodonite sphere, sitting on top of a slate pentacle. Directly above that is a bowl of sand for burning Japanese-style incense or resin incense on a charcoal, or small candles I don't have a holder for. Above that is a covered incense burner I use for burning traditional incense sticks. I have a framed print of a painting done by a local artist (and shaman) above that. To the right is a small metal chalice with a pentacle etched in it. Below the rhodonite sphere is a sweet grass soy candle, and below that is my athame. I've got a pinecone, tingshaws, a lighter, and a small glass bottle representing the four elements surrounding the stuff in the middle. 

This is what a typical everyday altar looks like for me - representation of the four elements, some candles, my athame, an incense burner, and some form of representation of deity. I'll usually switch it up if I'm doing something more specific or add more stuff when it's close to a holiday. 

Anyway, that's it from me for now. I'll probably check back with an altar update when I move my altar to it's more permanent home. 

A New Direction

So over the next 6 months I will be reading at least 6 pagan-esque books, and I will be using this space to talk about what I'm reading and my thoughts on those books. I will also be using this space to blog about stuff I'm doing for that IDGAF project I mentioned last night. I can't say much about it just yet, but hang tight and then I'll explain what I'm doing a bit more. For now though, things may seem kind of random and out of the blue, so just bare with me.

I'd just like to put it out there that, because I didn't start this until right now, it doesn't mean that today was my first day starting things, but just that it wast the first day of me realizing that I could use this space for this purpose.

I started reading my first book last Friday (Feb 28), and what I've read so far I've really enjoyed. I'll see what I can do to set up a page for that specific book, and the subsequent books I read, just so stuff isn't quite as all over the place on this "main page". I've gotta run for now!

The Winds of Change

I am writing this post to let you know that my blog will be taking a different direction from here on out.

Instead of a place to come and write the random musings I have from time to time, I'm starting a new project called IDGAF, and I will be using this space to blog about it. I may write random stuff from time to time, but by and large, my blog will now consist of personal views and thoughts about this IDGAF project, which is still pagan-y related. You may notice a tonal shift and a shift in the way I write, but that comes along with the territory. I hope you've enjoyed what I've had to say thus far, and I hope you are able to continue along if you're still interested.

Embracing the darkness

Now that Samhain is behind us, we're officially into the dark half of the year.

In my small section of the world it's gotten really chilly in the past week. It's time for us to get out the hats, scarves, and gloves, and put away the lighter jackets in favour of the warmer ones. We've been having frosty mornings that turn into frosty afternoons, where warm drinks and hearty meals help to take the chill out. Although the time just "fell" back an hour, the fleeting light I get to experience at the end of my work day will continue to become more and more dark as the weeks go on, and instead of greeting the sun at the bus stop near my house every morning, I won't get to say hi to it until I get to work.

The dark half of the year is a time for introspection. When we can take a step back and do some inner work. While I think this is important for everyone to grow and evolve, I also think that stepping out into the darkness is equally important. Challenge yourself in some way during this time, and I think you'll find it can be quite rewarding.

The "group" that I work with recently discovered an unsettling presence at our regular outdoor ritual spot. Someone else has been using the same space as us, and while we are normally more than happy to share (as the more people that use the space the more energy that goes into it), whoever it was did not have kind intentions. This left us feeling very unsettled, anxious, and jittery, almost with a sour taste in our mouth.  While I understand not every ritual or working is going to be all love and light, this was beyond that. It was putrid, and it makes me wonder what the hell someone was doing that would leave something so disgusting behind. Not wanting to give our spot over to whoever was doing that, we fought fire with fire, in a manner of speaking, so that the space feels much lighter now. Hopefully it will be back to a more usable condition soon, but I can't help myself questioning what happened there. Maybe it's best not to question these things...but whatever it was, was ugly.

Embracing your dark side doesn't mean conjuring stuff you don't understand, or hexing someone that called you fat at work, but it doesn't mean being all love-y either. Pure white light is a reflection of all the colours where as darkness absorbs them all - to be able to understand the light you must also understand the dark. You can do something terrible with the best of intentions, but you can also do something amazing even though your intent might be ill seeded. Remember the balance of things and be safe as you delve into the unknown. There will always be a light to guide you, all you have to do is remember to light it.