Following my Dream about Doors, I’ve been re-examining my goals and priorities. My year-and-a-day has passed, August 1st 2010 being the day I got my blog running in the first place and Lammas - the holiday I discussed in that post - is today. While it’s not required of me (not to mention I’m not exactly in any sort of initiatory order) I really wanted to perform some sort of dedication to mark the time that‘s gone by and to set a definitive goal for the future.
But what would I dedicate myself to? Like I said before, a ritual without a purpose is like a door that doesn’t lead anywhere. It can be a beautiful door, and a real experience to pass through it, but if it doesn’t actually take you anywhere then the exercise is pointless… right?
All of the study, the reading, all the research, the talking to people - it’s been a real trip, and I don’t plan on stopping any time soon. It’s changed how I think, opened up my mind, and shown me a lot of good things. Admittedly, it‘s led to some really depressing realizations about just how bad the world can be - but it‘s also shown me that it‘s alright to hope as well.
Still, what does this all mean? What is my goal? Do I have any plans for what to do with all the things I’m learning? What has anything I’ve learned actually done for me?
The words “Divining” or “Dowsing” call up lots of different images for different people: anything from looking into a crystal ball to a psychic holding a crystal on a string over a map, trying to locate treasure, to someone using a forked stick to locate water.
There are lots of methods. Using a weight on a string is popular, as is two rods bent at right angles so it looks like you’re holding a capital L in each hand. Dowsing for the purpose of divination - fortune telling, answering difficult questions, etc - is also popular. Results regarding questions not directly related to the life of the person operating the tools are at best hit and miss.
For this reason (and the fact that dowsing has yet to prove itself in laboratory conditions) I’ve always chalked up the results to the same thing behind moving the planchette on Ouija/oracle boards and automatic writing: The ideomotor effect. Minor muscle movements, unnoticed by the user, directly affect the movements of the tools. As a result, the subconscious speaks out. It’s my belief that you will pretty much never get an absolutely accurate answer out of dowsing unless some part of you already knows the answer to the question being asked.
As mentioned in my previous post, I’ve used pendulums - typically a ring or similar weight on a string - before, to get absolutely honest answers out of myself regarding tough questions where I thought I might try to lie to myself. But given the dream I had, specifically the symbolism around changing my views on dowsing, I’ve decided to do some more digging. What I found led me to look into chakras.
I'm gonna be honest - this one is RIDICULOUSLY long. Today’s post is about another dream, in which I met sort of a spiritual guide. If you’re more interested in reading about The Wheel of Dharma - which I’m sure is the more interesting topic for most people who might visit this blog - then hit the jump and scroll down until you see “The Wheel of Dharma” in bold. Otherwise... well, you'll probably be bored. Just a warning.
A lot of different practices call for a lot of different tools (necessary or not for practice). For instance, Christians don't need a church, or pews, or a crucifix to pray or be Christian - but a good number of them go to churches anyway, partially for the fellowship, partially to feel closer to God, whatever reasons. Smaller, more personal physical items are sometimes carried - things like Rosaries, or a more open term, Prayer Beads.
A few months back, I made a Buddhist prayer mala. 108 beads with 4 markers splitting it into sections of 27, with a 'guru' bead at the bottom, and a tassel. I also added 3 removable counters that attach to the mala - two strands with counters (10 ea) and a little bead on a silver clasp that sits between beads on the ma la.
(The pictures aren't mine) Holding the mala in either one or both hands, I say a mantra (Om Mani Pedme hum) and for every mantra I pass a bead. For every full round (108) mantras, I slide up a bead on the counter on the left. Every time all 10 beads on the left get slid up, a counter on the right goes up. For every 10 counters on the right, the little clasp moves over one bead.
When the clasp has gone all the way around, that's 1 million mantras. "But wait!" You say. "That math is all wrong!" Well, not quite. Every time I do a round, it only counts as 100. Why?
Every time I say a mantra, it's supposed to give me good karma, or spiritual merit. The last 8, however, are donated to the world, to everyone around me. When the 1 million mantras have been said, I dedicate the practice - once again - to everyone. As of this post, I've reached 31,500 mantras for myself. It'll be sometime before I reach my goal. You might wonder how much time I devote to this, or what the point of it is, but it's not something I do constantly - it's for moments of quiet, meditation - something for when my hands are bored at the movies, or when I'm just relaxing. In other words, for moments of peace... like a physical prayer.
In any case, the point of today's post (before I started rambling on about beads) was that I'm still looking for my tools. Since I'm looking into Wicca right now, I'm looking for the tools I'd use on my altar (Cauldron, Chalice, etc). I'll be heading out to a local gift shop, and some thrift stores in a bit - pictures if I find anything good.
UPDATE
A fruitful hunt! The gift shop uptown was closed today for whatever reason, but a trip to the local Salvation Army and The Goodwill resulted in a small incense burner, and a metal mixing bowl. Not for a cauldron, mind you, but a singing bowl!
I'll post another vid as soon as I find a better striker. As for the burner -
The picture makes it look huge, but it's only about 3" tall. Still, this size is normally around $11 at a store. Oh, and the bowl? A genuine singing bowl of the same size is normally over $100. Both the bowl and the burner ran me about $3. I love thrift shops.
All of the study, the reading, all the research, the talking to people - it’s been a real trip, and I don’t plan on stopping any time soon. It’s changed how I think, opened up my mind, and shown me a lot of good things. Admittedly, it‘s led to some really depressing realizations about just how bad the world can be - but it‘s also shown me that it‘s alright to hope as well. 
