The Moon And The Forest Spirits

Where are you getting those textures??? They're so good ;_;

Thank you!! I have a sketchbook with greyish brown paper that has a lot of structure to it, so I scanned it, and it is my go to texture! 

I also like adding a noise filter over my color layers, and I just play around with different settings and combinations until I find something I like! I usually set the blending mode to overlay, but if there are some really light areas I sometimes add some texture on a multiply layer on that specifik area! 

Hope that answers your question! :) 

20’s French perfume bottle

AIR

i have small hands / i love the night sky / i watch small animals and birds when i pass them by / i drink herbal tea / i wake to see dawn / the smell of dust is comforting / i’m valued for being wise / i prefer books to music / i meditate / i find joy in learning new truths from the world around me

FIRE

i don’t have straight hair / i like to wear ripped jeans and overalls / i play an organized sport / i love dogs / i am not afraid of adventure / i love to talk to strangers / i always try new foods / i enjoy road trips / summer is my favourite season / my radio is always playing

WATER

i wear bracelets on my wrists / i love the bustle of the city / i have more than one set of piercings / i read poetry / i love the sound of a thunderstorm / i want to travel the world / i sleep past midday most days / i love dimly lit diners and fluorescent signs / i rewatch kids’ shows out of nostalgia / i see emotions in colours not works

EARTH

i wear glasses or contacts / i enjoy doing the laundry / i am a vegetarian or vegan / i have an excellent sense of time / my humour is very cheerful / i am a valued advisor to my friends / i believe in true love / i love the chill of mountain air / i’m always listening to music / i am highly trusted by the people in my life

AETHER

i go without makeup in my daily life (sorta… it’s more of a mood thing)/ i make my own artwork / i keep on track of my tasks and time / i always know true north / i see beauty in everything / i can always smell flowers / i smile at everyone i pass by / i always fear history repeating itself / i have recovered from a mental eating disorder / i can love unconditionally

I tag @andrew-dandrew and If u didn't do this @bloggerfowl ^^

rules: bold the statements that apply to you, italicize your aspirations, then tag people.

AIR

i have small hands / i love the night sky / i watch small animals and birds when i pass them by / i drink herbal tea / i wake to see dawn / the smell of dust is comforting / i’m valued for being wise / i prefer books to music / i meditate / i find joy in learning new truths from the world around me

FIRE

i don’t have straight hair / i like to wear ripped jeans and overalls / i play an organized sport / i love dogs / i am not afraid of adventure / i love to talk to strangers / i always try new foods / i enjoy road trips / summer is my favourite season / my radio is always playing

WATER

i wear bracelets on my wrists / i love the bustle of the city / i have more than one set of piercings / i read poetry / i love the sound of a thunderstorm / i want to travel the world / i sleep past midday most days / i love dimly lit diners and fluorescent signs / i rewatch kids’ shows out of nostalgia / i see emotions in colours not words

EARTH

i wear glasses or contacts / i enjoy doing the laundry / i am a vegetarian or vegan / i have an excellent sense of time / my humour is very cheerful / i am a valued advisor to my friends / i believe in true love / i love the chill of mountain air / i’m always listening to music / i am highly trusted by the people in my life

AETHER

i go without makeup in my daily life / i make my own artwork / i keep on track of my tasks and time / i always know true north / i see beauty in everything / i can always smell flowers / i smile at everyone i pass by / i always fear history repeating itself / i have recovered from a mental eating disorder / i can love unconditionally

tagging; @msmarvelouswinchester @blue-night-sariel @spectator-sam-walker @superbadassnatural

I got the opportunity to make an illustration for the game Wanderhome, a pastoral ttrpg! These little creatures are called the small and forgotten gods, and they can be found all around in the game’s world! Designing them was so much fun! 

The Great Goddess Hecate (Hekate)

Who is Hecate? She is the Goddess of Witchcraft, Necromancy, Ghosts, Magic, and, in some instances, the Night, Darkness, The Mist, and Moon. For some She is also the goddess of motherhood, protection, and the sea. She is a Hellenic deity, born of the Titans Asteria and Perses. There’s a few beliefs circling around Her being a crone goddess or a Triple Goddess, but those are modern and neopagan beliefs—which She predates. I also consider Her to be a part of the Chthonic deities.

Symbology: Black dogs, Wolves, Keys, Torches, Flames, Torches, Crossroads, Serpents, Daggers, Birds of Prey (crows, ravens, owls), the Moon, witchcraft tools (such as cauldrons, tarot, athames)

Offerings & Devotional Acts for Her:

Figurines of any of Her symbols

keys, skeleton keys, lockets

fire witchcraft and candles, flames, matchsticks

dedicating any lunar or symbolic jewelry to Her

black/dark crystals such as obsidian and onyx

nocturnal animal imagery

black/cool colored glitter

baneful/poisonous herbs and plants

pomegranates/berries (She seems to really like blackberries)

dark blend wines

honey, cinnamon, poppy seeds, chocolates (dark)

mugwort, lavender, roses, jasmine, dragon’s blood

bones and feathers from birds of prey (please check your local laws about obtaining these)

pinpricks of blood (please DO NOT attempt this if you struggle with self harm/etc, blood magic is particularly strong and isn’t for everyone. She will understand if you cannot offer that to her).

Taking midnight walks, setting up altars and rituals at crossroads, paying respects to the dead and practicing your craft in a cemetery 

Any playlists, poems, literature, whether it be your own or just a piece you associate with Her, also make wonderful offerings. 

Lunar Influences & Connections: Reaching out to Hecate tends to work best at night, and really any time the moon is at it’s peak. The Witching Hours, midnight to 3A.M., during strong lunar influences (blue moons, blood moons, eclipses, new moons, etc) all hold strong bonds with Hecate. Also, any time it is particularly foggy or your surroundings are covered in a mist is a good time to try to connect with Her.

Disclaimer: These are correspondences that have been gathered through my personal experiences working through my craft with Her. If you find She responds better to different offerings/during different times, by all means, stick to it! Your bond with Her is your own and should be cultivated in whichever way works best for you and Her. Thank You!

men 👏 can👏 practice 👏 magick 👏

IS A BELL

Youtube video

My Snow Moon by Abi Ashra (Tumblr)

1- Hecate

1- Hecate

Greek Titan of Witches, Witchcraft, Sorcery, and Crossroads.

When I first began this project, I knew that I wanted to end with Hecate. She is simultaneously the final and the first, our alpha and omega of Witchcraft. She dominates popular witch lore, but you would never know it as she resides in the shadows, side plots, and brief mentions. Only when you seek her out does she reveal herself to you, lighting your path while casting shadows and ghosts. Many, if not all, modern Witches, Pagans, and Wiccans see Hecate as a Goddess of Witches, amongst other appropriate attributes, and continue her worship and reverence now several thousand years ongoing.

As is the case with most of Greek Mythology, Hecate has multiple origin myths and genealogies. This is most likely the result of her originating outside of the Greeks, and being adapted and merged with the existing pantheon. Most traditions have Hecate as the daughter of the Titans Perses, titan of destruction, and Asteria, titan of falling stars and nocturnal prophecy. Hecate was their only child, and was able to retain her powers post Zeus’ coup as she helped him fight the Giants. As child of Asteria, her grandmother was the Titan of the Moon, Phoebe, and her cousin was Olympian lunar all-star Artemis.

There are various stories in which Hecate plays a part. Her most notable and appropriate for this time of year, however, is her integral role in assisting Demeter’s search for her beloved daughter, Persephone. Upon Persephone’s decent into Hades, Hecate, through the light of her torches, helped Demeter discover her daughter in the underworld. As such, Hecate has become a chthonic Goddess, and Persephone’s yearly attendant and psychopomp to the underworld. Her position as gatekeeper and guide to Hades solidifies many of her numerous attributes.

Hecate is associated with ghosts, necromancy, and magic. She is identified with crossroads, torches, and dark hounds. She was a common household deity for the Athenian—her shrines placed in doorways and city gates to both protect from restless spirits and bestow blessings and safe passage. Her worship and cult was as extensive as her various attributes, with temples and shrines scattered across the Mediterranean. As a key figure in the Persephone saga, Hecate was integral in the ancient Eleusinian Mysteries, impacting secret societies and occult rituals to this day.

Out of all her characteristics, her association with the crossroads is perhaps the most pertinent to my series. Most often, we think of crossroads as the intersection of two roads, yielding four directions. This was not always the case, however, as it was more common to have a proverbial ‘fork in the road’, yielding three directions. This is the kind of crossroads in which Hecate resides. Her statues depict her in triplicity, forearms outstretched, holding torches, keys, serpents, daggers, etc. One face in each direction, Hecate is the arbiter of passages, and in this way is the consort of the God Hermes.

Hecate is one of the original Triple Goddesses of Witchcraft, if not the primordial one. Her triplicity has defined much of Modern Pagan theology, with her stance representing the three phases of the moon, Waxing, Full, and Waning (Maiden, Mother, Crone respectively). Her mythological genealogy as the granddaughter of Phoebe and cousin to Artemis has yielded Hecate as a Goddess of the Moon in her own right, most often known as the unseen phase of the moon, the New Moon (however she is just as often associated with all moon phases). In Greek/Roman Mythology, Hecate joins many lunar goddesses in addition to Phoebe and Artemis, including Selene and Diana. The five were often conflated, confused, and worshiped both in tandem and in conflict. This ever shifting, impossible to pin down, lunar association echos her transient nature of existing in the shadows.

Hecate is both mysterious and severe. Her face is hidden behind her torches, or on the dark side of the moon, however her presence is a constant. She is life, death, and rebirth. She is both light and dark magic. She was beloved in her association with rites of passage like childbirth, and feared in her role as Queen of Shades, present at the final rite of passage, death. Her nature has permeated my entire series in such a profound and indescribable way, I can only show you:

#93: Lilith— often worshiped by modern Pagans in tandem with Hecate #92: Circe: Daughter of Hecate #89, #54, #39: Bewitched: A common expression “For Hecate’s Sake!” Occurs throughout the show. #79: Aradia: Daughter of Lucifer and Diana. Often seen as the daughter of an amalgamated Diana-Hecate. #70: Medea: Priestess of Hecate #67: Charmed: The Halliwell Sisters: Appears in the episode “The Wedding from Hell” #56: Ceridwen: Often worshiped in tandem with Hecate as Dark Mothers by modern Pagans. . #52, #27: Practical Magic: The necromancy ritual the Owen’s Sisters perform, albeit pronounced incorrectly. “Black as night, erase death from our sight. White as light, Mighty Hecate make it right.” #10: Willow Rosenberg: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Mentioned in several episodes and referred to as “Queen and Protectress of Witches.” #7: American Horror Story: Coven: Supreme Fiona Goode invokes Hecate “Come to me Hecate, Mother of Angels, Cosmic World Soul.” #5: The Weird Sisters: Macbeth: Hecate is their master

This list is pretty fitting for a Goddess whose name etymologically may mean “she that operates from afar.” She is seldom a central figure or even visible, however witches from the Owens to the Goodes, from Willow Rosenberg to Endora, invoke her name and ask for her spirit, guidance, and presence. Hecate, in many ways, is both the first witch, and the last. She is our alpha and omega. She is the embodiment of power and strength. As a Goddess of Witchcraft, she does not merely exist in the margins of society like the rest of us—She is the margin itself.

Hail Hecate.

“Hecate, Cerridwen. Dark Mother take us in. Hecate, Cerridwen. Let us be reborn.”