Blessed Winter Solstice

Q&A FAQs

Please keep your questions and your tongue civil. I will not answer any questions about the Bowynn tradition and faith that are malicious or in ill content.

Do not ask political questions.

I do not do "distant divination" for people, as I do not believe in it.

Please do not ask me for spells for fanciful means (Make me a cat, change my eye color, make me a mermaid.) Such fictional ideas only meant for roleplaying games TV, Movies, and bogus websites like Spellsofmagic.

I will cast spells or give spells to you if I feel your purpose is genuine.

I will light a candle and place a Wish Card on my altar for you if you are in NEED. Just ask and let me know what the wish and wish card is for. (Health, wealth, safety, protection, abundance, housing, pets,

QUESTION AND ANSWER: GODS AND MAGIC

QUESTION: When casting spells in the Bowynn Tradition, what gods are invoked, if any?

ANSWER: A practicing Myst [witch] will invoke the goddess Mystara prior to beginning any spell. She is offered incense and whatever else a Myst can offer. Then the spell is started. Depending on the spell, will depend what other gods will be invoked during the casting of the spell itself: Owen and his daughters for health, Anhur for justice, Daeth for wealth. Istra for vengeance, Bryanthenaea for protection...and so forth. Even if you are not sure which gods are invoked for your need, that's okay. So long as Mystara is invoked prior to the spell. She is the patroness of witches and makes sure the spell is being done for just case, to see it is done correctly and its manifestation.

Bowynn Gods: Khammii

Khammii  (Kham-My)  Khammii are the Kii (spirits) of freshwater bodies, such as ponds, streams, lakes, rivers and so forth. They are said to be of human size, very beautiful and live either in the waters they protect or on its shores. Unlike Mermaids, the Khammii do not have fish bodies. But they can turn into westland animals like fisf, herons, egrets, bitterns and otters. The beauty of the Khammii is depicted in many of the sacred tales. The sadness comes when one learns how protective the Khammii are of their waters. So much so, that mortals that abuse their waters fall to a dramatic ending. Other times sacred stories speak of a mortal and a Khammii that have fallen in love and either one or the other dies, in an attempt to live with the other. Clearly a warning as to how dangerous bodies of water can become.

     The Khammi can be compared to mermaids or water nymphs, but the gender of the Khammii is mixed; some are male and some female. 

BOWYNN GODS: REYE

Reye  (Ray)  Reye is the Bowynn goddess of the hunt, the patron and guardian of wild animals and sacred groves. The name Reye is Bowynn for "rain" and thus she is also the goddess of gentle, life-giving, rain. She is the daughter of Amaetheon and Deanna and her consort is the bear god, Lomaun.

     The sacred stories of Reye are numerous, starting with her birth. Deanna gave birth to Reye while in the deep forest, which she was trying to convert to fertile farmland. But soon after the babe was born a fox dashed out and snatched baby Reye away. For months and years the gods hunted for the child and the fox. Eventually the immortal brothers Kord and Brand came to a small village in a forest and amongst the mortal villagers lived the, now child, Reye who was happily tending and talking to the domesticated farm animals and the fox that originally swiped her away. With a lot of persuasion, the brothers brought Reye back to the gardens of Alaway, where she was reunited with her parents. Her abilities and devotion to the wild and domestic animals granted her attributes to be their patron and protector. She was gifted a bow of yew by the god Herne and a mantle of fox hide by Myliea, the goddess of winter.

     Another sacred story describes Reye’s unconditional love for wild animals when she witnessed mortal hunters that struck down a cougar. Reye tried to comfort the animal, but the hunters drew close. She turned herself into a cougar to lead the hunters away. Once the slayers were lost deep in the woods, Reye returned to the dying cat and with her weeping tears saved the cougar from dying. (Artemis)

     One of the most beautiful of Reye’s scared tales is told in her creation of gentle rains. That’s she was so upset to see forests dying and sleeping each time it got too hot in summer. Lifting her face to the canopy of the forest she let out in song. The song lifted to the canopy and turned into rain. A rain that was able to nurture the forest and keep it from dying.

     While Reye is primarily a goddess that protects animals, she is also a protector of hunters as well; making sure they do not fall in traps or attacked by bears, cats and boars. She also makes sure a hunter hunts only enough to support his himself and his family. Reye condones sport hunters.

     Reye is seen as young woman or late in her teen years with traditional short blond hair and light-blue eyes. She is clad with a simple clothing of buckskin. In hand is often a bow and on her back a quiver of arrows. She is always seen with a fox at her side. Scared to Reye are reeds and cattails, hunting dogs, foxes and hooves animals such as the deer. In temples devoted to Reye, small trees are arranged in barrels about the floor to simulate the forest. A special offering to Reye is bowls and libations of rainwater, as well as life size votive images of foxes and deer.

Apologies

For the last couple of weeks I have been in the hospital. So that is the reason for the lack of posts. I will get back to more in a couple of days.

Bowynn Gods: The Ea

Ea  (Ee-ah)  The Ea are the four great hawks of the directions. These hawks were originally the great guardians of the North, East, South and West. However, to gain rulership of the earth Anhur had to take on these raptors. Unknowingly, it was not always a battle of strength. When Anhur met the great hawk of the west, he had to answer 7 great riddles. The hawk of the South dared him to endure the heat of the desert for 7 days and the hawk of the east made Anhur meditate and discover his inner self. Only when Anhur had accomplish the tasks with success, did the hawks bow down to Anhur’s majesty and let him rule all four kingdoms, thus calling him King of the Gods.

     In turn for their kindness, Anhur allowed the hawks to continue to reside in their homes and became the guardian companions of the four wind gods and their wives. The four hawks have become what are known as the four great endurances into adulthood. Few if any mortal has conquered all four endurances. The Ea are the Guardians of the Lands of the Directions. During Ancient times these lands were Scandinavia, Europe, Asia and African.

The Elements / Tau Retammas

Spirit / Tya - The Moon / Tau Mor

Spirit / Tya - The Moon / Tau Mor

Spirit is ruled over the moon. This point represents all that which is the creative element of the Spirit. Under Tya {Spirit} fall all of its attributes of: The Mystic Arts, Transformation, Alchemy, Divinity, The Psyche and Psychism, Infinity, Celestial sciences, Night, Dreams and Nightmares. Each is a point of light in a web of life. Everything has a spirit which is and is given to us by and Tya. An energy unique unto its own but connected to all existence. When the body dies the energy of that body moves on to be reborn into something else. The power of Spirit is never ending. It is never dying and is the force in the universe that is unyielding and is immortal. Heaven and Earth, spirit and matter are conjoined, where Nature and our own selves are the embodiment of divinity. Nature is our greatest spiritual teachers, showing us how we are all interconnected and how accessible Deity and the Divine is, in the world around us and within us. The spirit of the forest and our own spirits are no different. As the branches of the trees reach out into the heavens, we have the same ability. Our spirituality is what connects us to the forest, all it's adjoining elements and the divine. The moon is the feminine element of dusk and the night. A time when the body winds down and we grow tired. Its grants us the ability to sleep. And in that way, we renew our body and mind. In our sleep we dream- even the dreams that give us messages from the Divine and feel revitalized when we arise. So, it is not shocking to find oracles performing at their best during the night. Looking past the canopy of the forest we are bathed in the moon's glow and the celestial night sky- the stars and the planets. From these we can scry to learn more about ourselves with the arts of Astrology and Astronomy. At the same time, we can go deeper into the universe which is timeless and discover our past lives. Our spirit lives on from lifetime to live time, taking with it only the wisdom gained by experience for our soul’s benefit. The universe views things from an impartial point of view. We attempt to learn to view ourselves without the temptations of embellishing. Here, we learn truths about ourselves, about the world around us, and about a lot of things we need to know and face all in the way nature views us. Being true to your own inner self, knowing your strengths and weaknesses is one of the best things we can do for ourselves and learn to accept that which we cannot change and make our weaknesses into strengths. The Psyche is the spiritual cord that links us to the worlds and powers beyond which we cannot see. Through the use of our spirit and our psyche, we can draw in the divine and the energies of the universe. Experience shows us the way of our true selves by being true to ourselves we remain true to nature. The Virtue of Spirit itself is governed by the moon and the path of the Spirit is the purple path.

Bowynn Gods: Unthar

Wooden pog of Unthar with eyes drawn in - created by myself , Made in 1987

Unthar  (un-thar)  Is the Bowynn God of the air, sky and the air element. Unthar is the eldest of the primordial gods, created by Bia and considered in some way as their king, under Bia itself. Unthar is called by many names from "Father Sky", to “all seeing.” He is the air, the sky, the universe, the heavens and Unthar is the primal element of air. His name "Unth" translates to the word "Air"

     In the creation of mankind, Unthar saw there was no life in the models that his siblings had made of clay. So, into the mouths of each one, Unthar gave breath. And with that, the figures came alive. During creation it was Unthar that separated the heavens from the earth, giving atmosphere around planets and blocking the divine heavens away from the sight of mortals on earth below with clouds. Unthar is also considered the first lord of the winds and weather. Unthar is spoken of as "Ever embracing" as well, as he is all around. Unthar's totem animal is the Hawk, Eagle and other large birds.

     Wedding and bedding his "sister" Brea, Unthar fathered all the great gods of the Nykua, the divine family. He is one of the few gods that rarely visits Alaway, the hall of the gods, as his often too busy watching over “all” of earth's denizens. So, his duty is almost never ceasing.

     Unthar is seen as an older god, of grandfatherly appearance. His white hair and beard are long and eyes almost crystal clear, so he can take in everything. He can be attributed to the idea of the "wise and kind Grandfather". His garments are often seen as white and somethings with a blue or grayish hue. At time he is seen with a staff in hand and other times, he is seen with a horn in hand, which he uses to summon gods to his attention. Sacred to Unthar is mostly incense of all scents and votive images of a horn and birds.

(Matching gods would be gods like Ouranos and Varuna)

Blessed Winter Solstice

Bowynn Gods: Abbennaea

Abbennaea  (Ab-bhen-nay-ah)  Goddess of all sorts of offerings and libation. She is the daughter of Phaenixx and Sumon. Abbennaea is a rather young goddess, mother-like in appearance, said to be graced with deep red hair. She is the goddess that receives the spiritual essence of the offerings sent to the gods by mortal men and in turn, turns them into “that which is good for all beings.” After the “Great Migration” of mankind, Abbennaea was said to have spent her “7 sacred nights” among the first tribes and taught them the arts of making incense and what offerings were allowed to be offered to the Akua. After the god Mano tricked mankind to sacrifice blood to the gods, it was Abbennaea that had to come back to mortal man, cleanse their altars and re-teach them all that what was acceptable.

    In Alaway, Abbennaea is not only a messenger of the gods but has the duty to purge and cleanse the halls with incense daily; burning Tsa'hekas of incense to dispense the energies from the night before. It was Abbennaea that cleansed the great hall after the battle between Mano and his cousins after one fight took place in the halls of Alaway.

    Abbennaea is said to be of a most loving face and of natural beauty, her garments often of reds and she is depicted always with either a single stick of incense in one hand (or a bundle of sticks). And in the other hand, a libation pitcher. She is often said to take the form of a bird or butterfly if she does mingle among men. The butterfly being her totem