I'd like to begin by thanking everyone who commented on my previous post concerning the Wiccan Rede. All of the comments received on it, save one, have been posted. I hope you've read them and that they've triggered debate and discussion. The one comment that was not posted was far too long to include in the comment section. In fact, it was longer than my original post. This comment came from Rain Dove, the Priestess of The Dragon and The Rose Coven of Georgia. A quick look on The Witches Voice shows that "Rain Dove has been practicing and walking the path of Wicca since 1996, but has been studying since 1994." The Coven practices the Jordanian Tradition of Celtic Wicca. By this she

Modern Paganism embraces a wide variety of spiritual traditions. One of the challenges of these traditions is that in some instances they are not thoroughly considered. An individual tradition may leave out large swathes of concepts and limit themselves to small sections of reality. There is often the worship of deities, the practice of magick, divination, and healing, the celebration of festivals and holidays, but little else. As a result, for many people their spiritual tradition is merely a part-time practice rather than a way of living. (I wouldn't limit this to Pagans, either.) In fact, for many Pagans, when asked how their spirituality flavors their lives, they have little to say,

Each week this month, we are taking a look at the Tarot Illuminati by Eric Dunne and Kim Huggens. The 9 of Swords is not really my favorite to get in a reading, but in so many decks, I find the card to striking and powerful. Such is the case here:

Readers, please enjoy this guest blog post by Tess Whitehurst, author of The Art of Bliss, The Good Energy Book, Magical Housekeeping, and the new Magic of Flowers. One of my very favorite things to do is visit Descanso Gardens, an amazing botanical wonderland nestled way out on the edge of Los Angeles where the city gives way to the foothills. For me, it's not just about ooh-ing and aah-ing at the pure physical beauty of the tulips and camellias (or whatever happens to be in bloom), although that's part of it. It's more like a spiritual pilgrimage to visit the wisest sages I know, all of whom are more than generous with their wisdom and healing abilities. The only prerequisite is that I