Pagan Blog Project/Pentacle Soaps

C IS FOR CELTIC ROOTS - PAGAN BLOG PROJECT

I've chosen my C to represent Celtic Roots. I am a child of Irish parentage going way way back, living in England, and longing to return to Wales! A lot of the customs I grew up with have a nod to Pagan ideas but my parents were staunch Catholics - my mother even more so as she grew older but the cross-over was very obvious. I grew up in England, never feeling I really belonged as my mum kept Ireland alive for all us kids although we didn't visit very often. When, at 18 I left home to go to University in Wales I felt as though I had come home. The Land of Song touched me in a way that has stayed with me ever since. My husband is Welsh, my children were born there but we moved away due to work in 1996. My daughter has found her way home to a Welsh University and my son this year is due to also go to University and has, again, chosen his home town Cardiff. My feet are itching to get back to my Celtic roots also.

But what does it mean to be Celtic. The great Celtic scholar Dr Anne Ross once said"Everyone with European roots can consider themselves of Celtic origin" People who are not directly descended from Irish, Welsh or Scottish families tend to think they have no Celtic roots but so many different European tribes contributed to the creation of the Celts that surely there is a touch of Celtic blood in all of us.

That said the Celtic countries, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall and Brittany have become the guardians of Celtic culture. Great leaps and bounds have been made in the last 30 years with the preservation of the languages - my own daughter went to a Welsh speaking school up until the age of 5 and we had to move away. Even though I couldn't speak Welsh myself I wanted her to know the language of her ancestors - but life pulled us in a different direction. We know a little but not enough to get by.

There is a wonderful book called Kindling the Celtic Spirit by Mara Freeman which is full of ancient traditions, blessings, goddesses, gods, to last for a full year.

This weekend sees the start of the Rugby Union season - no where else can you feel and almost taste the passion of the Nations who bring their patriotism to a sporting field - with no trouble. Welsh, English, Irish, Scottish can all sit side by side and cheer on their chosen team, the atmosphere is electric. The camaraderie is a lesson to the rest of the world that you can be proud of your own heritage and allow others to be proud of theirs.

I've always been interested in essential oils and it was only a natural progression to discover more about them within the context of the Craft.

When I lived in America there was a wealth of products but here in the UK they are very few and far between. Having failed to find any decent magickal soaps I decided to make my own. I've given them away as presents to family and friends and had great feedback so have decided to start making a few more.

These Pentacle soaps are made with an organic soap base. The oils are what I call my Earth Oil collection - their properties are:

North - Winter - Power - Night - Mystery - Pentacle

ideal for this cold weather we're having in the UK at the moment.

The oils are Patchouli - Freesia - Neroli and Carnation. The fragrance is rich and exotic and smells wonderful on an altar or in your bathroom or even in your underwear drawer!

I will be selling these in my Folksy store - the link is on the right.

Now - how about another Bread Recipe - still on the Imbolc theme: This loaf uses poppy seeds as decoration to symbolise Imbolc but you could use other seeds, pumpkin or sesame

300 ml/1/2 pint milk

50g /1/2 oz butter or 1 tablespoon oil

15 oz yeast

1 teaspoon caster sugar

500g / 1lb plain flour

1 tsp salt

1 small beaten egg

Pre-heat oven to 220C, 425F or Gas Mark 7.
1. Place the milk and fat in a pan and heat until lukewarm.
2. Cream the yeast and sugar together, add a little of the warm mild and leave until frothy.
3. Sift the flour and salt into a warm bowl, pour in the yeast and milk mixture. Add the egg.
4. Mix to a soft dough, turn onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.
5. Place in a clean bowl, cover with a damp towel and leave to rise in a warm place for approx 30 minutes. the dough should have doubled in size.
6. Turn onto a floured surface and knead for as long as you can - at least 3 minutes. Shape the loaf to whatever shape you like or make into small rolls.
7. Place onto a greased baking sheet, cover and leave in a warm place until they have doubled in size (about 15minutes).
8. Glaze the rolls with the beaten egg and sprinkle with poppy seeds.
9. Bake in a pre-heated oven for about 20 minutes. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Magickdiva