Animism and Artemis and Althaea Sebastiani

Untitled project from SquadCast

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[00:00:00] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Hello everybody and welcome to Die With the Divide. I'm your host Ashley, and I'll be your guide today into the mystical and the magical and everything in between. Today we're gonna be talking about animism and I never say it so I apologize everybody. I'm gonna try my best. And an old no, that's not true.

[00:00:21] Lemme repeat that. Today we're gonna be talking about an, I'm gonna struggle with it again and. of our favorite goddesses that we haven't talked about yet, so I hope you are having a fantastic week And if not, I hope your week gets better soon. So today as usual we have another Absolutely fantastic guests.

[00:00:41] have Althea Sebastiani, so Althea is a full time spirit worker and religious educator who focuses on helping people navigate the realities of deep spiritual practice Her work primarily takes the forms of spiritual counseling and education framed within the [00:01:00] context of animism and witchcraft. She contends that witchcraft is a tool that enables us to see and interact with the world more honestly.

[00:01:10] She is the author of several books, including By Rust of Dale and Prick of Thorn, and then the book we'll talk about today, which is Alive with Spirits. Also quick note, everybody. I'm sorry. I'm getting over a cold. So sorry about my congestion. Anyway Althea, how are you doing today?

[00:01:28] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: I'm good. Thank you so much for having me.

[00:01:30] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Of course So I pretty much like to start with everybody the same way. How did you get into your journey with witchcraft and your own spirituality?

[00:01:44] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Ooh. Big question, actually. Oh my god. Okay,

[00:01:50] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: We got time. Don't worry

[00:01:51] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, I guess preface this that I'm old. I've got adult children. I've been around for a little bit. And when I first started [00:02:00] practicing witchcraft, I did not know that other witches existed. I didn't know it was a thing. I hadn't even heard of Wicca yet, and this was the 90s.

[00:02:06] Like, this was back then. But I was captivated with the word,

[00:02:10] Like all through elementary school, like every year for Halloween, I was a witch, every single year, just a little cringy, looking back. But I grew up on a farm. I grew up on my grandparents farm. They have like 100 some acres and we had cows and animals and things.

[00:02:26] Yeah.

[00:02:26] And I just wandered around all the time on my own. I was off, in the woods. I was in the barn with the cows. I was in the hay mow with cats. And at some point when I was just outside, I started hearing spirits. I

[00:02:41] started talking to plants and having them tell me, to use them for things that I had no idea because my family weren't into herbalism or anything like that. And I just went with it. And then my dad had a book on folklore and superstitions that I came across, and I was just, I was enthralled. And I'm studying it, [00:03:00] reading all of these folktales and learning, rules for interacting with spirits and, little tips on, protection magic and things like that.

[00:03:08] And I started implementing things. And then I started, hearing spirits in the forest telling me, hey, do this for protection, too. And. I was getting results. I was curious. I just kept following it. And I ended up putting together this weird little, dirty hands and feet child type kind of witchcraft.

[00:03:25] And like five, six years later, I heard of Wicca. It was a few more years later. So it would have been, I think like maybe 2000. I think I got my first book and I just, I dove in,

[00:03:38] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: oh, wow! Okay,

[00:03:41] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Few years after that, I ended up like deconstructing my practice and going back to being more spirit focused and land focused entirely and doing a lot of like tossing out of that nineties Wicca influence that was really inescapable, but helpful admittedly at the time.

[00:03:56] And then we get here somehow.

[00:03:59] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: [00:04:00] okay! I love how, okay, It's interesting, and I think it's definitely dependent on what you grew up to. I was bored in like the late eighties. So in what I always was like, Ooh, magic. Like, I just thought it was cool. And I always just believed in it. But then like, again, like when you said you you found out about Wicca later on, there's very like limited, there's nothing wrong with Wicca.

[00:04:23] Let me start right there. Wicca is great. Like for anybody who practices, that's no problem, but it's like. I feel like before, when you learned about witchcraft, it was like it's about Wicca it has to be Wicca centered. And I remember reading about Wicca and I was like, this is cool. I, this is not something I want to, this is not my cup of tea.

[00:04:42] Nothing wrong with it. It just wasn't, I didn't feel attracted to it. So I love how you took that and then you ended up be like, Oh, evolving your practice later on. Way more said, that's the cool thing about witchcraft. I think at different forms of spirituality, [00:05:00] you can sometimes make it your own thing, yeah.

[00:05:04] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: yeah. And sometimes you just need that something to fill in the gaps and to

[00:05:08] push you forward so you can find the answers on your own. I know that I was personally stuck and I didn't know what to do because it's an entirely different way of looking at the world and experiencing it and I just, I couldn't make the connection.

[00:05:19] But then, a couple of books on Wicca and it helped me just fill in that gap and Just to have more confidence in what I was doing and what I knew to be true too. And that was really huge. So for that influence, I'm always grateful and

[00:05:33] definitely count, my influences as what they are.

[00:05:36] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: yes. Oh my gosh. It's so true. I read, I remember that was one of the first things is I always say I dip my toe into every religion, like just to tip every religion. I like like when I read about Wicca, even though I didn't like subscribe to it, I also was like, Wow. A lot of this makes a lot of sense. This is a lot of, this is how a lot of these things that they're talking about is how I look at things too. This is really [00:06:00] cool. So then when I started to form my own thing too, it was like, Oh, I can take, like you said, you could take from things that you've learned. And obviously a lot of the people, you look at like the.

[00:06:10] Scott Cunningham is like one of the authors that I read like all his books. Like I was like,

[00:06:15] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, absolutely.

[00:06:17] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I was like, Oh my God. Like Scott Cunningham is the coolest person ever. I loved reading all his books. And I read every book about herbalism and how to make. I remember this is embarrassing. It's not that embarrassing.

[00:06:29] It's just silly. I remember there's like a, there's like a recipe in I think the like the one that's called bruise. I have it in my library somewhere.

[00:06:38] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh gosh.

[00:06:39] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: but it's about bruise and different potions you can make. And it was like, Ooh, make rose tea. And then drink it and it will help you have like lucid dreams or like remember your dreams.

[00:06:50] I remember like I didn't really know like that tea was like a leaf at this point. I was like 15. I didn't know that like tea meant like you had to mix it with other [00:07:00] stuff, like not just roses. So I took like roses, I dried them out for a week, and then I drank the tea and it was disgusting. And I was like, oh, Scott Cunningham, how could you betray me?

[00:07:12] Like,

[00:07:13] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh my goodness.

[00:07:14] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: my fault because I had no idea what I was doing. But here I am trying to blame my friend Scott Cunningham. Sorry, Scott. I would never blame you.

[00:07:22] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: I love that though. Cause the whole adventure into herbalism for so many people is you're like, Oh, you're outside. I love plants. They're so great. My favorite color is green. And you like pick something like I'm so earthy and you put

[00:07:33] it in your mouth and eat it And it's like bitter as fuck.

[00:07:35] And you had no idea. You're like thinking you're immune because it's a witch. But no, it's. You're, it's dandelion leaves, they hate you, they're really bitter the first time.

[00:07:43] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: That's literally

[00:07:45] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh.

[00:07:45] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: baby witchcraft 101. It's just

[00:07:47] And assuming you are connected. You're like, I'm fine. Like you can't eat grass guys. It's not okay. I know. Like you think you're immune to it, but like, just

[00:07:56] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: No. Oh.

[00:07:59] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: when I was a kid, [00:08:00] I was like, so first of all, I'm a witch.

[00:08:01] I know this in my head. Like, it's fine. And I was like, I'm pretty sure I can control the wind. Like I swore to you, I could control it. I'd sit on like, we lived in like an apartment on the second floor. And I'd sit on the balcony and be like, wind stop. If it stopped within five seconds, I was like, boom goes the dynamite.

[00:08:21] I

[00:08:22] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: I have the power. oh my god,

[00:08:28] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: But,

[00:08:29] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: I love that. It's so funny because when I was a little one of the first like big spirits that I interacted with like in a more official way was like the Slavic wind spirit too, so that's just perfect,

[00:08:39] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: that

[00:08:40] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: I'm like a little babe and I'm like, hey, can you make it stop raining so I can run out of the house quick, get the mail and like, can it be dry, and then it would work and I'd be like, oh yes, I love you.

[00:08:49] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: See, you're like, it's real. I

[00:08:51] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, it's all real. Oh.

[00:08:56] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I, it's so funny because I used to do stuff, the same kind of thing and like, [00:09:00] sometimes, sometimes things would happen to me and I would know. I'd be like, yeah, that was it. Like, and then other times, you don't know. You're like, is this a coincidence?

[00:09:09] Like, no, it's not a coincidence.

[00:09:11] This is because they love me. Like, like, like

[00:09:14] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: But you need that starting out, too.

[00:09:17] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yeah,

[00:09:17] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, you need that. It keeps you going and boosts that confidence and then it really prepares you for when everything stops working so easily. You have to put in the effort,

[00:09:26] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: right? At first, everything is so chill and like you just be

[00:09:29] To spirits and like little things will happen.

[00:09:31] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:09:32] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: like start telling you riddles and stuff, you're like, I thought you guys were on my side.

[00:09:37] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, and then when the weird stuff starts too, and you're like, oh shit maybe I should back off a little bit,

[00:09:43] yeah.

[00:09:44] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: asking you to do things. I'm like, wait, you want me to do something? This is crazy. We were just having fun. That's wild.

[00:09:51] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, all fun and games until they start making weird requests and moving your shit around your house.

[00:09:57] I remember when I started like, Trying to [00:10:00] work with certain spirits. I thought they will. Okay. This is also really silly. I used to go to Barnes Noble and buy like spell books that were like all the clearance out like I love that.

[00:10:08] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh my you have to, you're obligated to, the

[00:10:11] three dollar, Which, yes,

[00:10:14] I also have a shelf of them. Oh

[00:10:17] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: so like, okay, I'm the most lazy spiritual person. I have to be honest. My, I always joke that, like, I joke, but I'm serious. My spiritual people up there, they know that like a long ritual. I'm probably not going to do it. Like, give me something I can do it a day.

[00:10:34] Like we'll get it done. But I'd like, I give them offerings of like, you guys know me. I love you so much. I'm just lazy. So they'd have these like. Spells that were like nine days long, do this every day. I'm not going to do it. I'm so sorry. I'll do it for the first three days. I'm going to forget the fourth day.

[00:10:53] And then the fifth day, I'll be like, damn, that's crazy. I actually didn't do anything I was supposed to [00:11:00] do yesterday. Oh, no, like i'm that's why like when it comes to like official Spells and stuff don't rely on me because I will forget

[00:11:14] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: that's still good though, that can still be effective. Even just skipping that day, sometimes you gotta space things out a little bit. Let it marinate, let it pick up some steam too. That's

[00:11:23] You know, to mix my metaphors there, but,

[00:11:25] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: no, you know what? So what I started doing instead was like i'll just talk to them every day instead I'd be like, okay what you guys want me to do today? Yeah, because yeah, i'll come back tomorrow if you want me Sometimes they'll be like, okay I just want you to talk to us every day for like a couple days.

[00:11:43] I'm like, okay, yeah, I can do that. Do a little, if I could do a, however long you, what you want, I'll come, but like, yeah, I'm not one of these people who's like, I always see like, I admire people who do like ceremonial magic because I never, all these big rituals and just [00:12:00] all this.

[00:12:00] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: yeah.

[00:12:01] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: yeah. Even people who do even like, I'm West African. And so like a lot of the. Like witchcraft and things, like if you hear like in Santeria, you go to a babalauo, they tell you to get all these things. I'm like, wow, that's a lot of work. They want you to get all these items. I'm like, wow, I don't think so.

[00:12:19] I think it's not gonna work for me. I'm gonna have to do something easier.

[00:12:23] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: you need baby steps, yeah, ease into it,

[00:12:26] yeah,

[00:12:26] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I know they're like, all right, you're gonna have to go get fresh chicken. I'm like, bro, that's a lot of work. I gotta go to a whole farm for that. It's gonna be crazy. I don't have that kind of time. Oh, all I'm sorry.

[00:12:40] Okay. So now that we've all talked about how I'm a lazy spiritual person. It's not we're going to talk about our dish of the week because Althea's book, which we're going to talk about a little bit, has a lot to do with, like, the land and connecting to it [00:13:00] and all that kind of stuff. I thought, since this is going to come out later in the summer, let's do like a later summer dish that, like, it's something that has to do with the land.

[00:13:08] One thing, especially if you live in the U. S., we got a lot of corn so this is a corn dish. It's sumac and sage corn. So you could make you get four to six ears of corn and you char them up on your grill or whatever You want to use your open fire or whatever you like As the corn cooks you're going to measure out 1 4th cup of mayonnaise and put it in a medium bowl and then Get one tablespoon of sumac and sage seasoning two tablespoons of al pep alpo pepper Half a tablespoon of granulated garlic.

[00:13:44] And then you're going to shred one fourth cup of Parmesan cheese. And then you're going to add some fresh parsley that you're going to, when the corn is done cooking, you're going to slather it with this mixture. I top it with the Parmesan and parsley. So like I said, you could [00:14:00] put the, sorry, everybody, my brain just melted for a second.

[00:14:04] The dish will be in the show notes. If you want to make it super easy, you could also use that like mayonnaise mixture. To put it on hamburgers if you're a meat eater and you like to do that. Or you could, if it's not grilling season, you could actually microwave frozen corn. And use that same mixture to put it on the corn and have it as like a side dish or whatever.

[00:14:23] Or use it in a taco combination if you're making tacos, Taco Tuesdays. Okay, so that is our dish of the week. So next we're going to do our tea time. So for today's tea time, we're going to talk a lot about Althea's book because here's the thing, everybody. I was like, we're going to talk about the word I can't say, and then it's up.

[00:14:46] But like, it's such a big thing. So I just wanted to go through, it's huge, right? So I'm like, It's just, it's everything, literally. It's literally everything, I was like, we're going to talk a little bit [00:15:00] about the book. And so the first thing I'm going to do is just give you the definition of animism. So the definition of this, it comes from the Latin anima, which means breath, spirit, or life. This is the belief of objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence.

[00:15:16] Animism persists. Receives all things, animals, plants, rocks, rivers, water, weather systems, human handiwork, in some case words as being animated, having agency or free will. Animism is used in anthropology of religion as a term for a belief system of many indigenous peoples in contrast to the relativity more recent development of organized religions.

[00:15:43] So think of literally Almost every single indigenous religion pretty much of all over the world started this way. There was a belief that the river, either the river was a spirit or the river was represented by a [00:16:00] spirit. The moon is represented by a spirit, this kind of thing. And in that which is a lot of what Althea goes into her book.

[00:16:09] It connected people to the land. That's why I argue to say that people, many people who believe this way took really good care of their land. their land is feeding them, their land is their spiritual center. And like, like I said, like physical center too. It's what they use to eat, what they use to survive.

[00:16:33] I wanted to go through a little. So first, Althea, what inspired you to write this book? Let's start there.

[00:16:39] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh gosh. I think in a few ways it was inevitable. Animism just became this. Inescapable undercurrent of everything that I was writing. And I had the idea for a book and I wasn't really sure about actually putting one together and I really resisted at first. But then my students were very [00:17:00] interested in more and more about animism so I ended up writing a few workshops.

[00:17:03] And eventually I went back to the book idea that I had and swore I wasn't actually going to do and I cannibalized it. And turned it into more workshops, turned it into a course, and then took that and just, it, it was, it became very obvious to me that I, it was necessary to put the book out. To put something that was wholly focused on animism and explaining it in a broader way than just, everything has a spirit.

[00:17:31] Just really connecting it to the fact that it's a worldview and impacts everything about your whole life. And, yeah, here it is now. Yeah. Yeah,

[00:17:51] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: here. There's something you said, I don't see the lesson seven. But it's about, [00:18:00] okay. So you said, I read it yesterday everything is like, everything is connected. It makes you then more aware of like your actions and like how you're going to go about things also. If you realize, now obviously your book, it's Alive with Spirit, The Path and Practice of Animistic Witchcraft, so obviously this is doing craft and dealing with the land and your world but when you do craft and do magic, which some people argue is like, Manipulating energy, basically, right?

[00:18:37] But when you do that, and you look at the world this way, knowing that everything is connected, you do it in a way that is more, like, conscious. It's not just like, I'm gonna do this today, like, for whatever silly reason. You do it for a bigger reason. You know what I mean? Does that make sense

[00:18:57] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah. because you're not just doing this like a spell for some [00:19:00] reason and like hoping that it's going to have. An effect that you see here in the physical world But it's recognizing that you as a person aren't just physical body But are a spirit body also that the world around you isn't just the physical world But there's a spirit world layered on top of that there is energy moving about and affecting everything that there are other spirits that Some you'll see some you'll never see because they avoid you and knowing that Just like your physical actions impact other living humans that impact the plants impact animals There are actions that you take Spiritually, that impact everything around you too, especially within that close proximity, but then it ripples outward. So it's just having that greater consciousness that all of your actions have an impact on the world around you. Just like those physical actions or spiritual actions do impact other people too. Maybe not human people, maybe not even living human people, but they do have an impact. And so with that greater consciousness and awareness of. The power of your actions. There's also greater consideration for the [00:20:00] people around you. It really helps you to de center yourself and think about like, okay, am I being a good neighbor, to

[00:20:06] the humans around me? Being a good neighbor to the spirit people around me and just really putting in that extra thought about how you exist in this web of relationship that includes more than just living humans. And I think that's a really great part,

[00:20:19] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: so when I was reading that was like my first thing that oh my god Like I love that you're putting that out there that people can think that way like you really Realize that everything you're doing is affecting and you make such a good point not just your physical world around you and everything around you but actually like in the spiritual plane too.

[00:20:38] And I think a way that a lot of people are seeing that now too is because there's a lot of talk and people are talking a lot about like ancestral healing, ancestral ties.

[00:20:49] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah. That's a huge part of my work too.

[00:20:51] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yes, because I was reading your website. I saw that you do a lot of work with that too. Yeah.

[00:20:55] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:20:56] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: But it, but that makes so much sense that it's so tied [00:21:00] into this too, because like when

[00:21:02] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: it is.

[00:21:03] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: yeah, because like, first of all, we all know now that a lot of the things That happened to our ancestors end up trickling down through our DNA this is what we do, or this is okay to do. And like. It goes down through the whole family line even with all different things. It just flows through the Emotions even like people like so if you always think like somebody like oh, you know So and so they're hot tempered because their dad was hot tempered like you can obviously make a physical choice to not be angry Like you don't have to be mad but If all you saw was that it was your whole life and then your father only saw that their whole life and then his mother Only saw it comes down the line.

[00:21:43] So You We know it in that way, but also now we know with ancestral healing, we can also affect our ancestors and help them be at peace, right? And we can also help our descendants as we are [00:22:00] going to one all day, one day be ancestors. So us changing our lives now affect our, offspring or whether it's nieces and nephews or students or whoever you are going to affect in your life.

[00:22:15] So I just love that you talked about that because I think that people, we live in a very individualistic society sometimes that people just think Oh no. Like this is what, and again, if there's a lot of good things about it and there's things about it that, could be tweaked, people are like, this is what I want to do.

[00:22:36] This is how I want to do it, which is good. People having agency is not bad, but it's also like, sometimes you have to realize. Hey, like, what I say and what I do can sometimes affect other people in the long run,

[00:22:48] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: yeah. Regardless of intention too, there can be that impact.

[00:22:51] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yes! That's so important too! Just because, look, most people are decent people. Most people aren't out to be assholes. I [00:23:00] think. At least like, there's some people, there's some people,

[00:23:04] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: will make you wonder, but yeah, for the most

[00:23:07] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: wow, you're really rude and you have no home training. I don't know why you talk to people like that.

[00:23:10] But like,

[00:23:11] I had to have an encounter with somebody like that today who I want to be like, wow, who raised you? That's crazy. But I think most people are just trying their best, right? Like just trying to get through the day. But, so sometimes we want to do things, we want to say things. And we really do meet well, but we don't think of how it's going to affect other people or what we're, how we're saying is other people might, even how other people might take something.

[00:23:41] I used to be this person and I'm sorry to everybody in my past. I'm just being honest. Like I was being bitchy, like, me being honest is not the most important thing. Sometimes. I have to be kind. I can't just be, not that I'm a nasty person, but sometimes I would want to be honest because that was what I thought was right.[00:24:00]

[00:24:00] Meanwhile, I'm hurting people's feelings. That's not

[00:24:02] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah. A little too unfiltered.

[00:24:05] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yeah. It was like, and I had to learn getting older that like, you can be honest, but there's a way to speak to people sometimes.

[00:24:13] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:24:14] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: You could tame your honesty a little bit. It was better for everybody, but yes, that is.

[00:24:21] So that was a really cool thing that I love that you talked about. Let's see, you talked about a lot of things that it's not

[00:24:27] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: I did. It's

[00:24:30] a.

[00:24:31] There's a lot crammed in that book, actually, yeah.

[00:24:34] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: when I was like, Oh, this is cute book. And then I started

[00:24:36] Was like, damn, this is heavy, like

[00:24:38] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: I

[00:24:38] know, right? You're like, oh, nice book, I'm gonna blow through this tonight, it's a good weekend read, and then you're like, chapter what, no, shit, no.

[00:24:47] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: was like, this is a dense

[00:24:48] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: No.

[00:24:49] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: She's got practices

[00:24:50] and stuff. Homework. Like, damn, that's crazy. I love

[00:24:53] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah. I'm gonna help you change your things, help you change your worldview, help you change your practice.

[00:24:59] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yes,[00:25:00]

[00:25:00] it really does. And I love how, oh, the other thing I like that you said was people getting to know their land and their local spirits. Like what's around them is really important. I find that like, that's another thing. I think sometimes and i've talked about this a couple times with different people too about like Being okay.

[00:25:22] Let's talk about basic being like witchy is cool Like getting into magic is super cool. But there are so One reason I really like this book. There's so many things that will help you Get to where you want to go with it Like instead of just being like, now I have an altar and I put like wind, water, earth.

[00:25:44] It's great. We're good. I'm done

[00:25:47] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:25:50] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I'm chatting

[00:25:54] It's like this book Is really good like base for everything [00:26:00] like if you really want to start you want to like deepen your practice See, okay, say you're doing the, like we talked about earlier, you're doing the fun part. Everything's super fun. Everything's working. You're like, Oh my God, that's so crazy.

[00:26:13] Like, Oh my God, they're talking to me. But then a lot of the times, like you said, you hit a wall, like, cause you're like, Ooh, like I'm not growing within this. It's not like fun anymore. Like,

[00:26:26] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: feels Like, something's missing. Yeah.

[00:26:29] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: it feels like something's missing. Usually when you hit that wall and you can tell me how you feel about it too.

[00:26:34] I'll feel like. It means that you have to go like deeper,

[00:26:38] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:26:39] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: you have to dig a little bit Because they're trying to get something out of you, usually, and it's like you just don't know it yet. You haven't seen it yet.

[00:26:49] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, you

[00:26:51] gotta do something that makes it start changing you, that witchcraft gets inside of you and starts changing you and really making you be a witch instead of someone that just does [00:27:00] witchcraft, on the weekends or something, or when you've got time, yeah. Yeah,

[00:27:11] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: now I feel it all the time and I think it's become so natural. But like, before I'd go outside and I'd be like, the wind, like the grass, when you start really realizing that like, everything around you is moving and vibrating and like, this is all, and like, that's how you can manipulate energies because you're almost aware of it and you're like, really focused in on it.

[00:27:36] You're like, okay, I get it. You start appreciating the world around you more. And you also stop, and I think you said, you start de centering yourself from your practice, and like you said, like we were talking about before, you realize you are part of this big, wide world, like,

[00:27:57] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: it's not,

[00:27:58] just you're not alone,

[00:27:59] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: [00:28:00] yeah, you're not alone, and it's not just about you and like, how how you want to do it and how you think this is going to work, like.

[00:28:07] You are part of this big maze of stuff. once you become aware of that, start to move different in the world.

[00:28:19] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Exactly, yeah.

[00:28:20] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: yeah, it's just, it's so cool. I,

[00:28:31] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: back from that, it's definitely easier to keep going forward, as much of a challenge that can be in as much as it can be really difficult at times, but I don't know about going back from it.

[00:28:41] Like once you see how much more there is to the whole world, to just life, to the human existence, like it's. Everything's so much bigger. It's so much bigger.

[00:28:57] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I, my friend said this one time we were talking about [00:29:00] just like ours, like our spiritual world. And we were just saying like, yeah, like. What was it like before we knew all this? Like, we don't like, like we were bored, like, we were mad bored. Like, what were we doing? That's crazy.

[00:29:17] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: goodness. Yeah.

[00:29:20] Oh, you talked about being in community, which I really like that you talk about. And that is to me, like. Respecting your, the land around you, respecting, where you live. Even being in community also is almost like, okay, Again, Scott Cunningham.

[00:29:41] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I remember reading his book and going to go find some mugwort. One of the things he's always like, oh, if you go to cut your herbs, don't cut more than like a fourth of the herbs in that area. Cause you want to like, you want to respect the land. You're not going to take everything. Don't be greedy.

[00:29:56] You probably don't need everything anyway. But that's part of [00:30:00] being in community and respecting your land.

[00:30:03] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: yeah. Not hoarding resources and taking everything for yourself.

[00:30:06] Yeah, Exactly.

[00:30:07] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Again, once you decenter yourself and you realize like, Oh, we're all part of this big game.

[00:30:13] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah. And then you can start seeing, too, how just this little thing, like, in your witchcraft practice can apply to your whole damn life, too, and how you're interacting with your neighbors, with your co workers, with your family member, with your extended family, it's, it becomes this huge, rippling thing.

[00:30:28] Yeah.

[00:30:30] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I felt like when I started like a spiritual practice, it gave me a lot more empathy for people.

[00:30:38] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah. It's easier to be compassionate, yeah.

[00:30:42] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: it really is because when you realize number one, like you said, you are really part of this. And when somebody does something, you look at them like you want to look at yourself and you also look at them the way you want people to look at you.

[00:30:57] Like, okay, [00:31:00] like my new thing lately has been like giving people grace. Obviously it does not apply in every situation, but like sometimes you're like I'm just going to give you grace because you realize when you really think back and I know this person. I know how they're acting. I know their history.

[00:31:19] And then I realized why they're, I really think through things before I start going off on people or started like really highly judging them. I'm like, okay, this person has been through this and this is why they're reacting this way. And Hey, if it's not, okay, it's still not okay. This thing you have to forgive people.

[00:31:37] But sometimes you're like, I'm just going to move this energy somewhere else because I can't do this.

[00:31:43] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:31:44] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: You're like,

[00:31:44] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah. And sometimes just being a bitch back isn't the best for this, that scenario for either party too sometimes you want to tell somebody off, but it's not the best thing for you to do. It doesn't help things.

[00:31:56] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: exactly. Yeah. And when you realize you're part of it, you're like, [00:32:00] okay, obviously I did not cause this issue, but

[00:32:03] I, yeah, I'm going to try to better. This is how I think of it. Sometimes I'm like, I'm going to try to better this person's life. They don't know I'm doing them a favor. I'm going to try to better your life by not going off on you right now, because I could.

[00:32:20] I'm going to give you grace. I'm going to give you And it's so funny because a lot of the things that like major religions people will say about like, witchcraft it's like, witchcraft is like everybody's very chill. Like first of all it's not like an organized thing so you can do what you want.

[00:32:41] But like this is the core of it. It's just like respect the land. Be nice. When you can. Be

[00:32:51] cool about shit.

[00:32:53] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Just don't be self centered and think of others, like I

[00:32:55] can

[00:32:56] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: And they're like down with her. And you're like really [00:33:00] like, Oh, don't like take everything from one area. Maybe that's not good. Maybe like commune with your land, respect it, appreciate what you got. They're like, burn her at the stake. Crazy.

[00:33:14] Let's see, I think that's the major things, but I just wanted to tell everybody, I just wanted to, like, read, so everybody, the different lessons in this book. So one thing about the book that I like is there's works, like, there's little exercises on each lesson that you could do. I don't think it does a very good job of writing everything out, like, she explains

[00:33:38] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: like them words.

[00:33:39] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yes, you will not be confused. That's the problem. No, it's not a problem. That's the best part about it. You will be confused. She explains everything. It's not too, like, highfalutin where you'll be, like, Oh, these are a lot of, like, words that I don't understand. No, if there's a word that's big, eventually you'll figure it out because she explains it.

[00:33:57] I love it. [00:34:00] worry. So just so everybody knows, some of the lessons we have in this book is witchcraft and worldview. Witchcraft comes from the land, which, hello, if you don't know that, you gotta start again. A world, a live spirit. It's being in community, the layered witch, the layered world, looking at these different the afterlife or whichever you like to call it, walking between worlds she talks about.

[00:34:24] I like that. Communication, interaction, and manners. Hallelujah. I love something when we talk about manners. Cause some people don't know and then the witch within the world. So how to move, oh this is another one, this is the last lesson, I want to talk about this for a second. I'm gonna tell you guys my gripe real quick.

[00:34:43] I love a spiritual person, I love a spiritual healer, but guys, when we walk around the world and we want to be spiritual, sometimes you gotta ground yourself, and you gotta chill out. People who are just like, I just walk around like this all day. No, you don't calm down. You go to the grocery store just like I [00:35:00] do.

[00:35:01] And that also like that's also like I find a lot of time like ego working when people are just like and it leads to people be like. I'm just more spiritual than you because like I just walked around like connected. I can't walk around all day listening to spirits. I'll, I won't get anything done.

[00:35:20] We have times and places when we chit chat. If I'm just like at work. I can't, like, we have to like table this conversation. Sometimes they do be trying to tell me stuff at work, but like, I'm like hey, oh my god hey, like, hey, what's up? Can you guys come back to me at like 5. 30?

[00:35:36] I'll be home, and we can chit chat, and they're like, Okay, no problem, girl. Love you. I'm like, love you, too.

[00:35:42] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: god,

[00:35:42] that's great.

[00:35:44] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Sometimes I remember one time I was like in the bathroom and all of a sudden I heard something else like, Oh, I was like,

[00:35:53] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: there is. something about bathrooms. I've made the joke before about how they're just these sensory void chambers because you get in [00:36:00] there, it's super private, it's super quiet, you relax and then suddenly you're like, someone's like, Hey, how's it going? I wonder if you're busy right now.

[00:36:10] Can we talk?

[00:36:13] It does not fail. It does

[00:36:15] not fail.

[00:36:17] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: You know what's so funny? I love reading about Jin, like genies. And they love bathrooms. That's like one of their favorite spots. It's so weird. It's like all this lore about genies and they're like, and then they were in the bathroom. Oh my god, they were in the bathroom. They're either in the middle of the desert or in somebody's bathroom.

[00:36:38] That's like where they love to be. Or by a garbage can. So that's cool. Yeah, I don't know.

[00:36:45] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, I'm trying, like, what's the connection here?

[00:36:48] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I have no one day I'm going to do. I'm just going to, I want to make, I just want to like spend a three days talking about genies. Cause gin are the craziest thing ever. [00:37:00] I love them. I'm

[00:37:01] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:37:03] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: gin and fairies. They're actually out of control. And someone needs to talk to them because they'll just fuck up your whole life and be like,

[00:37:12] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah. There's definitely Layers of spirit involvement that you want to ease into. And they're on that end that it's good to leave them on that end. Just over there,

[00:37:22] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Talk about it because sometimes everybody wants to get involved in everything. Everything's not your business, stay out

[00:37:27] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: No, it's really not. There's some stuff that you need to have a foundation built. You need to know how to cover your ass. You need to know how to clean up after they come in and fuck everything up. Cause they will. Like, I have

[00:37:40] unfortunately said too often that if you show your bare ass to some spirits, they are gonna spank it.

[00:37:45] Like, it's gonna happen. You have to cover up. You have to have that grounding. You have to know how to protect yourself and clean things up. It's just, no.

[00:37:57] I'm so sorry.

[00:37:58] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: [00:38:00] part. Oh my god, that's so funny. Yeah, but it's facts.

[00:38:07] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: It's, yeah, it's true. You see it over and over again.

[00:38:10] Just

[00:38:15] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: spirits, like fairies and jinn and these little, like, guys who, I always say, they don't have allegiance to nobody except themselves. That's why you gotta be extra scared of them.

[00:38:24] A lot of these other deities. A lot of these other deities, they have like, hierarchies, usually, it's usually a sky dude, that's always the one who's in charge 90 percent of the time, like, like, it's always a man, it's always in the sky, like, okay, I

[00:38:39] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: it's a little suspicious sometimes.

[00:38:41] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: it is,

[00:38:42] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: up with that?

[00:38:43] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: who, said that, and then his wife is the earth, and it's just, this is what we're doing every time, whatever we'll fix it later, but at the same time, like, all your deities,

[00:38:56] me, so I'm gonna go fuck some human's life up, and you're like, oh. [00:39:00] Okay.

[00:39:00] They're just messy. And this is like, that's why I like that. That's why I like fairies and gin, because I can also relate. I'm like, sometimes I want to be messy. Like I want to hear mess. I'm not like a magical being, but sometimes like I want to get into it. Like, that's why I go on TikTok. Cause I want to hear somebody else's mess.

[00:39:18] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh goodness.

[00:39:20] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Oh, good time okay. So since we were talking about land and we're talking about witchcraft and magic, I was like, what are we going to talk about today? I was going to tell a story, but I couldn't find a story that I really loved.

[00:39:34] So we're going to talk about a deity today because why not? Let's do it. So we're going to talk about a girl. Everybody has probably heard of Artemis, right? Artemis is this fairy, not fairy, but she's usually in charge of fairies, depending on which folklore you're reading. Sometimes she's in charge of fairies, but she's like a big forest deity.

[00:39:54] They do believe that in some ancient indigenous cultures like of Greece that she may have actually been [00:40:00] like a bear goddess. But then when she was absorbed into like, Olympian Greek beauty society here, she became The daughter of Zeus, my least favorite Greek deity, as I have ranted about Zeus many times on this podcast, that would piss me off and somebody named Leto.

[00:40:18] Leto and Zeus had a baby, probably because Zeus was out here doing the most as usual and it was Artemis. Artemis is great, so we love that for her. , the first thing Artemis did was she came out of her mama and then her mom was like, oh, there's another baby in here and Artemis, being a baby that was like two minutes old, she's like, hold up don't worry, I'm a midwife.

[00:40:40] Don't know how that happened. She's like, I'm gonna help you give birth to this baby.

[00:40:47] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, she came prepared.

[00:40:49] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I know, like, what?

[00:40:51] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: the ultimate eldest daughter,

[00:40:53] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I don't know. She's like, seriously. She's like, I'm gonna have to do everything anyway. Let me just start now. [00:41:00]

[00:41:00] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: right here.

[00:41:02] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I love Artemis. So she's like, fine, let's just do this. It was a long, difficult labor, but then her brother Apollo, he came out, and she was like, what took you so long?

[00:41:13] She's like, I was out here taking my first breath, helping mom. This is actually out of control. Just like a brother. Just like a brother to be disrespectful and make his sister do everything. I don't even have brothers, but I hear

[00:41:25] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh gosh.

[00:41:28] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: people are like, my brother got away with everything, and that was the big sister, and I was like, just sound like Apollo, be rude so they're twins if you didn't figure that out he's like her Ultra Ego.

[00:41:38] He's a spirit of like masculinity and the sun and she's more like femininity and the moon. That's usually the correlation that people make. So she's a super good friend also of our friend Persephone, who we also love. We stan for Persephone. Even though she was kidnapped, that was crazy, but like she seemed like everything turned out well.

[00:41:59] She got [00:42:00] hecka tamed out there and she was like, I'm fine. I was like,

[00:42:02] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, she became a queen,

[00:42:04] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yeah.

[00:42:04] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Too much.

[00:42:05] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Exactly, and Hades is generally pretty quiet, so she's just like, whatever, it's fine. I got to be my own realm, I got mad friends, like it's not a problem, my

[00:42:15] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, I got a dog. Everything's good.

[00:42:18] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: I have a three headed dog.

[00:42:20] It's actually not so bad down here.

[00:42:22] There's a grumpy, there's a grumpy boatman I have to deal with once in a while, but it's okay. He

[00:42:28] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Waterfront property, they're right by the river. It's

[00:42:32] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: She gets to meet new people every day.

[00:42:34] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh, God.

[00:42:37] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: She's like, every day's a new adventure. I get to like, take people around and like, help them with the tour. And then I get to decide who goes where. It's great. I love Bruce Empney.

[00:42:46] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:42:52] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: was, probably two seconds old, because she was also helping people give birth.

[00:42:56] She also was like, ahem, Papa, I wish to never be married. And he [00:43:00] was like, Okay, she never had to get married which is great because she wasn't in the mood. She's super autonomous, independent, she does her own thing and a lot of times there's like this big emphasis on her being like chaste or being a virgin, but she's literally just a virgin because she feels like it's not that big of a deal.

[00:43:19] And a lot of her temple rituals that like people used to do were erotic dances and masquerades by Men, women, everybody was out here doing whatever they wanted and like being super sexy. So like she's not like she has a problem with it. She's just like I don't want to be forced to marry nobody which like There, girl.

[00:43:36] She said, I want to stay out in the streets and there's no problem with that. Stay there, girl. It's a hot girl summer every time. She loves it. Um, Oh, so one thing that I read that was cool was the emphasis on her chastity may have been back to like, when they think she was like, maybe a bear, because a lot of the times hunters wouldn't have sex before they went on a hunt.

[00:43:58] Because I guess they thought it made them, [00:44:00] I guess they were like, we're more clear headed instead of thinking about like. genitals and tits or whatever they were thinking about. I don't know. Instead they were focused. So she is the mistress of the hunt. She protects she protects the forest and most all wilderness from excessive human encroachment.

[00:44:18] So people over like that. And she is also like the regulator of secret hunting rituals. She also is the goddess of like fertility in some places, but also botanical fertility. So making things grow. She also sometimes regulates menstrual cycles. So if you've got any issues with your cycle, Just call her up.

[00:44:43] She might be able to help. She presides over different types of sexual energy, like I said. She's loved, a lot of people love her, and a lot of people are also scared of her. Her name also may come from the word, Artemos, which means slaughterer [00:45:00] or butcher. She can also take the lives of animals as well as preserve them.

[00:45:06] She was the last Greek deity to reject human sacrifices. So she was like down with the sacrifice, like, okay girl, we'll see what type of time you're on. Okay, so she grants, like I said, she grants fertility to people who can't conceive. But she also decides what animals that people get to survive childbirth.

[00:45:25] So sometimes she decides who lives or dies. She can also be, bestow or withhold health from people. And she also, oh, here we go, we were talking about fairies before. She can also undo Mischief caused by nymphs or near uh, near reads are like male nymphs she can also be petitioned for a swift and quick death.

[00:45:47] Her veneration of her was never totally suppressed. But she was also not, she's not as close. Okay, so you know how like Roman and Greek gods are usually the same? So her [00:46:00] Roman counterpart is Diana. But Diana is like slightly meaner than Artemis. If you read a lot of stuff about Diana, she's mean.

[00:46:07] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:46:08] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yeah, she wasn't like a fan of people. And don't let you like What like worship her and they get in trouble like something happened to you because then she's like Like banishing you to deserts and stuff. Like she, like Diana was doing, like she was on that type of type. She wasn't playing around. Artemis was a little chiller than Diana.

[00:46:29] Yeah, maybe she took some human sacrifices, but she was still a little chiller. Apparently she's still wandering the forest, so you might see her if you're in Greece or you're in the forest. Be careful, she might be out there. She's also chillin with a bunch of nymphs, so just have fun. People that she loves.

[00:46:44] She loves women lesbians, sailors, Amazons Amazons? The Amazons? Or like, oh, like Amazon, Amazonian women? Tall women. Okay, tall people who identify as women, she's talking to you. She loves [00:47:00] you. Athletes, she loves runners, swimmers, and archers. She is super magical, so she's got all the magic if you need it.

[00:47:09] She's usually seen as like a younger woman who's like super good shape, and sometimes she wears like the headdress of like a stag.

[00:47:20] She has usually silver bows and arrows and a shield. She loves the colors white and silver. Her favorite place is Arcadia, the Arcadia region of Greece. And the island of Laros, in a place that I can't pronounce, is sacred to her. And so is Delos, and this is the of where she was born at her brother. She usually hikes out, like I said, in wild groves and forests, and she's associated with freshwater lakes, marshes, springs, streams, and spirits.

[00:47:53] and what I like here from this, okay, there is a little quote here. This I'm reading from the [00:48:00] Encyclopedia of Spirits, which I love. A Greek proverb asks, where has Artemis not danced? A static, sometimes erotic dance was centered to her right. She is also a shamanic spirit, so perhaps it is safe to venture that dance involving ritual possession was like part of her thing.

[00:48:17] Drugs have been found in many of her shrines and there's like a, they think that a lot of the precursor to modern belly dancing was like a dance for Artemis. She also has a chariot that's drawn by stags. She doesn't ha like, again, she never had to get married, which is awesome. Her cousin is our girl Hecate.

[00:48:43] That's why her I this is my thing. I think that her, Hecate, and Persephone have, like, girl's night. I think they just like, hang out like a couple, like maybe like once a month they get together. Usually at [00:49:00] Persephone's place, like she invites everybody down there.

[00:49:02] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: She's got the room for it. Yeah.

[00:49:03] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yeah, she does. They like to chill, like maybe they have like a little wine, maybe they don't.

[00:49:11] I feel like Artemis is probably like, she's not even drinking. I feel like she's a mocktail kind of girl, I just feel it. She has some cool like herbal, like concoction that she likes to drink and it tastes probably better than the wine. And they just talk, like about how they have to fix everybody's problems, their stress.

[00:49:26] I love it. If you want to make an offering to her, there are these like honey cakes that they used to make. But also, if you make an offering to nature, Something that is obviously can be taken in by nature, something biodegradable or even something that I thought I was like if you made like a donation to like a sanctuary, that could be an offering also to Artemis because you're helping the earth or you're helping animals.

[00:49:57] That's a good way to make an offering to her if you love [00:50:00] Artemis. But I just like Artemis because she's out here just doing, first of all, she's doing whatever she feels like doing. Nobody's stopping her, no one can keep her down.

[00:50:09] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: As if they could

[00:50:11] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: exactly! She's just out in the woods, just running around, and she has, she doesn't care.

[00:50:17] And that's why I like, I've always loved Artemis. It's like, I was like, man, if I was like, into, Pantheon, Artemis would be my girl. Like, she's just so cool. She's just out here, running around, being magical, and telling nymphs to calm down all the time. She's like, you guys are doing a lot. the nymphs get too unruly, she has to go and be like, you guys,

[00:50:41] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah.

[00:50:42] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: you were in the mood to mess the humans up today, but you're really, they're having a rough day.

[00:50:46] Remember, they're, they don't have magical powers. And they're like, damn, sorry, Artemis. Oh.

[00:50:51] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: She and her girls were having parties all the time, too, because they were known to always be singing and dancing with choral songs, too, and leaping dances, so [00:51:00] yeah. She's out there having a good time.

[00:51:02] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Yes, I

[00:51:03] know. Can you imagine just like, Artemis like follower and they probably were just all in the woods. Just a bunch of people in the woods hanging out. That's, what else do you want?

[00:51:17] It's awesome. Sorry. Okay. So that's what we talked about today. We talked about Artemis. That's our story time for today. So that brings us to the end of the show. Althea, this was so fun. Thank you for being here.

[00:51:33] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Yeah, for inviting me.

[00:51:36] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: Absolutely. Now, where would you like people to find you on the internet if they're interested in your work?

[00:51:42] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Oh, definitely my website. It's LadyAlthea. com. I'm on social media as at LadyAlthea2. I guess I'm pretty much active on Instagram the most at this point since the one app went belly up. The one we won't name, but. [00:52:00] Yeah.

[00:52:03] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: So all the links to Althea's work and her social media will be in the show notes if you guys want to check it out. I recommend you do. And again, I definitely recommend if you are at a point where you feel like you want to go deeper with your practice and you want to get. to, and maybe you don't know how to do that.

[00:52:24] Maybe you're like I want to work with this one deity. I feel like sometimes people only think like deity work is the only way to do it. No, there's like so many ways to do it. And this book really leads you. Like into a good place and how you can connect with everything around you and then it'll take then you can build from There

[00:52:42] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: Exactly. Yeah. Exactly.

[00:52:45] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: it's really good. I really recommend it to everybody. There's exercises She's not just telling you what to do and leaving you alert

[00:52:51] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: No.

[00:52:53] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: She's giving you she's giving you things that you could do things you could work on things you could journal You can have journal prompts in there. [00:53:00]

[00:53:00] althaea--they-she-_1_06-03-2024_190559: And then when you do the exercises too, you'll have your own experiences, so you can compare those against what I wrote, and then you can see if you want to believe me or not, and trust that. You don't have to just go in from the start and be like, oh, trusting me, don't take it on faith, prove it for yourself.

[00:53:14] Do the work, and have the experiences.

[00:53:16] ashley--she-her-_1_06-03-2024_200559: And then, when you have your own experiences, and realize that Althea's experience, maybe they weren't exactly the same, but you can relate to that, and be like, She was right, I enjoy this, and now I'm gonna build my own practice from here! Yay!

[00:53:30] Now you're a real witch! Like, like, it all worked out!

[00:53:33] Like, oh god! So like I said, everything will be in the show notes if you guys want to check it out. Link to the book will be in the show notes. And yeah, this is Dying with a Divine, you can find us on Facebook threads. Instagram. I know sometimes I don't post a lot. I'm trying my best 'cause it's hard out here.

[00:53:52] , all the social media, if you have time, please give us a rating and a review. I would really appreciate it. And if you wanna follow me, [00:54:00] Ashley, I'm Sankofa. Hs. That's S-A-N-K-O-F-A-H-S, Instagram threads of. Facebook and St. Coup healing sanctuary. Okay, everybody. I hope you all enjoyed the episode and I'll see you all next week.

[00:54:13] Bye

[00:54:16] ​