Magick Seer Stones in the Faerie Tradition and in Mormonism

Vermont neighbors of the Smith family have said that Joseph Sr. expressed a belief in seer stones before the family moved to New York. In an open letter to Joseph Smith printed in a newspaper of the day, Vermont neighbors wrote, “you was old enough when you left here to remember a great many things about him and how he used to tell about your being born with a veil over your face, and that he intended to procure a stone for you to see all over the world with (Quinn 42).”


Joseph Smith’s sandy-colored seer stone, passed from the window Emma to descendants of her second husband Lewis Bidamon, Wilford C. Wood Museum.


From a variety of sources both friendly and unfriendly to Joseph Jr. it can be gleaned that he acquired his seeing stones on three different occasions. The first stone he dug up himself after using a neighbor’s stone to see the location. The second stone was a gift and the third stone was found during a dig on a neighbor’s property (Quinn 42).



Brigham Young reported to the counsel of the twelve apostles that Joseph Smith Jr. had obtained his very first seer stone by looking through another’s stone and seeing the exact location. He went to that location, dug, and found the stone right away in an iron kettle 25 feet underground (Quinn 43).


As we can see from the pictures above, the seer stones Joseph used contain holes and are smoothed over. In the tradition of European Pagan, and faery (fairy) magick, a holey stone -one that has been smoothed over by time and water - has long been sought as an amulet of the Goddess and in the faery faith is a great treasure. You must find your stone yourself by asking spirits to reveal it to you (Katlyn 88).


In the process of attaining this stone you may also be given a treasure or gift of another sort such as flowers, honey, colorful stones, or even treasure of monies. These magick stones are a great blessing. By holding this magick stone to your eye you are granted with the power of vision (Katlyn 88). It seems an interesting similarity to how Joseph and his father went about attaining stones of a similar quality and also how they used them.

Guest Post: I Too ...

by Debra

I, too, am a convert to the LDS church, over thirty years now. I too, love Jesus Christ as my personal Savior, the gospel, and the Church. I too, have always loved Heavenly Mother and have a special connection with her.

I too, believe the original gospel restoration that Joseph Smith brought forth contains the essence of truth, and the essence of the synthesis of truth that you seek and experience. I too, have observed that the institution of the LDS church as it has developed over the last 100 years, has moved a considerable and imho disturbing distance from the grandness and expansiveness and freedom and breathing room of Joseph's original vision and intent. It saddens and frustrates me.

I too, honor our Mother Earth, and incorporate ritual in my personal life. I too, believe we as LDS women have had priesthood restored to us in 1843, and that it is up to us as women to find the voice of God/Goddess within us, follow our own heart's path, stand up and claim our truth, and begin using our gifts, and fulfilling our divine birthright and destiny. I believe it is our sacred privilege, right, and responsibility as women of God to do this, and that the time is NOW that we do.

May you and your family be richly blessed in every way, and may our Heavenly Mother be with you in abundance.

Love and light

Countdown to Baptism: Protective Amulet Parchment

I drew this protective "Jehonah, Jehovah, Jehovah" amulet prachment like the one Joseph Smith and his family, as well as other early Mormon's, kept above the door in their homes (source, Early Mormonism and the Magic World View by D. Michael Quinn). I added below it Calendula flowers, picked at highnoon and strung together with a red thread which is a charm I found in American Folk Magick by Silver RavenWolf.



Chamomile tea tea in my favorite mug with local, raw, honey and milk.

Hindu and Mormon Leaders Examine Similarities

(from NewsBlaze.com)


A prominent Hindu leader met a senior leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) in Salt Lake City (Utah) yesterday and discussed similarities in both the religions.

Rajan Zed, prominent leader of Hindus and Indo-Americans, and Neil L. Anderson, member of the Presidency of the Seventy of LDS Church, met in LDS headquarters in Salt Lake City, and talked about various issues concerning their religions.

Similarities examined were "law of the harvest" of LDS and karma doctrine of Hinduism; life does not begin with birth nor end with death; Brahman is unlimited and pervasive, so is the Light of Christ; Bhakti in Hinduism and worshipping Heavenly Father through devotion.....

read full story here

97 Day Challenge

I've decided to take the challenge here to read the Book of Mormon in 97 days. It shouldn't be too hard, I have to read just over 5 pages per day to finish in 97 days.



During this reading I'm really going to focus on the roles of women and mothers and work to develop a better sense of what I see as a tribal God(dess) set up in the scriptures (which is very intriguing to me and a line of thought I want to pursue further). I'm going to our local bookshop today to buy a special bookmark.



Who wants to join me? I'll blog regularly about what I've been reading and my take on it. Should be fun!

Mor'moon

Last night I had a brainstorm of inspiration! It must be the moon in my 5th house today, all creative 'n stuff. I was reading a letter written by Joseph Smith on where the word Mormon comes from.

Editor of the Times and Seasons:

SIR:—Through the medium of your paper I wish to correct an error among men that profess to be learned, liberal and wise; and I do it the more cheerfully because I hope sober-thinking and sound-reasoning people will sooner listen to the voice of truth than be led astray by the vain pretensions of the self-wise.

The error I speak of is the definition of the word "Mormon." It has been stated that this word was derived from the Greek word mormo. This is not the case. There was no Greek or Latin upon the plates from which I, through the grace of the Lord, translated the Book of Mormon. Let the language of the book speak for itself. ...

Before I give a definition, however, to the word, let me say that the Bible in its widest sense, means good; for the Savior says according to the gospel of John, "I am the good shepherd" and it will not be beyond the common use of terms, to say that good is among the most important in use, and though known by various names in different languages, still its meaning is the same, and is ever in opposition to bad. We say from the Saxon, good; the Dane, god; the Latin, bonus; the Greek, kalos; the Hebrew, tob; and the Egyptian, mon. Hence, with the addition of more, or the contraction, mor, we have the word MORMON; which means, literally, more good.

Yours,
JOSEPH SMITH.

Times and Seasons, Vol.4, No.13, May 15, 1843, p.194,
also History of the Church Vol. 5, p.399

So it's a saxon and ancient Egyptian combo word. I LOVE combo words. Nykki is short for Nykekkiwakan which is Hawaiian and Lakota for "scared little baby who's name begins with 'N'".

So I got to thinking about words and ancient Egyptian and so on. I'm struck how the words "mon", "moon", "good" and "god" all seems to weave around each other here. They grow and spin and barrow from one another in quite an inspiring way!

Nes pas mon ami?

So I looked it up and the Egyptian word for Moon is "Yah". Ok, now my mind's spinnnig, Yah as in Yahweh? Well, maybe sorta, it appears to be connected, an outgrowth and murging of the ancient moon God and the God of the bible.

Interesting......I'm still day dreaming about it.

So I thought about the term Morgan meaning Mormon Pagan. I love that term especially because of the link to Morgana the Celtic Goddess and the word "morgan" which means "tomorrow" in German.

I've got a new one for you Mormon, Pagan, Universalists to play with too.

Mor'moon

More, good, moon.

More, good, Yah(weh)

Let's all have fun with that one!

Blessings!

Mormonism's Birth through a Sacred Triangle

I see Mormonism as a very Universalist and New Age/magically compatible
spirituality. As I see it, Mormonism was birthed through a scared
triangle of Magic, Universalism and Christ.

Joseph Smith, Jr's mother, Lucy Mack Smith, was,


"pious but unable to choose one church above another. She tried a
Presbyterian church after she married but was disappointed. Finally she
was baptized, but only by a minister who did not insist upon her
joining a particular denomination (Hullinger)."


Lucy Mack Smith was a magickal
mother. Her name Lucy is Latin from the name Lucius which means light.
This was also the origin of St. Lucia the patroness of sight for whom
there are still festivals of light held today (ww.thinkbabynames.com).
This reminds me of the Celtic triple Goddess, Brigit, who brought the
light back after the dark winter.

A resident of Palmyra was quoted in an LDS
newspaper called the “Church Section” as saying that Lucy Mack Smith,
“turned many a penny tracing in the lines of the open palm of fortunes
of the inquirer.” This statement matches other reports from early
Palmyra converts including Orrin Porter Rockwell which said that the
prophet’s mother also practiced another forms of divination which used
dreams to locate treasure digging sites (Quinn 294).







Several generations of the Smith family were engaging in magickal practices before the 1800’s. His family was known for residing in areas of folk magick
and alchemy cultures. During the Salem witchcraft trials two of Smith’s
great-great grandparents were involved as accusers. Smith’s immediate
family had already participated in a wide range ofmagickal practices
before Smith had his first vision in the sacred grove which occurred in
a context of his families treasure digging quests (Quinn 31). Joseph
Smith and his family were not untypical of the early Americans who
practiced many different forms of Christian folkmagick (Quinn 30).

Lucy
Mack Smith specifically commented on “drawing Magic circles or sooth
saying.” She regarded this as part of the families over all activities
of reading the Bible, working hard on their farm, religious dreaming
and visioning. A medallion used in ritualmagick has been passed down
through the Smith family. Books published before the 1820s specifically
reference these types of “sacred relics” as being used in ceremonialmagick (Quinn 66).









Joseph's father on the other hand was a Universalist. According to many historical documents Joseph Sr., as well as his father, were Unitarian Universalists. According to the Unitarian Universalist website,


"If you're searching for a religious home that is guided by a quest for
truth and meaning, not by a set creed or dogma, we invite you to
discover Unitarian Universalism. We are a caring, open–minded religious
community that encourages you to seek your own spiritual path.
UnitarianUniversalist congregations are places where people gather to
nurture their spirits and put their faith into action by helping to
make our communities—and the world—a better place (uua.org)."

So let's bring this all together in the context of Mormonism by first discussing threes. We see throughout spiritualities, science, history and culture a coming together of threes.

Madain, Mother, Crone
Youth, King, Sage
God, Goddess, Holy Child
Father, Son and the Holy Ghost
Sun, Earth, Moon
Body, Mind, Spirit
Heart, Head, Hand
President, Senate, House
Mother, Father, Child
Water, Food, Shelter
Plant, Steward, Harvest
Dharma, Buddha, Sanga


All
of these "threes" bring a concept into balance and harmony. Just as a
table needs a minimum of three legs to be stable it seems that in our
lives, nature and spirituality - things are built, and held stable, on
threes.

So Mormonism was born of threes. Simply put; Magic,
Universalism, and North American Christianity. Joseph Smith was truly a
Shaman of North America. Through Joseph (and, in my opinion, his
feminine balance - Emma) our Heavenly Parents expressed their union
with magic, Universalism and Christian concepts.

The magic in Mormonism (seer stones, astrology, magic daggers, healing hankerchiefs,
temple rituals, etc) restores important, powerful, old world concepts
of our ancestors and other peoples of the world. Mormonism restores auniversalist doctrine of salvation that the Puritan based religions, especially in America, had moved far away from. While other Christians were preaching
salvation vs. damnation, the birth of Mormonism lined up with
Universalism claiming that everyone receives a glorified state after
death.

Finally Mormonism is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon tells how Jesus visited the Americas after his resurrection.
This important spiritual event brought the ancient power of Father,
Mother and Holy child, as well as the message of the Prince of Peace to
rest of the world. The Western world at large, at the time of Joseph's
vision in the sacred grove was a heavily Christian place, restoring
gospel and faith without Christ would have been impossible.

Magic,
Christ and Universalism formed a well supported and stable birth place
for Mormonism. A powerful triangle of ancient and modern wisdom as well
as spirit surrounded Joseph the day he knelt down in the sacred grove
and prayed. Joseph Jr., was birthed literally and metaphorically into
his calling as a North American shaman supported by the earth he knelt
on, the mystic mother who birthed him and theuniversalist father who taught him.








Hullinger,
Robert N. Joseph Smith's
Response to Skepticism, Signature Books; Salt Lake City,
1992.

Quinn, Michael D. style="font-style:italic;">Early Mormonism and the Magic World
View, Salt Lake City, UT: Signature Books, 1998.

Mormonism Birth through a Triangle

I see Mormonism as a very Universalist and New Age/magically compatible
spirituality. As I see it, Mormonism was birthed through a scared
triangle of Magic, Universalism and Christ.

Joseph Smith, Jr's mother, Lucy Mack Smith, was,


"pious but unable to choose one church above another. She tried a
Presbyterian church after she married but was disappointed. Finally she
was baptized, but only by a minister who did not insist upon her
joining a particular denomination (Hullinger)."


Lucy Mack Smith was a magickal
mother. Her name Lucy is Latin from the name Lucius which means light.
This was also the origin of St. Lucia the patroness of sight for whom
there are still festivals of light held today (ww.thinkbabynames.com).
This reminds me of the Celtic triple Goddess, Brigit, who brought the
light back after the dark winter.

A resident of Palmyra was quoted in an LDS
newspaper called the “Church Section” as saying that Lucy Mack Smith,
“turned many a penny tracing in the lines of the open palm of fortunes
of the inquirer.” This statement matches other reports from early
Palmyra converts including Orrin Porter Rockwell which said that the
prophet’s mother also practiced another forms of divination which used
dreams to locate treasure digging sites (Quinn 294).







Several generations of the Smith family were engaging in magickal practices before the 1800’s. His family was known for residing in areas of folk magick
and alchemy cultures. During the Salem witchcraft trials two of Smith’s
great-great grandparents were involved as accusers. Smith’s immediate
family had already participated in a wide range ofmagickal practices
before Smith had his first vision in the sacred grove which occurred in
a context of his families treasure digging quests (Quinn 31). Joseph
Smith and his family were not untypical of the early Americans who
practiced many different forms of Christian folkmagick (Quinn 30).

Lucy
Mack Smith specifically commented on “drawing Magic circles or sooth
saying.” She regarded this as part of the families over all activities
of reading the Bible, working hard on their farm, religious dreaming
and visioning. A medallion used in ritualmagick has been passed down
through the Smith family. Books published before the 1820s specifically
reference these types of “sacred relics” as being used in ceremonialmagick (Quinn 66).









Joseph's father on the other hand was a Universalist. According to many historical documents Joseph Sr., as well as his father, were Unitarian Universalists. According to the Unitarian Universalist website,


"If you're searching for a religious home that is guided by a quest for
truth and meaning, not by a set creed or dogma, we invite you to
discover Unitarian Universalism. We are a caring, open–minded religious
community that encourages you to seek your own spiritual path.
UnitarianUniversalist congregations are places where people gather to
nurture their spirits and put their faith into action by helping to
make our communities—and the world—a better place (uua.org)."

So let's bring this all together in the context of Mormonism by first discussing threes. We see throughout spiritualities, science, history and culture a coming together of threes.

Madain, Mother, Crone
Youth, King, Sage
God, Goddess, Holy Child
Father, Son and the Holy Ghost
Sun, Earth, Moon
Body, Mind, Spirit
Heart, Head, Hand
President, Senate, House
Mother, Father, Child
Water, Food, Shelter
Plant, Steward, Harvest
Dharma, Buddha, Sanga


All
of these "threes" bring a concept into balance and harmony. Just as a
table needs a minimum of three legs to be stable it seems that in our
lives, nature and spirituality - things are built, and held stable, on
threes.

So Mormonism was born of threes. Simply put; Magic,
Universalism, and North American Christianity. Joseph Smith was truly a
Shaman of North America. Through Joseph (and, in my opinion, his
feminine balance - Emma) our Heavenly Parents expressed their union
with magic, Universalism and Christian concepts.

The magic in Mormonism (seer stones, astrology, magic daggers, healing hankerchiefs,
temple rituals, etc) restores important, powerful, old world concepts
of our ancestors and other peoples of the world. Mormonism restores auniversalist doctrine of salvation that the Puritan based religions, especially in America, had moved far away from. While other Christians were preaching
salvation vs. damnation, the birth of Mormonism lined up with
Universalism claiming that everyone receives a glorified state after
death.

Finally Mormonism is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon tells how Jesus visited the Americas after his resurrection.
This important spiritual event brought the ancient power of Father,
Mother and Holy child, as well as the message of the Prince of Peace to
rest of the world. The Western world at large, at the time of Joseph's
vision in the sacred grove was a heavily Christian place, restoring
gospel and faith without Christ would have been impossible.

Magic,
Christ and Universalism formed a well supported and stable birth place
for Mormonism. A powerful triangle of ancient and modern wisdom as well
as spirit surrounded Joseph the day he knelt down in the sacred grove
and prayed. Joseph Jr., was birthed literally and metaphorically into
his calling as a North American shaman supported by the earth he knelt
on, the mystic mother who birthed him and theuniversalist father who taught him.








Hullinger,
Robert N. Joseph Smith's
Response to Skepticism, Signature Books; Salt Lake City,
1992.

Quinn, Michael D. style="font-style:italic;">Early Mormonism and the Magic World
View, Salt Lake City, UT: Signature Books, 1998.