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By Mama Xanadu
This Cold Full Moon is the final full moon of this year, heralding the time of cold and turning inward, and reaching higher into the night sky as it mirrors the sun, which at the solstice is lowest in the sky. It welcomes us into the still, hibernating, time of year, between the winter solstice and Imbolc on the 1st of February, when the first waves of spring arrive.
You, darkness, of whom I am born —
I love you more than the flame
that limits the world
to the circle it illumines
and excludes all the rest.
But the darkness embraces everything:
shapes and shadows, creatures and me,
people, nations — just as they are.
It lets me imagine
a great presence stirring beside me.
I believe in the night.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke, from The Book of Hours
In the sign of cancer, this moon is a time to address our home and daily environment, and to make it sacred. In alchemy, this is Ora et Labora - and the origins of the word laboratory. When in the act of creating, it is vital that the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist be clear of negative influences and outdated patterns, this allows any work to be done consciously and with clarity.
The experience of the laboratory is an extension of the sacred communion of the wild and in alignment with nature and the cosmos. It is where the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist conjoin and create a third dimension, which is the ground for magical transformation. The word laboratory comes from the phrase ora et labora, meaning ‘to pray and to work’. These two aspects were considered as the intuitive, lunar intelligence of the heart (ora) and the thinking, physical masculine (labora) and the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The marriage of the two creates the child, separating the puffers from the alchemists. In order to apply the alchemical process through labour, it is first required to create a high vibrational and purified state of receptivity and openness where cosmic consciousness can be distilled into physical endeavour. Beyond the beakers and flasks and stills and crucibles, the laboratory of an alchemist contains an altar where sigils, talismans, crystals and sacred herbs are burnt to purify the space to protect from low vibrational fields and external influence, and to maintain sacred connection.
The alchemists understood what quantum physics now calls ‘the observer effect’. The presence of an observer will have an influence on the result of quantum phenomena, which is the level that the conscious alchemist is functioning as a vibrational architect.
The role of magick and ritual that developed alongside human evolution and that is present in an alchemical approach incorporates the elemental forces, language of nature and the energetic matrix of matter. The use of formula or spells takes the spoken word and the ability for thought forms to shape an energetic or vibrational force capable of informing a state of being.
Symbols, sigils, talismans, dream pillows and amulets holding specific energetic charges alter the energetic frequency of a remedy or situation, creating resonance or dissonance. Herbal scrying is the process of pouring out a layer of dried or powdered herbs and with closed eyes allowing your hand to draw freely a symbol from your subconscious.
The creation of a formula or spell requires first for an intention to be made, then to calculate the appropriate timing, gather the energies – inner and outer – the plants and any magick objects required. Meditate, align and clear the energies of the alchemist and laboratory and make necessary offerings. Then, through intuition or guidance, find the appropriate words and cast them out into the universe, releasing the energies to their destination. Once complete, there is an exchange and acknowledgment of gratitude, and the ceremonial space is closed and energies ground into the earth.
This Cold Full Moon is the final full moon of this year, heralding the time of cold and turning inward, and reaching higher into the night sky as it mirrors the sun, which at the solstice is lowest in the sky. It welcomes us into the still, hibernating, time of year, between the winter solstice and Imbolc on the 1st of February, when the first waves of spring arrive.
You, darkness, of whom I am born —
I love you more than the flame
that limits the world
to the circle it illumines
and excludes all the rest.
But the darkness embraces everything:
shapes and shadows, creatures and me,
people, nations — just as they are.
It lets me imagine
a great presence stirring beside me.
I believe in the night.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke, from The Book of Hours
In the sign of cancer, this moon is a time to address our home and daily environment, and to make it sacred. In alchemy, this is Ora et Labora - and the origins of the word laboratory. When in the act of creating, it is vital that the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist be clear of negative influences and outdated patterns, this allows any work to be done consciously and with clarity.
The experience of the laboratory is an extension of the sacred communion of the wild and in alignment with nature and the cosmos. It is where the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist conjoin and create a third dimension, which is the ground for magical transformation. The word laboratory comes from the phrase ora et labora, meaning ‘to pray and to work’. These two aspects were considered as the intuitive, lunar intelligence of the heart (ora) and the thinking, physical masculine (labora) and the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The marriage of the two creates the child, separating the puffers from the alchemists. In order to apply the alchemical process through labour, it is first required to create a high vibrational and purified state of receptivity and openness where cosmic consciousness can be distilled into physical endeavour. Beyond the beakers and flasks and stills and crucibles, the laboratory of an alchemist contains an altar where sigils, talismans, crystals and sacred herbs are burnt to purify the space to protect from low vibrational fields and external influence, and to maintain sacred connection.
The alchemists understood what quantum physics now calls ‘the observer effect’. The presence of an observer will have an influence on the result of quantum phenomena, which is the level that the conscious alchemist is functioning as a vibrational architect.
The role of magick and ritual that developed alongside human evolution and that is present in an alchemical approach incorporates the elemental forces, language of nature and the energetic matrix of matter. The use of formula or spells takes the spoken word and the ability for thought forms to shape an energetic or vibrational force capable of informing a state of being.
Symbols, sigils, talismans, dream pillows and amulets holding specific energetic charges alter the energetic frequency of a remedy or situation, creating resonance or dissonance. Herbal scrying is the process of pouring out a layer of dried or powdered herbs and with closed eyes allowing your hand to draw freely a symbol from your subconscious.
The creation of a formula or spell requires first for an intention to be made, then to calculate the appropriate timing, gather the energies – inner and outer – the plants and any magick objects required. Meditate, align and clear the energies of the alchemist and laboratory and make necessary offerings. Then, through intuition or guidance, find the appropriate words and cast them out into the universe, releasing the energies to their destination. Once complete, there is an exchange and acknowledgment of gratitude, and the ceremonial space is closed and energies ground into the earth.
Mama Xanadu is the experimental botanical studio led by Jemma Foster, who is the author of Wild Alchemy Lab: An Astro-Botanical Remedy Deck (Laurence King, 2023)
By Mama Xanadu
This Cold Full Moon is the final full moon of this year, heralding the time of cold and turning inward, and reaching higher into the night sky as it mirrors the sun, which at the solstice is lowest in the sky. It welcomes us into the still, hibernating, time of year, between the winter solstice and Imbolc on the 1st of February, when the first waves of spring arrive.
You, darkness, of whom I am born —
I love you more than the flame
that limits the world
to the circle it illumines
and excludes all the rest.
But the darkness embraces everything:
shapes and shadows, creatures and me,
people, nations — just as they are.
It lets me imagine
a great presence stirring beside me.
I believe in the night.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke, from The Book of Hours
In the sign of cancer, this moon is a time to address our home and daily environment, and to make it sacred. In alchemy, this is Ora et Labora - and the origins of the word laboratory. When in the act of creating, it is vital that the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist be clear of negative influences and outdated patterns, this allows any work to be done consciously and with clarity.
The experience of the laboratory is an extension of the sacred communion of the wild and in alignment with nature and the cosmos. It is where the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist conjoin and create a third dimension, which is the ground for magical transformation. The word laboratory comes from the phrase ora et labora, meaning ‘to pray and to work’. These two aspects were considered as the intuitive, lunar intelligence of the heart (ora) and the thinking, physical masculine (labora) and the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The marriage of the two creates the child, separating the puffers from the alchemists. In order to apply the alchemical process through labour, it is first required to create a high vibrational and purified state of receptivity and openness where cosmic consciousness can be distilled into physical endeavour. Beyond the beakers and flasks and stills and crucibles, the laboratory of an alchemist contains an altar where sigils, talismans, crystals and sacred herbs are burnt to purify the space to protect from low vibrational fields and external influence, and to maintain sacred connection.
The alchemists understood what quantum physics now calls ‘the observer effect’. The presence of an observer will have an influence on the result of quantum phenomena, which is the level that the conscious alchemist is functioning as a vibrational architect.
The role of magick and ritual that developed alongside human evolution and that is present in an alchemical approach incorporates the elemental forces, language of nature and the energetic matrix of matter. The use of formula or spells takes the spoken word and the ability for thought forms to shape an energetic or vibrational force capable of informing a state of being.
Symbols, sigils, talismans, dream pillows and amulets holding specific energetic charges alter the energetic frequency of a remedy or situation, creating resonance or dissonance. Herbal scrying is the process of pouring out a layer of dried or powdered herbs and with closed eyes allowing your hand to draw freely a symbol from your subconscious.
The creation of a formula or spell requires first for an intention to be made, then to calculate the appropriate timing, gather the energies – inner and outer – the plants and any magick objects required. Meditate, align and clear the energies of the alchemist and laboratory and make necessary offerings. Then, through intuition or guidance, find the appropriate words and cast them out into the universe, releasing the energies to their destination. Once complete, there is an exchange and acknowledgment of gratitude, and the ceremonial space is closed and energies ground into the earth.
This Cold Full Moon is the final full moon of this year, heralding the time of cold and turning inward, and reaching higher into the night sky as it mirrors the sun, which at the solstice is lowest in the sky. It welcomes us into the still, hibernating, time of year, between the winter solstice and Imbolc on the 1st of February, when the first waves of spring arrive.
You, darkness, of whom I am born —
I love you more than the flame
that limits the world
to the circle it illumines
and excludes all the rest.
But the darkness embraces everything:
shapes and shadows, creatures and me,
people, nations — just as they are.
It lets me imagine
a great presence stirring beside me.
I believe in the night.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke, from The Book of Hours
In the sign of cancer, this moon is a time to address our home and daily environment, and to make it sacred. In alchemy, this is Ora et Labora - and the origins of the word laboratory. When in the act of creating, it is vital that the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist be clear of negative influences and outdated patterns, this allows any work to be done consciously and with clarity.
The experience of the laboratory is an extension of the sacred communion of the wild and in alignment with nature and the cosmos. It is where the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist conjoin and create a third dimension, which is the ground for magical transformation. The word laboratory comes from the phrase ora et labora, meaning ‘to pray and to work’. These two aspects were considered as the intuitive, lunar intelligence of the heart (ora) and the thinking, physical masculine (labora) and the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The marriage of the two creates the child, separating the puffers from the alchemists. In order to apply the alchemical process through labour, it is first required to create a high vibrational and purified state of receptivity and openness where cosmic consciousness can be distilled into physical endeavour. Beyond the beakers and flasks and stills and crucibles, the laboratory of an alchemist contains an altar where sigils, talismans, crystals and sacred herbs are burnt to purify the space to protect from low vibrational fields and external influence, and to maintain sacred connection.
The alchemists understood what quantum physics now calls ‘the observer effect’. The presence of an observer will have an influence on the result of quantum phenomena, which is the level that the conscious alchemist is functioning as a vibrational architect.
The role of magick and ritual that developed alongside human evolution and that is present in an alchemical approach incorporates the elemental forces, language of nature and the energetic matrix of matter. The use of formula or spells takes the spoken word and the ability for thought forms to shape an energetic or vibrational force capable of informing a state of being.
Symbols, sigils, talismans, dream pillows and amulets holding specific energetic charges alter the energetic frequency of a remedy or situation, creating resonance or dissonance. Herbal scrying is the process of pouring out a layer of dried or powdered herbs and with closed eyes allowing your hand to draw freely a symbol from your subconscious.
The creation of a formula or spell requires first for an intention to be made, then to calculate the appropriate timing, gather the energies – inner and outer – the plants and any magick objects required. Meditate, align and clear the energies of the alchemist and laboratory and make necessary offerings. Then, through intuition or guidance, find the appropriate words and cast them out into the universe, releasing the energies to their destination. Once complete, there is an exchange and acknowledgment of gratitude, and the ceremonial space is closed and energies ground into the earth.
Mama Xanadu is the experimental botanical studio led by Jemma Foster, who is the author of Wild Alchemy Lab: An Astro-Botanical Remedy Deck (Laurence King, 2023)
By Mama Xanadu
This Cold Full Moon is the final full moon of this year, heralding the time of cold and turning inward, and reaching higher into the night sky as it mirrors the sun, which at the solstice is lowest in the sky. It welcomes us into the still, hibernating, time of year, between the winter solstice and Imbolc on the 1st of February, when the first waves of spring arrive.
You, darkness, of whom I am born —
I love you more than the flame
that limits the world
to the circle it illumines
and excludes all the rest.
But the darkness embraces everything:
shapes and shadows, creatures and me,
people, nations — just as they are.
It lets me imagine
a great presence stirring beside me.
I believe in the night.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke, from The Book of Hours
In the sign of cancer, this moon is a time to address our home and daily environment, and to make it sacred. In alchemy, this is Ora et Labora - and the origins of the word laboratory. When in the act of creating, it is vital that the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist be clear of negative influences and outdated patterns, this allows any work to be done consciously and with clarity.
The experience of the laboratory is an extension of the sacred communion of the wild and in alignment with nature and the cosmos. It is where the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist conjoin and create a third dimension, which is the ground for magical transformation. The word laboratory comes from the phrase ora et labora, meaning ‘to pray and to work’. These two aspects were considered as the intuitive, lunar intelligence of the heart (ora) and the thinking, physical masculine (labora) and the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The marriage of the two creates the child, separating the puffers from the alchemists. In order to apply the alchemical process through labour, it is first required to create a high vibrational and purified state of receptivity and openness where cosmic consciousness can be distilled into physical endeavour. Beyond the beakers and flasks and stills and crucibles, the laboratory of an alchemist contains an altar where sigils, talismans, crystals and sacred herbs are burnt to purify the space to protect from low vibrational fields and external influence, and to maintain sacred connection.
The alchemists understood what quantum physics now calls ‘the observer effect’. The presence of an observer will have an influence on the result of quantum phenomena, which is the level that the conscious alchemist is functioning as a vibrational architect.
The role of magick and ritual that developed alongside human evolution and that is present in an alchemical approach incorporates the elemental forces, language of nature and the energetic matrix of matter. The use of formula or spells takes the spoken word and the ability for thought forms to shape an energetic or vibrational force capable of informing a state of being.
Symbols, sigils, talismans, dream pillows and amulets holding specific energetic charges alter the energetic frequency of a remedy or situation, creating resonance or dissonance. Herbal scrying is the process of pouring out a layer of dried or powdered herbs and with closed eyes allowing your hand to draw freely a symbol from your subconscious.
The creation of a formula or spell requires first for an intention to be made, then to calculate the appropriate timing, gather the energies – inner and outer – the plants and any magick objects required. Meditate, align and clear the energies of the alchemist and laboratory and make necessary offerings. Then, through intuition or guidance, find the appropriate words and cast them out into the universe, releasing the energies to their destination. Once complete, there is an exchange and acknowledgment of gratitude, and the ceremonial space is closed and energies ground into the earth.
This Cold Full Moon is the final full moon of this year, heralding the time of cold and turning inward, and reaching higher into the night sky as it mirrors the sun, which at the solstice is lowest in the sky. It welcomes us into the still, hibernating, time of year, between the winter solstice and Imbolc on the 1st of February, when the first waves of spring arrive.
You, darkness, of whom I am born —
I love you more than the flame
that limits the world
to the circle it illumines
and excludes all the rest.
But the darkness embraces everything:
shapes and shadows, creatures and me,
people, nations — just as they are.
It lets me imagine
a great presence stirring beside me.
I believe in the night.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke, from The Book of Hours
In the sign of cancer, this moon is a time to address our home and daily environment, and to make it sacred. In alchemy, this is Ora et Labora - and the origins of the word laboratory. When in the act of creating, it is vital that the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist be clear of negative influences and outdated patterns, this allows any work to be done consciously and with clarity.
The experience of the laboratory is an extension of the sacred communion of the wild and in alignment with nature and the cosmos. It is where the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist conjoin and create a third dimension, which is the ground for magical transformation. The word laboratory comes from the phrase ora et labora, meaning ‘to pray and to work’. These two aspects were considered as the intuitive, lunar intelligence of the heart (ora) and the thinking, physical masculine (labora) and the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The marriage of the two creates the child, separating the puffers from the alchemists. In order to apply the alchemical process through labour, it is first required to create a high vibrational and purified state of receptivity and openness where cosmic consciousness can be distilled into physical endeavour. Beyond the beakers and flasks and stills and crucibles, the laboratory of an alchemist contains an altar where sigils, talismans, crystals and sacred herbs are burnt to purify the space to protect from low vibrational fields and external influence, and to maintain sacred connection.
The alchemists understood what quantum physics now calls ‘the observer effect’. The presence of an observer will have an influence on the result of quantum phenomena, which is the level that the conscious alchemist is functioning as a vibrational architect.
The role of magick and ritual that developed alongside human evolution and that is present in an alchemical approach incorporates the elemental forces, language of nature and the energetic matrix of matter. The use of formula or spells takes the spoken word and the ability for thought forms to shape an energetic or vibrational force capable of informing a state of being.
Symbols, sigils, talismans, dream pillows and amulets holding specific energetic charges alter the energetic frequency of a remedy or situation, creating resonance or dissonance. Herbal scrying is the process of pouring out a layer of dried or powdered herbs and with closed eyes allowing your hand to draw freely a symbol from your subconscious.
The creation of a formula or spell requires first for an intention to be made, then to calculate the appropriate timing, gather the energies – inner and outer – the plants and any magick objects required. Meditate, align and clear the energies of the alchemist and laboratory and make necessary offerings. Then, through intuition or guidance, find the appropriate words and cast them out into the universe, releasing the energies to their destination. Once complete, there is an exchange and acknowledgment of gratitude, and the ceremonial space is closed and energies ground into the earth.
Mama Xanadu is the experimental botanical studio led by Jemma Foster, who is the author of Wild Alchemy Lab: An Astro-Botanical Remedy Deck (Laurence King, 2023)
By Mama Xanadu
This Cold Full Moon is the final full moon of this year, heralding the time of cold and turning inward, and reaching higher into the night sky as it mirrors the sun, which at the solstice is lowest in the sky. It welcomes us into the still, hibernating, time of year, between the winter solstice and Imbolc on the 1st of February, when the first waves of spring arrive.
You, darkness, of whom I am born —
I love you more than the flame
that limits the world
to the circle it illumines
and excludes all the rest.
But the darkness embraces everything:
shapes and shadows, creatures and me,
people, nations — just as they are.
It lets me imagine
a great presence stirring beside me.
I believe in the night.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke, from The Book of Hours
In the sign of cancer, this moon is a time to address our home and daily environment, and to make it sacred. In alchemy, this is Ora et Labora - and the origins of the word laboratory. When in the act of creating, it is vital that the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist be clear of negative influences and outdated patterns, this allows any work to be done consciously and with clarity.
The experience of the laboratory is an extension of the sacred communion of the wild and in alignment with nature and the cosmos. It is where the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist conjoin and create a third dimension, which is the ground for magical transformation. The word laboratory comes from the phrase ora et labora, meaning ‘to pray and to work’. These two aspects were considered as the intuitive, lunar intelligence of the heart (ora) and the thinking, physical masculine (labora) and the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The marriage of the two creates the child, separating the puffers from the alchemists. In order to apply the alchemical process through labour, it is first required to create a high vibrational and purified state of receptivity and openness where cosmic consciousness can be distilled into physical endeavour. Beyond the beakers and flasks and stills and crucibles, the laboratory of an alchemist contains an altar where sigils, talismans, crystals and sacred herbs are burnt to purify the space to protect from low vibrational fields and external influence, and to maintain sacred connection.
The alchemists understood what quantum physics now calls ‘the observer effect’. The presence of an observer will have an influence on the result of quantum phenomena, which is the level that the conscious alchemist is functioning as a vibrational architect.
The role of magick and ritual that developed alongside human evolution and that is present in an alchemical approach incorporates the elemental forces, language of nature and the energetic matrix of matter. The use of formula or spells takes the spoken word and the ability for thought forms to shape an energetic or vibrational force capable of informing a state of being.
Symbols, sigils, talismans, dream pillows and amulets holding specific energetic charges alter the energetic frequency of a remedy or situation, creating resonance or dissonance. Herbal scrying is the process of pouring out a layer of dried or powdered herbs and with closed eyes allowing your hand to draw freely a symbol from your subconscious.
The creation of a formula or spell requires first for an intention to be made, then to calculate the appropriate timing, gather the energies – inner and outer – the plants and any magick objects required. Meditate, align and clear the energies of the alchemist and laboratory and make necessary offerings. Then, through intuition or guidance, find the appropriate words and cast them out into the universe, releasing the energies to their destination. Once complete, there is an exchange and acknowledgment of gratitude, and the ceremonial space is closed and energies ground into the earth.
This Cold Full Moon is the final full moon of this year, heralding the time of cold and turning inward, and reaching higher into the night sky as it mirrors the sun, which at the solstice is lowest in the sky. It welcomes us into the still, hibernating, time of year, between the winter solstice and Imbolc on the 1st of February, when the first waves of spring arrive.
You, darkness, of whom I am born —
I love you more than the flame
that limits the world
to the circle it illumines
and excludes all the rest.
But the darkness embraces everything:
shapes and shadows, creatures and me,
people, nations — just as they are.
It lets me imagine
a great presence stirring beside me.
I believe in the night.
~ Rainer Maria Rilke, from The Book of Hours
In the sign of cancer, this moon is a time to address our home and daily environment, and to make it sacred. In alchemy, this is Ora et Labora - and the origins of the word laboratory. When in the act of creating, it is vital that the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist be clear of negative influences and outdated patterns, this allows any work to be done consciously and with clarity.
The experience of the laboratory is an extension of the sacred communion of the wild and in alignment with nature and the cosmos. It is where the inner and outer worlds of the alchemist conjoin and create a third dimension, which is the ground for magical transformation. The word laboratory comes from the phrase ora et labora, meaning ‘to pray and to work’. These two aspects were considered as the intuitive, lunar intelligence of the heart (ora) and the thinking, physical masculine (labora) and the left and right hemispheres of the brain.
The marriage of the two creates the child, separating the puffers from the alchemists. In order to apply the alchemical process through labour, it is first required to create a high vibrational and purified state of receptivity and openness where cosmic consciousness can be distilled into physical endeavour. Beyond the beakers and flasks and stills and crucibles, the laboratory of an alchemist contains an altar where sigils, talismans, crystals and sacred herbs are burnt to purify the space to protect from low vibrational fields and external influence, and to maintain sacred connection.
The alchemists understood what quantum physics now calls ‘the observer effect’. The presence of an observer will have an influence on the result of quantum phenomena, which is the level that the conscious alchemist is functioning as a vibrational architect.
The role of magick and ritual that developed alongside human evolution and that is present in an alchemical approach incorporates the elemental forces, language of nature and the energetic matrix of matter. The use of formula or spells takes the spoken word and the ability for thought forms to shape an energetic or vibrational force capable of informing a state of being.
Symbols, sigils, talismans, dream pillows and amulets holding specific energetic charges alter the energetic frequency of a remedy or situation, creating resonance or dissonance. Herbal scrying is the process of pouring out a layer of dried or powdered herbs and with closed eyes allowing your hand to draw freely a symbol from your subconscious.
The creation of a formula or spell requires first for an intention to be made, then to calculate the appropriate timing, gather the energies – inner and outer – the plants and any magick objects required. Meditate, align and clear the energies of the alchemist and laboratory and make necessary offerings. Then, through intuition or guidance, find the appropriate words and cast them out into the universe, releasing the energies to their destination. Once complete, there is an exchange and acknowledgment of gratitude, and the ceremonial space is closed and energies ground into the earth.
Mama Xanadu is the experimental botanical studio led by Jemma Foster, who is the author of Wild Alchemy Lab: An Astro-Botanical Remedy Deck (Laurence King, 2023)