Stunning Golden Measures Which Regulate

כ״ה בתמוז תשע"א
Faunus 27

In follow-up to previous posts (Ner Tamid, Travellers' Sphere of Protection, Goldener Apfel) on this blog and my shoppe blog, I note that just a few days ago, during the infamous Three Weeks, it was announced that an ancient Golden Bell from the Kohen Gadol's garment was excavated near the wall of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem (HT - Mystical Paths for pointing this out today).

This is interesting, given the announcement's synchronicity with my new Golden Candles (see first line end-links above) and the fact that the priestly Golden Bells are associated specifically with a Kohen Gadol embarked upon a traveling expedition (see first line middle link above).

Usually translated as 'a Golden Bell,' the Hebrew phrase פַּעֲמֹן זָהָב may alternatively be translated as 'a Golden Metronome.' The word metronome derives from Greek metron (meaning 'measure') and nomos (meaning 'regulating'). The Hebrew word from which both translations (bell and metronome) derive comes from the shoresh פעם which can mean several things, including 'stunning' and 'to surge' (emotionally or psychically). Certainly, my Golden Candles are beautifully stunning and surge with mystically magical emotive fire.

Also, in synchronicity, the Hebrew Torah phrase not only mentions "Stunning Golden Measures which Regulate," but also, the next phrase in the Torah text following "a golden bell" is וְרִמּוֹן - "and a pomegranate" - a new candle set also posted on my shoppe blog the same day as the Golden Apple, see my stunning Midnight Pomegranate votives and tapered pillar here and here.

So, synchronicities keep piling up.

Travellers' Sphere of Protection

כ״ד בתמוז תשע"א
Faunus 26

Last night I dreamt.

My husband, children and I were travelling [this family of mine that I was travelling with had no real life identities associated with it, and may be symbolic]. My husband and I had at least three children, none were babies or toddlers or teenagers. It seems we were travelling up toward the Chicago area. We stopped for the night a bit south of the Chicago area to stay overnight in a fancy luxurious motel fitted with anything we could desire. Our accomodations in this fancy motel had been paid for by business associates of some kind.

The motel was more like a large apartment with several bedrooms, a full extended kitchen, food, drinks, a booth table in one particular dining area, televisions of all sizes, and so many extras that I didn't take note of them all. I did note that every single one of the televisions was turned on when we arrived, which I thought was strange (particularly since I am person who likes quiet). There was also another thing I thought strange - a wooden trap-door-like structure in the floor in one of the many den areas which when open revealed a water filled well or lake beneath it. It was supposedly there for those who enjoyed fishing to fish (like ice-fishers fish through holes cut into the ice over a frozen lake, only this wasn't a frozen lake but warm water). The dark water reminded of the old film Creature from the Black Lagoon. There was definitely something dangerous down there in that water. The place was open when we arrived, but I closed the wooden door in the floor over it.

Not a person who likes fishing myself, the whole arrangement was now very fishy to me. My suspicions had been aroused the moment I walked through the door of our motel 'room' which was so luxuriously more than just a motel room for the night. I felt we had been deliberately put into a situation like in the song Hotel California, where people check in but they don't check out. This was a test, no doubt.

I saw telepathically that the business associates who had booked this 'room' for us had spoken or did speak quasi-assuringly to my husband (thinking I could not hear, I think) at some point 'not to worry' and that around us all was a circle of protection from Binah. I knew that this level of protection was insufficient for the dangers lurking by staying in this room for the night, and I also discerned that my husband was not assured by the assurance given by the business associates, so I whispered to my husband, into his ear, "don't worry, our sphere of protection extends much much deeper than that." We indeed would survive this night, where none others had.

Right before waking up - and this is very weird, but here it is - I saw that our business associates had somehow put us (our family) into a 'car' (like those in a ride at an amusement park) over the place where the 'fishing hole in the floor' was. The car was supposed to flip over (or rotate like an amusement park ride), but they had fixed it to drop us into the dark water where we would be trapped forever with the creature who was down there and who would kill us, but I fixed their fix and outsmarted them. We flipped over into the water for sure, but I had arranged it so that the creature that was down there was caught in the car and came up into the motel room where we weren't and where the business associates who were trying to kill us were.

We were safe, anyway. Definitely not sure those trying to kill us are safe though.

I woke up, knowing we had checked out of that gawdawful motel room that no one has ever checked out of before.

New Perspective

י״ז בתמוז תשע"א
Faunus 19

In follow-up to earlier posts (Confronting Demons Starting Years Ago and Victory Over Death), perhaps my perspective now is that it was a good thing that his attention was not focused on me at that particular time in the experience of my Being. Had it been otherwise, perhaps I would have been happy to stay where I was, where death would have surely reached me. In being "thrown down", I lived.

Victory Over Death

י״ז בתמוז תשע"א
Faunus 19

In follow-up to my earilier post Confronting Demons Starting Years Ago, a friend of mine informed me that in traditional sources, Keteb is spelled in Hebrew using the Hebrew letters קטב instead of the Hebrew letters כתב (the letters I had chosen to use to describe my connection with Keteb Meriri in my post). Though the two spellings sound alike, they do not mean the same thing.

The shoresh קטב means to die an unexpected death, while the shoresh כתב pertains to writing, reporting, and engraving. Both sets of Hebrew letters can be pronounced keteb, but the latter set כתב describes my experience while the former set קטב does not.

In my poem, I am concerned with rewriting my story to a good, indeed a very good, outcome. This fact is described by the shoresh כתב. Moreover, following this preincarnate experience, though death was trying to reach me (as clearly evident in the words of the poem), I was nevertheless born, alive - in other words, I became a Living Breathing Being. Consequently, the very act of being born transformed the Keteb name root from being קטב to כתב, making my victory over Keteb Meriri a double victory - a victory over both bitterness and death. My first victory occurred even before I was born.

Myrrh, My Totem Resin

י״ז בתמוז תשע"א
Faunus 19

In follow-up to my previous post (Confronting Demons Starting Years Ago), I note that from the shoresh מור is also derived the word for myrrh (מֹר), making myrrh my totem resin, so to speak. Significantly, myrrh is also the totem resin of Goddess/the Sacred Feminine in Celtic Paganism and Witchcraft.

Confronting Demons Starting Years Ago

י״ז בתמוז תשע"א
Faunus 19

First the background - from several sources (including Mystical Paths and Daily Halacha) we learn about the demon Keteb Meriri:

The Shulhan Aruch was written as a strictly Halachic code, rarely includes Kabbalistic concepts in presenting Halachic guidelines. Yet, the Shulhan Aruch writes that during the three weeks one should not go outdoors to partially shady areas between the fourth and ninth hours (referring to Halachic hours) of the day (approximately 9:30am – 3:30pm) due to the demon “Keteb Meriri”, when this demon is most threatening. He adds that during this period, parents should make a point not to hit their children, and teachers should likewise refrain from smacking students, in order to avoid risks.

The Midrash Shoher Tob (Tehillim 91) speaks about a dangerous “demon” called “Keteb Meriri” that is covered with scales and hair, has eyeballs all over its body, and sees from the eye situated on its chest. It generally resides in areas that are partly sunny and partly shady, and moves by rolling like a ball. Anyone who comes near this demon, the Midrash comments, exposes himself to great danger. The Midrash in fact relates that there were schoolchildren who suffered harm as a result of “Keteb Meriri.” It is specifically during the three weeks of between Shiba Asar Be’Tamuz and Tisha B’Ab, the Midrash teaches, that this harmful spirit surfaces and poses danger.

The Midrash tells the story of Rabbi Abahu who saw a teacher with a branch ready to hit an unruly student. Rabbi Abahu sharply condemned the teacher, noting that “Keteb Meriri” was standing right behind him with an iron rod, ready to strike. This story shows the dangers of administering any type of corporal punishment during this period, when we are exposed to the dangers of “Keteb Meriri.”

For the same reason, one should refrain from unnecessary travel during the three weeks. Hacham Ovadia Yosef writes that the rule during this period is “Ashreh Yoshebeh Betecha” – “Fortunate are those who dwell in Your home,” meaning, it is far preferable to remain at home rather than travel. Children, especially, must be supervised very carefully during the three weeks so they are protected from danger. Although it is customary to allow recreational trips and swimming during this period, extra care must be taken to ensure safety. In particular, one must not travel alone, in a deserted area, between the fourth and ninth hours of the day – approximately 9:30am-3:30pm – during the three weeks, because of the danger posed by the “demons” which roam freely at that time. This refers only to deserted area; it is certainly permissible to travel to a city alone during these hours.

The Aruch Ha’shulhan cites authorities who limit this Halacha to uninhabited areas, such as forests and the like. Inside a city, however, the presence of many people, as well as the presence of Mezuzot on the doorposts, offers a degree of protection from this harmful spirit.

On one level, this restriction essentially renders this Halacha practically irrelevant nowadays, when we usually spend our time in towns, cities and other inhabited areas. Nevertheless, this Halacha demonstrates the importance of avoiding danger during this three-week period and keeping a “low profile,” as this period is particularly suited for mishaps and calamity, Heaven forbid.

Second, evidence for some past life - preincarnate confrontation with Keteb Meriri exists within a poem (Dark Torah) I wrote a long time ago describing a pre-incarnate vision remembrance which occurred before I was born:

from the mind inscribed before time in a dreamlike primeval existence
before my life began, at your side, I loved you
set before seeing, witnessing the violent play of creation
rising jagged with twisting thorns ascending toward there
wild and fierce the bloody storm from below, a churning pit of cold fire and coal
dripping with pain torn from earth, cutting edges
raging from a lawless horror, a terror untamed upon the earth
spreading as a plague coming near with powerful fury, iterating screams
reverberating with dysrhythm, the battering melody shattering the noise of silence
in agony melding together, into a cyclone of spiraling shrill despair
hopeless, the sound of an inky blackness, line upon line writing
a writhing scroll, twisted with affliction, death and blood everywhere
below the colorlessness of the sanctuary where I stood, immobile in the sight
testifying, not forgotten, revealing some wordless cry of terror
embedding beyond the throat, becoming chained in the belly
burning my world, descending into the hallowed depths of my heart
with no way to restrain it, its direction of attraction
toward me the knife came to cut
please see me! I am here! I cried without sound - to you as you watched it climb up
as you watched it climb up with some curious, strange fascination
not seeing me, or disregarded, either way, outside your direction of attention
as the rabid destruction erupted up the wall, and all I could do to escape the blade
becoming broken, I turned away, pulling myself in ... only to be thown away
thrown down, as a coarse grain into the only history I ever knew, and I know
what you did, throwing me down to be ripped apart, for those who would destroy me
why do you hate me - still you don't see me, you don't hear me, and you don't care
try as I might to rewrite the story, I cannot forget the truth
and some things can never be fixed

Third, the demon Keteb Meriri in Hebrew is written כתב מרירי.

The word keteb (כתב) means to "write", "written works", "script", "compose", "author (written works)", "reporter", "engrave", "address (someone)", "copy", and to "add someone as a recipient". The vowelized pronunciation keteb most directly refers to the meanings "to address; to copy, to add someone as a recipient ; and (biblical) to engrave".

The word meriri (מרירי) can mean either "bitter" or "bittersweet", assuming we accept that the word meriri derives from the shoresh (Hebrew root) מרר. However, as it is with the human condition, we have the choice to not accept things as they are and to choose an alternative root path, to choose our reality, and to create our future reality.

For instance, it is clear in my pre-incarnate memory that I was shown a very bitter reality and much of my life has indeed been bitter (as just about anyone who has ever met me is so well aware of this that I need to link no evidence). My vision as I initially experienced it was from the perspective of the shoresh מרר. But, as an Eternal Being with choice, I can also choose to see that my vision was also experienced from the initially hidden but now revealed perspective of the shoresh מור. My vision (seeing eye) was from a point of connection with Keteb Meriri in a liminal place "partially sunny and partially shady" (a conscious place of proto-physical existence) and "situated in the chest" in the "letter of connection", namely Vav (ו). Consequently, it is indeed also my reality that I experienced this preincarnate vision in the emerging light of the shoresh מור. Why is this important? Because the shoresh מור means to "exchange", "transform" and "change fate".

Fourth, rewriting the story and changing fate. When I wrote my poem describing my preincarnate experience, I had tried to change my fate and to rewrite my story several times over the course of my life - failing every time to manifest my desire for a good outcome. When I wrote the poem, though still operating under the influence of the shoresh מרר, I believe the very act of writing the poem honestly, without lying about its ugliness and without untrue beautifications, exchanged in the act the shorashim, transforming the operative root in my life from מרר to מור, enabling me to transform my life and to rewrite my story. In writing the poem honestly, I effectively "called out" Keteb Meriri to confrontation with me, Me.

My life has not been bitter for several years now. Honoring my Ancestors, and with loving wholehearted acceptance incorporating the Pagan aspects of my Being into the reality of my life were very instrumental in revealing deep joy in my life and to achieving a successful outcome to the confrontation with the demon Keteb Meriri. I am a Jewitch and I have done it.

Fifth, Ancestral Talismans for Successful Confrontation:

TOR Talisman CELTIC WITCH Charm Bottle Necklace with 13 Traditional Celtic Ethnobotanicals

TORAH Talisman JEWISH WITCH Charm Bottle Necklace with 13 Traditional Jewish Ethnobotanicals

WYRD WORKER Perthro Runic Talisman NORDIC Witch Bottle Necklace for Turning and Influencing the Karmic Primal Layers of Reality

Called to Witness a Cosmic Event - Changing Nature by the Unchangeable

ב' בתמוז תשע"א
Faunus 4

I had an awesome dream last night.

I was pure consciousness out in deep deep space in some other timeless place beyond the known edges of the Cosmos. It was quiet here, there were no noisy planets here (as I saw in my 1967 experience that there are many noisy planets in other areas in the Cosmos). It was quiet and everything had its own place and nature. Nothing ever changed here.

But I was watching how things can indeed change in this changeless place. I was called to witness this cosmic event.

A rogue heavenly body which looked like a giant planet (but wasn't a planet) was heading for collision with a particular star. Of all the things in all the galaxies in this area of the Cosmos, only this rogue heavenly body went its own unique way. Everything else went on as it had always done, everything had its place, its course, its way. But this rogue, with its own unique way, against the grain of the way things are, was about to change the very nature of Everything, everything.

The rogue heavenly body impacted the star straight-on and vaporized the star to pure mass-less energy (but the star didn't explode, it merely re-organized the stuff it was made of). The rogue heavenly body went right through the star and continued on its unique way, unchanged.

The nature of everything in the entire Cosmos was changed by its collision with this particular star and would never be the same again. There is nothing in the entire Cosmos that is unaffected by this event. Don't ask me to explain it because I can't, but even as the unchangeable rogue is unchanged, it too is changed. It's a paradox without an explanation that makes sense when I try to write anything about it (so I'll just leave it at that).

I woke up, to a cooler breezy morning - the horrid hot and humid heatwave we have been having over the past several days broke last night as I slept. Certainly the weather has changed in this part of the Cosmos.