satya_firestone | Entries tagged with east

I know I haven't posted here in some time, my focus has shifted over to

sorgae_tarot. But, my High Priestess devised a Directional quiz some time ago and recently fixed it so it functions again. Both Cervus and I took it today.

( Satya (who could die of Not Surprise) )

( Cervus (with thoughts) )

This post serves as a basic go-to for the various Elemental Beings and Fae we've thus far learned of in our Sorgae explorations. The title is but one of them. We'll start though, in the East.

I've already written about the Hurralya, the Beings of Air. Also in the East are the Hostarak, the Beings of Knowledge.

In the South are the Seiralya, Beings of Fire, and Sorgitzak, Beings of Will.

The West is home to the Keriosak, Being of Daring, and the Uartalya, Beings of Water.

Finally, in the North, the Itlasak are the Beings of Silence, and the Ertalya arez the Beings of Earth.

Many other systems have Elemental Beings as well, such as Sylphs, Salamanders, Undines, and Gnomes. A book series I've read had Djinn, Dragons, Selkies, and Gargoyles.

We don't yet know much about most of the Sorgae Elemental Beings, but thus far the Hurralya, Keriosak, and Sorgitzak have been most important.

[Click to enlarge]

East God – T’hot’ (teh-ho-teh) - associated with incense and knowledge, the psychopomp and the prophet. Questions to Him must be distinct, or the answers will be too vague to understand, but He will often aid the questioner in narrowing the focus of his/her query so as to elicit a more helpful answer. He is far older than and became the Egyptian Thoth.

I've found three sources that corroborate our pronunciation, instead of having the THs spoken as in "that" or "with." It's interesting as well to note that this and other spellings resemble the word "thought."

In Egyptian mythology, Thoth is the Scribe, inventor of language (both written and spoken), astronomy, geometry, and medicine. He is the Record Keeper, a librarian of sorts, recording all knowledge and communicating with the other Gods.

In Sorgae, our God T'hot' sits in the East, the place of Knowledge and communication. He can easily communicate with the other Gods of our pantheon without any of Them being present. He has said, basically, that the ancient Egyptians knew Him as their ibis-headed God, but He is older than that civilization.

This is another of the Sorgae Gods with whom I haven't had direct contact yet. As a writer and someone fascinated by etymology, He appeals to me. However I think that asking Him to assist in creative writing is inappropriate, as that deals with inspiration, and so is the domain of Ariadne, the Muse. Though it is another East-West connection, the physical act of writing coupled with the ethereal act of inspiration.

Our original interpretation of Ostraven was that it was "the height of our power for the good of all, setting the stage for the next Wasteland... At this time we Draw North God [Ianos], the God who looks both from the land of the Dead and to the land of the Living, and Southwest Goddess [Morga], the devourer who clears the way for new creation." Ostraven is the final Sabeot/d in the Sorgae cycle, and so these themes of thresholds and clearing away made perfect sense. In the Juxtaposition model, it aligned with the Wiccan Sabbat Samhain (though the date coincides with Spring Equinox), which also seemed an obvious fit.

In the Tarot reading my High Priestess and I did earlier this year, this message came through:

Ostraven = Temperance: patience, balance, harmony.
We have achieved what was achievable in this cycle, it is time to begin again.
We assigned East God [T'hot'] and West Goddess [Ariadne] to be invoked, They who are Knowledge and Inspiration.
Theme: Harmony

A similar idea, but with a different feel. Notice too that this is another manifestation of the East-West Axis that has come up time and again in our explorarion of Sorgae; the year ends with such a connection, with even traditional gender associations intact: The God in the masculine Air Element, and the Goddess in the feminine Water Element.

Many Pagan systems divide the year into two halves. Some call it Light and Dark, or Winter and Summer. Some use the story of the Oak and Holly Kings, others say one half is for Goddess and the other for God. Sorgae also divides the year, into the Spiritual and Material.

The first four Sabeot/ds (B/Pelatin, Ardunakh, Lamasu, and Vestraven) make up the Spiritual half. From my understanding, this can be compared to the "planning stage" of a project, from the first inkling of an idea to a fully formed and detailed plan. If I plot them with the Directions, this is what I see:

B/Pelatin - Northeast - potential, anything is possible
Ardunahk - East - pure knowledge, the idea, transition into energy
Lamasu - Southeast - decision, the moment things come together
Vestraven - South - Will, commitment to the plan and path before us

The next four Sabeot/ds (Soven, Salanakh, Vol'ka, and Ostraven), make up the Material side of the year, when the plan is put into effect. So my Directional interpretation continues:

Soven - Southwest - risk, taking that first step, intial action
Salanakh - West - daring to act, making it happen, trasition to physical
Vol'ka - Northwest - quickening, actions breathing life into the idea
Ostraven - North - solidification, manifestation, completion, results

Unlike Wicca and other Pagan paths, the Sorgae year is not centered around a Deity's life journey. Instead it focuses on renewal of the Wasteland*, our term for the state of the spiritual landscape at the turning point of each year. In my mind I compare it to farmland; just after the snow melts, the land seems barren, dead, an expanse of nothingness. But beneath the surface, there are nutrients, bacteria, enzymes, evem insects. There is life. So it is the duty, responsibility, and privilege of the farmer to prepare the land, seed it, tend it, and harvest the crops.

As Sorgae Witches, I feel we share that duty, responsibility, and privilege, but our preparation, seeding, tending, and harvest occurs through our ritual work. Each year, our Coven performs divination to determine our role, our goal, what "crops" we will raise that year, both for the individual members and the Coven as a whole.

[*Note: However, this does still reflect the idea of the Sacred King myth, that the King must die for the sake of the Land, for He IS the Land. In Sorgae, we seem to "cut out the middle man," in a sense, and work with the Land directly, instead of with a surrogate.]

[Image link; provided to avoid triggers]

The Hurralya are the Beings of Air, in the East, and one type of Fae that Sorgae 'Craft recognizes. Erian is their Queen. Appearance-wise, they are tall, thin, and pale-skinned, with oval heads and large, black, almond-shaped eyes. They have long arms, legs, and fingers, and their noses and mouths are nearly non-existent. (If they sound familiar, that's no coincidence, and I'll address that in a later post). They spin and twirl, and "dust devils," the small vortexes of wind that seemingly come out of nowhere and disapate just as quickly, are the manifestation of their dance. Appropriate offerings to them are pancakes and fresh milk or cream.

Since we associate Erian with the High Priestess because of Her role as the Initiator, we view the Hurralya as teachers, first and foremost. However, since the Hurralya are not of this plane, they do not always operate in the most human-practical of ways. They strive to evoke a reaction in order to get our attention. Of all human reactions, the instinctual ones are the strongest and most universal. Of those, the most intense, is fear. They are not in truth attempting to frighten, but if we feel that deep down instinctual fear, we will be more alert and aware, and so they know they have made an impact and have our attention, which is their goal upon first contact.

Our part, then, is to learn to overcome this fear and understand they have wisdom, knowledge, and messages to share. They are the Elder Children of the Gods, older siblings of Witches, and so have experiences of the multiverse we cannot imagine. But they want to tell us, so we can learn to commune with the Gods as they do. For this communion is the ultimate goal of Sorgae 'Craft.

Sometimes for this teaching, the Hurralya find it necessary to "take us away." Often this is on an astral level only, but there are instances of physical travel as well. Faerie stories all over Europe talk about people being stolen by Fae, or lured away by beautiful mysterious creatures (for lust and love are also strong emotions and reactions). We've found most of these stories apply to the Hurralya, though as I said, it is our understanding that their motives are not malicious, that in fact they can be benevolent.

But as with any relationship, it's something that must be cultivated and maintained. Having respect for their methods, accepting their gifts of knowledge, and giving offerings in gratitude, all help to insure our safe return so we may impart and enact the transformative knowledge they share with us. Though as was stated in the post about Erian, sometimes that knowledge changes one in ways unimagined, and the human world, the human experience, is no longer suitable.

( Etymology Notes )

(Click to enlarge)

"East Goddess – Erian (air-ee-AN), identified with the broom and the veil and the stars. She is the initiator, the revealer of the Mysteries. Her knowledge is transformative. She seems to have a special connection to the Faerie, the Hurralya (Beings of Air in the East [more on them in a later post]) and we have identified Her as the mythical Queen of Elphame."

Also years ago, my High Priestess wrote a song that included some applicable lyrics:

Stars on high and stars beneath
Dust among the realms of night
Cold Her song with voices still
Hidden ever from thy sight
Hidden from thy sight
[...]
Hosts of Air about Her whirl
Not of faith but knowledge She
Vault of Heaven, vault of Hell
In Her is the Mystery
She, the Mystery

I have met Erian once that I was aware of. She speaks with an accent similar to Arduina's, as They both speak Vaska. (In fact, when both were Channeled at the same time, They spoke Vaska to each other.) What I remember most about Erian is that She seemed glad to be with us. She also commented on the absence of certain tools, saying She liked the "frippery," that ritual pomp and pagentry and props were pleasing to Her.

I did some brief online research about the designation "Queen of Elphame," and one aspect that struck me was that She is said to "kidnap" humans. This is pretty standard Faerie lore, but a bit of possible UPG (Unverified Personal Gnosis) says that these "kidnappings" are more accurately Initiations, that those taken are given knowledge of the Mystery She keeps. Often times such knowledge is so transformative that one simply cannot abide returning to one's previous life. So one travels elsewhere, by physical or astral means, to explore and Know and commune.

Come away, O Human child
To the woods and waters wild
With a Faerie, hand in hand
For the world's more full of weeping
Than you can understand

He comes, the Human child
To the woods and waters wild
With a Faerie, hand in hand
For the world's more full of weeping
Than he can understand
(from "The Stolen Child" by William Butler Yeats)
***

My Coven is gradually building a website about Sorgae 'Craft, which can be found at Aranakh.org. As it is a revealed system, we are far from knowing everything about this 'Craft and its Gods, and so what I write here will be my own personal impressions and experiences.

Below the cut is the piece my High Priestess wrote about the Directions, Elements, and Powers recognized in Sorgae 'Craft. I'm posting her piece instead of writing my own here, because this already covers very clearly and concisely what I would have struggled to say.

( Quarters and Crossquarters )

For my own contribution/amusement, I found pictures to represent the Elements, and also created an easy reference chart:

( Pictures and Chart )

"Most Pagan systems acknowledge the importance of the cardinal directions, North, East, South and West. The Sorgae system adds the midpoints between the directions; Northeast, Southeast, Southwest and Northwest."

The above is quoted from a piece my High Priestess wrote about the Directions, and their associated Elements and Powers in Sorgae 'Craft. I plan to include that in next week's post dedicated to the Elements, as it is a very cohesive thing. So instead of editing and abridging the piece, I'm going to talk about "assigned" Directions.

Just as Sorgae Deities are associated with specific Directions, so are Sorgae Witches. Thus far, this has happened in ritual via Channeling. That is, Deity has informed us of our Directional associations.

All Sorgae Witches are automatically associated with the South, as it is the Direction of Will, and we are the vehicles for the Gods' Will on this plane. Each Witch is also associated with the Direction that corresponds to their Western Astrological Sun sign. In my case, that puts me West, since I am a Scorpio, which is a Water sign, and Water is in the West (again, more on the Elements next week).

However, I have also been told that I am "of the West and North," which indicates the arc from West itoi North, and therefore includes Northwest. So, to sum up, I am South, double West, North, and Northwest. Some Witches, however, are only given one Direction from Deity, not three as I was.

So when I say that a God or Goddess is "mine," I mean that They are associated with one of those three Directions (for reference, They are Kur and Ariadne in the West, Goh'len and Hekate in the Northwest, and Ianos and Arduina in the North). Though perhaps it is more accurate to say I am Theirs, as I do feel very much Owned by and Devoted to Them.

Otherwise, I am not entirely clear on what function these "assignments" serve yet. Perhaps it will mean I am most adept at Channeling those Goddesses, and understanding the messages of those Gods. Or that the Powers of those Directions are best made manifest through me.

As a fun sort of joke, my High Priestess recently bought me this shirt, part of the product line for the upcoming movie, "Oz, the Great and Powerful."

( Click the image for full view )

A final thought; I felt a personal pang of disappointment when I was not assigned Southeast, as I felt (and still feel) a deep connection with Atamenoch in that Direction. However, His Priestess (the South Goddess, Salonshai) asked me directly to keep a place for Him in my heart, and I've since realized that my placement in Northwest sets me up to look towards Him across the Circle. And I plan to, with all the love and adoration I can muster.

When I was younger, I was often quick to point out that Angels had nothing to do with Paganism, that they were relevant only to Christianity and Magickal systems derrived therefrom. I'm big enough to admit I was wrong. Or rather, didn't see the whole picture.

In studying and understanding Sorgae, I've seen more and more that connections are everywhere. So naturally, Angels (which, of course, are spiritually "older" than Christianity) do in fact have a place in Paganism. Four of the Archangels are affiliated with the Cardinal directions, for very good reasons, but perhaps more importantly, Angels are partially responsible for Witchcraft (see South below).

( East )
( South )
( West )
( North )
***

My Coven is gradually building a website about Sorgae 'Craft, which can be found at Aranakh.org. It is a revealed system, so we are far from knowing everything about this 'Craft and its Gods. This entry contains bits of reasearch to corroborate things we have been told.

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Aranahk

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Entries tagged with east

Quizzes

Uartalya

T'hot'

Ostraven

Material - Sides of the Year

Hurralya

Erian

Elements

Directions

Choir of Angels