Panel idea: AI and the magical world.. how to not be erased by the artificial (writers & practitioners that have online presence) ?

Our panelists will describe how their work intersects with their spiritual practice. In the modern world being a full-time artist is often at odds with being self-supporting, yet people do it anyway. Sometimes we feel that we have no choice about this. Art is a compulsion, a need. It is also a service to the community, as is being a healer, diviner or shaman. Many artists work with deities, others don’t. Some do their work in sacred space, others see the whole physical world as sacred. Looking for four panelists who can talk about their relationship with their art and muses and geniuses, as well as involving those in the audience who also feel the calling.

We proudly mention how many years we've been active in magick/psychic/ spiritual practices, but often find ourselves mentoring newcomers. Can we get some who have recently been experiencing entering our community to advise us on how better to nurture 'newbies'? If it's been five years (or you remember vividly what you wish your teachers had realized), please come and give us the information we need to better serve those new to our community. You do NOT need to be a CTCW presenter, simply have something to share that would help new folks who come after.

Birds in divination, religion, and as omens: Throughout history, in many religions and Paths, birds have played a significant role. If an owl hoots, does it foretell death? If a bird flies widdershins around a person or item, is that an omen? Let's explore the role of birds in folklore, religion, and omens in a variety of cultures and religions.

Panelist will share their recommendations for books on different modern branches of paganism: basic Heathenry books, books for Druids, and other Celtic pagans, books for Hellenists, for Khemetics, for Romuva etc. Suggests on good introductory books on Shinto or Hindu practice would be great. We hope for panelists from the branches they represent.

Which are the most useful collections to have in your library? There are Encyclopedias of Fairies, Vampires, Ghosts, Magick, Symbols, Crystals, Magical Herbs, and others. Which of these are worth getting and consulting, and which are simply trying to take advantage of our interest to make money for the publisher and author? Panelists will share their opinions.

Modern students of magick can find many books of spells from the Key of Solomon, Grand Grimoire, and the Black Pullet to Lady Sheba's Book of Shadows, Trolldom, or the Encyclopedia of 5000 Spells. Many collections of spells, new and old, have been made available. I was surprised to see "Enochian Magic for Beginners" in a friends collection, although I have Cockayne’s Leechdoms, Wortcunning, and Starcraft of Early England. The Panelists will discuss what we can learn from these books and which ones they may have and use.

Before there was Cunningham and Drawing Down the Moon, there were books on witchcraft and magick. Some of these were pretty good and still worth reading, others, not so much. Our panelists will discuss and recommend (or issue cautionary remarks) about books by authors like Helena Blavatsky _Isis Unveiled_ (1877), James George Frazer _The Golden Bough_ (1890), Charles Leland _Aradia_ (1899, Margaret Murray _Witchcult in Western Europe_ (1921), Manly P. Hall _Secret Teachings of All Ages_ (1928), Robert Graves _The White Goddess_ (1948), Max Freedom Long _Secret Science Behind Miracles_ 1948, and others like Edgar Cayce, Charles Fort, Éliphas Lévi, Emanuel Swedenborg, Rudolf Steiner, Aleister Crowley, & early magickal lodges, many of which informed early practitioners. Which of these old books should be read by people coming into the community.

Many paths teach that you need to make your own magical tools, not purchase them. Others say that it’s OK to purchase, but you must not haggle. Are bespoke/commissioned tools better than off the shelf? What about tools crafted by another practitioner with the intent of being magical tools? Is this still appropriate? How far do you take it? Is sewing your own robe enough, or do you need to weave the cloth? Or is this all nonsense and you simply need a functional item that you dedicate for a purpose? (Is it perfectly reasonable to go to your local festival or conference and pick something gorgeous up from the dealers room, if it calls to you?)

We're looking for panelists who practice unusual forms of divination that they can share and explain. People are always developing new systems, like the lady in England who uses asparagus, or the Canadian who tells the future with hot dogs, or bug splatters on windshields. If it works, it's real.
What have you got?

Healers discuss their experiences and the best practices they've found for maximizing the healing they do, while minimizing personal risk. Sharing both training they've had, as well as examples of "rookie mistakes", we can help others perform healing better. Some except help of gods and other helpers, others prefer using natural sources of energy like crystals, plants, and other elements. Some join energies with the patient and work from within, others work from without. There are many techniques that may enhance each other if we share them.

Doing readings for others can be satisfying, but can also present challenges. What do you when negative events show up in your reading? How do you present that information to your client? Or should you not give bad news at all? Panelists will discuss situations and possible courses of action.

Gender: Some of the stuff out there is very Hetero-based, which is problematic for not being as inclusive in the reflection in content, to which most practitioners actually practice in their personal conduct & practices. If it isn't making it into the press, people aren't gonna see it, and assume they aren't included.

There are many ways to look at "ghosts".
Are they an energetic after-image left behind after an emotionally charged event that some people can see?
Are ghosts souls of the dead 'stuck' in a place they must haunt after a problematic death? Are they our beloved dead, watching us from heaven, and with whom we can communicate through a medium or dreams?
How do theories about ghosts fit into the idea of reincarnation?
Can ghosts act as 'familiar spirits' and help with our magick? Have they joined the faerie courts (can they)? Do they attend the dying?
If they can communicate with us, how?
Our panelists will discuss these and other possibilities from their experiences. Please share yours as well.

Appropriation of religious practices in media & movies does harm to public perception. If movies like Song of the South and Gone with the Wind, which glorify the reconstruction and southern culture as peaceful, and black slave as happy, or movies (like John Wick) present violence as heroic, have adverse effects on public thought, do ‘supernatural’ movies not do the same? We often enjoy seeing magick portrayed, but is the perception of magick users (and pagans) being damaged when movies depict us badly, however absurd we may find it? Why does Hollywood classify everything supernatural as “horror” Are there ever pagans, psychics, or magick users ever treated respectfully in movies or on TV? Should we be trying to get the same respect other minorities are given?

From Ancient Figures to Knotty Times Many of us played Cat's Cradle as children. More than just a playground game, Cat's Cradle is part of an ancient tradition around the world. Cultural traditions are revealing that some string figures have been used to cast magic spells. Today, magick makers use cords and knots regularly, from handfastings to witch's ladders. Learn about some of the surprising twists in the history of Strings, and Magick!

The future of humanity, and its place in the universe, feels especially tenuous right now, and the impacts on mental health can be profound. How should being an occult practitioner inform work for mental health? Is there anything about our attitudes towards mental health or healing that should be changing, by exploring new techniques or returning to old ones? How shall we care for our community and our world?

Altars: many religions have altar setups. If you have an altar(s), how is it set up and dedicated? Are ritual sacrifices/offerings made? How are your items and images placed? Christian altars are usually in churches, but many folks have altars in their homes: Public and private, Food prep (hearth) or consumption, sleeping areas, Ancestor altars, indoor and outside, temporary and permanent, for a specific god, or shared ... How are yours set up? Each is just as valid, right? How do different purposes change how they are set up and used?

Theology is a study of god but at this point we don't have a robust poly-theology. Can we have a discussion about the nature of gods? It would be nice if we could get panelists from different perspectives who can display how to civilly discuss the nature of the gods from different perspectives. Why don't we start with this proposition (from a John Becket blogpost):
If you believe the Gods are many and have agency, you cannot also believe They can’t affect you unless you permit it. The two propositions are logically inconsistent.

Theology is a study of god but at this point we don't have a robust poly-theology. Can we have a discussion about the nature of gods? It would be nice if we could get panelists from different perspectives who can display how to civilly discuss the nature of the gods from different perspectives. Why don't we start with this proposition (from a John Becket blogpost):
"ideas from popular religion and popular culture are often hard to catch – particularly if they’re comforting."

Ritual: is it necessary for a given situation, or out of custom, or for the fun of it? Sometimes a ritual can alleviate a situation, but sometimes folks hold rituals just for the theater and fun of it. We see ritual in many religious observances. usually on a given day, and so how do you see ritual?

Is there one? Are there magicks too large to try? Are there any too small to bother? Do more participants let you do bigger things? Is there a "Right Size" that is best for regular practice, and is it different for solitary users than for groups? Can we fix the World, or is that too much to handle?

Few changes are more profound than birth, both for child and parents. (The body of a non-pregnant woman is as different from that of a pregnant woman, as it is from a man's body.) What rituals or customs have you used (or plan to use) to celebrate this change, and help negotiate the transition from being single to plural, or from pre-born to incarnated human? Unlike marriage, coming of age or eldering, we can be distracted by the changes themselves, and not do anything. Let's share our ideas with those approaching this event.

Ritual food and drink: Christians have the wafer and wine (or grape juice), Friday and Lent fasting; Jews have the Seder plate, Muslims fast (days) during Ramadan. Some people have personal restrictions on what they may not or must eat from the spirits they work with.
Do you have special ritual food and/or beverage ceremonials? Let's compare and contrast food and drink in ritual usage in a variety of world and home practices.

In the 1980s allegations of Satanic abuse in pre-schools set off an hysteria that led to over 200 people being charged and dozens convicted (some being released in 2013 and successfully suing for wrongful conviction). “When people get emotionally involved in an issue, common sense and reason go out the window. People believe what they want and need to believe.” said former FBI agent Ken Lanning. But we are hearing this sort of charges circulating again, and since even ridiculous charges can ruin lives, what should we due to guard ourselves, and our society against another hysteria?

In some places and tmes it has been, and still is, dangerous to be openly pagan or witch, but sometimes secrecy adds mystery. We STILL don't know what went on at the Elusinian Mysteries, that's how powerful the prohibition against sharing was. On the other hand, hand copied texts suffer from the folk-process, and oral teachings even more so. There are definite pros and cons to secrecy in different situations. Let's talk about them, and how to remedy some of the problems that we don't like.

Seekers in the 21st Century: Many of the books and resources we used are not necessarily aging well (looking at the Witches' Bible Compleat), and lots of modern magic books are blurring the lines, and including stuff that were rooted in errors, also mixing of stuff that is questionable like Nazi-era runes etc. , how do we identify good sources, and how do we save ourselves from flooding from AI- based authorship?

There are practices that can be accurately described as shamanic, while others are shamanistic (done from a shamanic perspective, but not by a shaman). We want to have shamans speaking about how they became shaman (spirit worker), about their initiation ordeal/ life threatening event happened to them that tipped them over from simply being a (sensitive) person to being a shaman. How do they feel being a shaman is different from simply being able to speak to spirits, do energy healing, or visit otherworlds? Can we ask which beings primarily grabbed them and shook, and issue their marching orders. What communities they serve?

Just about every Tarot deck includes a little booklet with card meanings, and suggestions for laying out the cards. And it almost always includes the 10-card Celtic Cross. But is that the only way to read the cards? And is it the best spread for all purposes? Do you even -need- to use a defined spread? Come learn about other options. If time allows, tips for designing a spread will be provided.

An oldie but goodie: We discussed a decade or so ago about whether pagans felt relatively safe outside of the closet, … looking back, what has changed, what has stayed the same?

We may not “be” what we eat, but can what you crave influence your spirit as well as your body and mind? A recent meme suggested sweet/dairy for being ungrounded, spicy for sadness, bitter (coffee & cocoa) for needing love, salt for fear and anxiety, and sour for anger. Humoral theory rates foods as hot, cold, wet, and dry, and recommends eating to balance your personal body humors. Ayurvedic diets work for balance balance using the doshas Pitta, Vata, and Kapha. I’ve read that refined sugar feeds invasive entities, and strengthens them, harder for their human hosts to evict. Allergies certainly manifest as cravings as well as histamine reactions. Louise Hay’s Little Blue Book, Heal your Body, suggested that different physical ailments suggested spiritual problems that need addressing. Any rules that claim to be applicable to everyone seem immediately suspect. Panelists will discuss how your food choices may affect your energy fields, and try to negotiate the many questions about what’s good for some may not be the best advice for others.