Pagan Tama
Top stories of the week (and last week) in Paganism and Shinto:
- People across Japan visit shrines on New Year’s
- Witches curse US lawmaker for voting down Joe Biden’s spending bill
- UK: Self proclaimed ‘Arch Druid’ of Cornwall who built a stone circle in his garden has died
Read more below…
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Pagan News
Witches curse US lawmaker for voting down Joe Biden’s spending bill
Joe.co.uk
A coven of witches in the US have cursed a senator for opposing one of President Joe Biden’s spending bills…
UK: Self proclaimed ‘Arch Druid’ of Cornwall who built a stone circle in his garden has died
Cornwall Live
The family of Edward Prynn, who installed a giant stone circle in his garden at his home in St Merryn near Padstow, paid tribute to an eccentric yet spiritual man who had nothing but love and pride for his family…
Trisha Paytas sparks backlash after announcing they’re becoming Pagan/Wiccan
Sportskeeda
Infamous YouTuber Trisha Paytas has announced that they are joining the Wiccan or Pagan community…
UK: Stonehenge winter solstice is a hit
Wiltshire Times
Hundreds gathered at Stonehenge this morning to witness the first sunrise of the lighter days to come….
UK: Chester returns to Roman rule during festive Saturnalia parade
Chester Standard
Chester’s final festive parade of the season saw Roman Legion soldiers take to the streets on Thursday, December 16 with flaming torches…
UK: Woman who has identified as witch since she was 15 shares how she marks Christmas
The Sun
Witchcraft enthusiast and practitioner Jessica Streek has admitted that she still loves Christmas – even though she doesn’t believe in Christianity. There are some big differences to her celebrations, though…
UK: A different type of holiday celebration
Ipswich Local News
A group of 14 women remembered the ancient traditions that modern Christmas stems from…
Instagram ‘smash and grab’ impostors peddle fake psychic and tarot readings
Religion News Service
Metaphysical practitioners are becoming increasingly frustrated with social media outlets as impersonators thrive off their accounts…
Healing myself the Pagan way: how witchcraft cast a spell on me
The Guardian
Witchcraft and its deep connection with nature restored my mental health…
Why are women becoming witches?
UnHerd
Humans have always turned to magic when they feel helpless…
How Ohio’s Indigenous sacred sites became a religious flashpoint
The Washington Post*
Southern Ohio is home to more than 70 earthworks constructed by the Indigenous Adena and Hopewell cultures…
What is esoteric astrology and how is it different from reading my horoscope?
Yahoo/PureWow
Esoteric Astrology is a soul-centered astrology…
13 spell books for every type of witch
Bustle
If you’re looking to get into witchcraft, or just want to deepen your burgeoning practice, then let this list of spell books be your guide…
Shinto News
People across Japan visit shrines on New Year’s
NHK World
People across Japan have paid their respects at shrines and temples to usher in the New Year…
Japan’s emperor prays for pandemic dead in New Year message
Toronto Star
Japan’s Emperor Naruhito offered prayers for those who died during the pandemic, taking to video for the second straight year for his New Year’s greeting on Saturday, having canceled public palace gatherings to curb coronavirus infections…
New Year’s calligraphy event at Kyoto shrine
NHK World
People in the ancient Japanese capital of Kyoto are taking part in an annual calligraphy event at a Shinto shrine that has a more than one-thousand-year history…
US: Nu’uanu Shinto temple offers New Year’s blessings
ABC17
Every year, many people and dozens of pets get a traditional blessing from the priest- or priestess…
What to expect in the Year of the Tiger
The Japan Times
Astrologers say the tiger denotes strength, vitality and growth — qualities that will hopefully stand us in good stead as we look to move past the uncertainty that COVID-19 has wrought…
How these Japanese prayer plaques became symbols of hope
National Geographic
Hanging in temples and shrines across the country, the small inscribed boards lighten souls weighed down by worry…
700-kg rice cake offered at shrine before New Year
NHK World
A giant rice cake that weighs 700 kilograms has been offered at a shrine in Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, to welcome in the New Year…
Eerie procession of deities stuns crowds at Beppu hot spring resort festival
The Mainichi
A group of residents and dancers dressed as eerie-looking deities paraded from a shrine to a hot spring district to perform a Shinto ritual as part of a contemporary arts festival which began in the southwest Japan city of Beppu on Dec. 18…
Kadomatsu in Sendai: An old-school Japanese New Year
Unseen Japan
You may have heard of kadomatsu, Japan’s traditional New Year decoration. But did you know of this old-school variation from the Edo era?…
Seeking seven lucky gods in Shitaya
Japan Today
Japan has many New Year’s traditions meant to ensure fortune in the year to come…
Kyushu banks on anime-, manga-related sites to revive tourism
The Asahi Shimbun
Tamachi Sugawara Tenmangu shrine in Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto Prefecture, serves as a locale for “Natsume’s Book of Friends.”…
Tokyo ‘taiko’ drums still beat in Japan’s hearts
The Mainichi
Japan’s shrines and temples each have their own drums used not only in ceremonial rituals but during festivals, where the drums create music along with flutes to enhance and uplift the lively atmosphere…
Other News
Altar site for Greek goddess Demeter found in Turkey’s Blaundus
Daily Sabah
An altar site for the ancient Greek goddess Demeter was unearthed during the ongoing excavations in the ancient city of Blaundus, located within the borders of the western Anatolian city of Uşak…
Greece: Marble Statue of woman discovered at Epidaurus; possibly goddess Hygeia
Greek Reporter
A marble statue of a woman which may depict Hygeia, the wife or daughter of the ancient Greek god Asclepius, the god of medicine, was just found at the site of ancient Epidaurus, a center for healing in ancient times…
Celebrating the lore of the Christmas Witch
Reading Eagle
She arrives Jan. 6 and rewards good-natured children with small rewards of fruit and cookies…
How did the ancient Egyptians celebrate the New Year?
EgyptToday
The ancient Egyptian culture was closely related to the Nile River. Their new year seems to correspond to its annual flood, according to the Roman writer Censorinus…
Brazil worshippers celebrates sea goddess Yemanja
RepublicWorld.com
Brazilian worshippers celebrated the Goddess of the Sea, Yemanja, in Niteroi on Wednesday, offering flowers and gifts into the ocean in exchange for blessings for the coming year…
Hunt the Wren: Ancient Manx tradition grows in popularity
BBC
An ancient tradition celebrated by people on the Isle of Man on St Stephen’s Day has been “getting stronger”, organisers have said…
‘Witch Hunts’ Past & Present
UK: Kristy Bamu Christmas killing – Torture, exorcisms and ‘witchcraft’ delusions
Mirror
Kristy Bamu, 15, was visiting his sister Magalie in east London from France during Christmas 2010 – but after becoming the subject of his sister’s ‘witchcraft’ allegations, he never returned home…
UK: Historian calls for Devon’s executed ‘witches’ to be pardoned
Devon Live
A local historian is calling for Devon women and men executed for witchcraft to be pardoned – particularly as Exeter is regarded as having possibly been the epicentre of witchcraft in England…
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