A Grove of Ashes and Aspens

  • Solitary Practice: Dealing with Loneliness as a Pagan

    Now Playing: The Solitaire by Elvenking Dealing with loneliness as a pagan can get really weird. While one can experience this for other reasons, the loneliness that can come directly from being a pagan is another beast entirely. Now, I’m an introvert, so I enjoy spending time by myself doing my own thing and not…

  • The Inherently Political Nature of Art

    Now Playing: Elvenlegions by Elvenking Throughout history, we can see discussions of political themes within art, ranging from a comedic look at history to playing with gender roles to open criticism of current political leaders to a critical look at social issues affecting the modern human being. Now, whether or not some people want to…

  • Tarot and Rune Readings: Using Common Sense for Divinations and Signs

    Now Playing: Reader of the Runes – Book I by Elvenking So something I (thankfully) don’t see too often is people taking divination tools as super literal tools of what exactly will happen in the future. This can get really messy when questions can refer to specific situations with answers that are very vague or…

  • Language in Paganism: The Necessity of Learning the Language of an Ancient Religion

    Now Playing: Heathen Divine by Elvenking Words are funny markings (or collections of funny sounds, depending on what part of language you’re looking at) that we’ve collectively decided to mean specific things, and now I have to learn how to speak two separate times to actually have more of a chance of getting a job…

  • Home Worship in Non Ideal Circumstances: Temporary Altars and Disturbing Permanent Altars

    Now Playing: Not My Final Song by Elvenking Many pagans will have some form of home altar, and that can be anything from a small area on their desk where they keep ritual equipment to a full dedicated table, or even an entire dedicated room, if you’re feeling ambitious. The specifics on size, location, and…

  • Distance from the Gods: Detachment in Paganism

    Now Playing: King of the Elves by Elvenking Each person who turns to paganism has their own reasons for doing so, but most often because they felt some sort of calling to this path. But what happens when that calling goes away? Losing that sense of calling to the path can cause some to feel…

  • Pagan Metal: My Deep Love of Elvenking

    Now Playing: Pagan Purity by Elvenking I’m not sure how obvious it is, but I am, in fact, a massive Elvenking fan. Maybe it’s the violin, maybe it’s the fact that they’re pretty Italian elf boys, maybe it’s the folk metal start leading into powerfolk in more recent albums, who knows. Maybe it’s the fact…

  • Spirit or Something Else: What Are the Gods?

    Now Playing: Draugen’s Maelstrom by Elvenking The title may seem like a stupid question, but I promise it makes sense. When having specific experiences within Heathenry (and paganism in general), it can be hard to distinguish if an experience is from a god or a local nature spirit or house spirit or even the spirit…

  • Paganism and Representation in Popular Media

    Now Playing: Northern Lights by Tungsten Everything in this is from my perspective based on what I know, and is not meant as a commentary on global issues that may concern issues that I don’t face as a white person living in Canada. Within the Western social sphere, media have traditionally (at least for the…

  • Pagan Leadership and Organised Hierarchy

    Now Playing: Freya by Brothers of Metal When considering the major religions of the world, there are a few things that stick out as common between most of them. There’s usually a centralised text or book (or collection of texts) and a specific group of people who are considered to have a certain authority within…