Lugh, from whom the names Lew, Lewis, Lou and Louis derive, was a sacred king/god of Celtic origin. As with many other sacred king/god types, He gave His life for the Land. His death allowed His life force to enter into the crops and return to the Land. Those who harvested and ate of the crops were nourished by His sacrifice. The question this suggests is why? Why did Lugh sacrifice Himself? The answer is simple. The Land, and its people, are so sacred that Lugh could not help but offer himself up to the Land's need.
This issue of Widdershins is devoted to sacred places, places that could inspire a god to offer Himself up for the cause. From the high peak of Kilauea where Pele dances, to the cemeteries where we return to the Land, to the very personal sacred place inside our own aura, we examine very different views on what is sa- cred.
To me, the sacred places are those where the magic flows freely. Sure, magic is everywhere and your cone of power flows from wherever you happen to be, but there are places where the magic jumps eagerly to the call. Some places are universal, but most depend highly on your person and purpose. A cemetery may be wonderful for that Samhain energy, but it is probably a bad place for Oestara. One article in this issue talks about the sacred energy of Stonehenge for someone who was admitted to the Circle. When I went to Stonehenge, just after a summer solstice battle, I found it a blighted and wholly unpleasant place. The activist in me felt the pain of beaten protesters and the hatred radiating from the omnipresent police force.
Sacred places are also those we keep in our hearts. The images of our sacred places are part of what gives power to our magical workings. Some people are content to "invoke the Guardian of the Watchtower of the South." When I hear this, my mind pictures a Dungeons and Dragons' Fire Elemental (a 12 HD monster, very dangerous) floating on top of a lone stone tower trying to look over the battlements. Why does it like the south? What is it guarding against? Who knows? It isn't a particularly useful image. Instead, I picture Uluru, the giant sacred rock in the center of Australia's outback. The Rock just radiates power and has been a sacred place to many aboriginal tribes since the Dreamtime. It is red as flame and is in the center of an arid desert. A fit image for fire and the south. Similarly, it is the cool, majestic power of California's Headwaters Forest that I think of for the earth and north.
A person's sacred places should be personal to him or her. As cool as Uluru is, it wouldn't make a good sacred place for me unless I had touched it for myself. It was in feeling the Rock, learning Its stories, drinking from Its spring, tasting Its energy that engraved that sacred place on my soul. Any special place in your memory probably has something sacred to it. Think back to the places you remember well. Why did they stick in your memory? Think about different magical qualities and ask yourself: "Is that what made it special?" Everyone has sacred places. Actually identifying ours goes a long way towards figuring out who we really are....
[Home Page | Other Articles in This Issue | FAQ | Local Resources]