As the solstice approaches, the sun stands high in the sky. It is too bright to see clearly, but I know that there is a great storm roiling across its face. A solar flare is pointed in our direction today and tomorrow (June 8th & 9th) and bubbles of charged gas are erupting off its surface. The solar wind carries these bubbles outward through the solar system, showing us in with geomagnetic energy.
To us, the sun looks the same as always, but we can sense the solar storm's effects indirectly. The radio I am listening to is full of static. The power is fluctuating a bit. If we are lucky, we may even see the aurora borealis tonight. When the sun looks our way, the earth responds.
The theme of this sabbat's issue of Widdershins is "Modern Primitives". These are people who strive to adapt the rituals, beliefs, or actions of ancient (usually indigenous) cultures into their modern lives. To some, this is an act of homage, or an attempt to truly experience a part of a culture that is far older than ours. To others, this is purely another plundering of indigenous treasures. However you wish to see it, we thought that these ideas would be interesting to examine.
The term "Modern Primitive" was a mystery to me. And when it was explained, I found it vaguely insulting to indigenous peoples. They are not in any way "primitive". Their cultures are much older than ours, and thus are often more advanced socially. But the term "modern primitive" is common in the tattooing & body modification subcultures. The idea for this issue came from there and the name stuck.
Like the sun above, the indigenous cultures can be too bright for us to look at directly. Often, we only see their effects indirectly, through the words and deeds of the "modern primitives" around us. Perhaps "primal" would be a better word than "primitive". This issue of Widdershins should be interpreted as a respectful glance at the rays cast off by that sun.
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