Spirit Flight and Hedge Riding

Continuously, we revel in the thought of having the ability to fly. Whether physically or immaterially, it is a gift that is quite rare indeed. But what if—just what if—you actually had the tools to accomplish it?

WE ARE GOING TO SALEM!
Instagram: @beyondtheseaspodcast
EMAIL ME: beyondtheseaspodcast@gmail.com
Tarot Collaboration: @thefeatherwitchnyc
Weekly Book: A Wizard of Earthsea
Podcast website: https://beyondtheseas.buzzsprout.com/
More info: https://www.kierandanaan.com/beyond-the-seas

Author Interview Collaboration
Crossed Crow Books (@crossedcrowbooks)

Sources
-Burns, Corrinne. “Halloween witch: is a travel sickness behind flying broomstick myth?” The Guardian, 31 October 2013. www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2013/oct/31/halloween-witches-travel-sickness-drug-scopolamine
-Jackson, Nigel. Aldcroft. The Call of the Horned Piper. Capal Bann Publishing, 1994. Print.
-Kelden. “Introduction to Spirit-Flight.” Patheos, 25 December 2016. www.patheos.com/blogs/byathameandstang/2016/12/introduction-spirit-flight. 

Music
"Human Spirit" by Hans Johnson
"Intimacy" by Ben Winwood
"Finish, Remember, Begin Again" by Dear Gravity
"A Lasting Peace (feat. Anita Tatlow)" by Be Still the Earth
"Irish Mountains" by Ben Winwood

Happy Lughnasadh, Magick Makers,
Kieran

Chapters

• 0:00 Flying to the Sabbat
• 3:51 Grand tidings!
• 11:26 Flying Ointments and Histories
• 24:41 The Mysterium Sabbati
• 39:23 Outro

Transcript

“The moon is full, the time is set,

We journey on to Sabbath’s met,” intoned the High Priestess.

The Coven had heard her mind-speech across the vast distances of the land,

Knowing the invisible Witch Way was about to open.

Their bodies glistened with the oils of old,

The Traveling Ointments that were the Coven’s birthright.

Their staffs and brooms were held aloft, as the winds of the night quickened and howled.

Their bodies lifted from the Earth and their Travels began.

Quickly and swiftly, they flew over mountains, rivers, forests, and glens,

Assembling at the ancient high holy place of the Sabbat.

A circle of standing stones enwrapped a raging bonfire, 

Figures dancing and leaping over its flames. 

And before it, sat the High Holy Ones,

The Gods of the Earth and Heavens. 

And the Witches who worshipped them.

“The moon is full, the time is now,

Hail the Old Ones with stately bow,” intoned the High Priest.

And thus, linking heart to heart, and hand to hand, 

The Coven began their ritualistic dance,

In honor of Them who gifted them with Magick.

And as they smiled and laughed, sang and roared,

Their hearts and spirits knew one simple truth:

Their work, their magick, their Craft—

Had truly only just begun.

(transition music)

            Grand tidings and welcome to you on this, the thirty-ninth episode, of Beyond the Seas. My name is Kieran and here we are again, back at it for another week. Happy Lughnasadh, Magick Makers, Happy Lughnasadh! I hope you have a wonderful harvest celebration this week with your nearest and dearest. We are one away from another milestone, y’all: we will soon hit forty episodes here on the show! Sometimes I pinch myself at how far the podcast has come, all the way from the initial thought of producing one to this recording moment right now. Manifestation and magick occur when you put pen to paper, right Magick Makers? Thus, the plugs time: @beyondtheseaspodcast on Instagram, and Claudia’s account, @thefeatherwitchnyc, to follow along with the weekly tarot collaboration—wherein Claudia teaches the tarot one card at a time, one week at a time. Also, hit the five star rating and leave a review before hitting the play button—that way, the show reaches new Magick Makers the world over. So, I am so excited for the new listeners and returning subscribers here on the show—thus, as always, thank you all for being here with me today. 

            And now, artistic and literary updates! So get this, the day of this episode’s premiere is the our Opening Night for Dial ‘M’ for Murder here at East Lynne Theater. I am very excited to have audiences see our finished product and to experience their reactions to it. And it is a treat to run the show all the way through August 31st, and living right next to the beach the entire time. Now, the book: this week, I picked up a new beach read, while still reading Thistlefoot, and decided on A Wizard of Earthsea by Urusula K. LeGuin. I am thoroughly enjoying this book! I definitely see the ties it has to classical fantasy and the motifs of that subset of the genre. It follows Ged, the legendary Archmage of Earthsea, and his beginnings. Rather than bespeak of his prowess later in life, it details how he came into his power and the adventures he experienced along the way. It is clearly a very famous book, and I am remiss that I am only now reading it, but super glad that I am. So go ahead, head to your local library or second-hand bookshop and pick yourself up a copy, so you may follow along with the fun. 

            And now, the Card of the Week! As we barrel on towards the opening of the show, I am so glad that Claudia, this week, pulled The Sun. Brighter days are ahead, after traveling on the star-lit path last week, right? It seems that the time is now ripe for pleasure, enjoyment, and much merry-making, having done the work that leads us to this moment. Take a moment, then, for yourself, right now, to congratulate you and the efforts you have done to make all the things happen. There is a newfound sense of freedom, play, wonder, and enlightenment in this moment, right? Like the newborn babe, you are awakening and arising to new parts of yourself that have long been asleep—and now have the space to flourish and grow. What a magickal coincidence, as we experience Lughnasadh today, right?

            And now, the Wine of the Week! Imma be honest, I’m still drinking the wine from last week! Hahahaha. I am living life fully and pleasurably on a budget and remain tied to the boxed wine situation—to save a buck or two. However, there are two wonderful wine shops here in Cape May that astound me, every time I walk in. Their selections are incredible—so this week, I am going to give a shoutout to Collier’s shop in downtown Cape May and Sunset Liquors, just on the way in. Go check them out and support your local businesses, if you happen to find yourself in the area. 

            And, finally, this week’s topic. After last week’s magnificent interview with Nathan King, I was struck by one topic in particular that we discussed, which has yet to leave my mind: Spirit Flight and the power of Hedge Riding. The motif of the witch inherently possessing the ability of flight is arguably the most iconic role of the archetype. Today, in modern witchcraft traditions, there are ways, methodologies, beliefs, and practices that sustain and produce that magickal ability of flight. In this particular episode, I will conduct the first half as the “lecture,” followed by a reading of the Mysterium Sabbati from Nigel Jackson’s The Call of the Horned Piper in the second half. Thus, what is this magickal practice? How do incubate the space and power to do so? What journeys might we experience, as a result? And who, on the Other Side, might we interact with along the way?

            Ergo, grab your favorite bottle of red, find a comfy chair, and close your eyes as I tell you the tale of Spirit Flight and Hedge Riding—and take you…

            Beyond the Seas.

            (transition music)

            Given the historical, magickal, and contemporary records and experiences, it is nigh-on impossible to picture the image of the witch without a broomstick. The two are one, in every aspect. For it is the mystery and might of the witch that intrigues us all to this day, when one contemplates the inherent power of flight. But corporeal flight and spirit flight are two extremely different things. One is the act of physically moving through space, crossing from one point to another through the air. The second is the act of spiritually traveling through and among all the worlds, interacting with spirits, witches, beings, and powers beyond our ken, in order to gain wisdom, knowledge, and answers to questions. 

            Thus, to history do we now turn our attention, to paint the picture of Those Who Have Gone Before and their confessions that gifted us with the seeds of what we today know as Spirit Flight and Hedge Riding. And there is no better foray into that realm than through the concept of Flying Ointment. From Corrinne Burns at The Guardian, “In the heyday of witch-hunting hysteria, talk of a mysterious "flying ointment" began to gather momentum among those investigating witchcraft. This herbal unguent, rubbed into the skin, was purported to confer the power of flight, transporting witches to their Sabbat gatherings.

            “The Spanish court physician Andrés de Laguna, writing in the 16th century, claimed to have taken from the home of a couple accused of witchcraft ‘a pot full of a certain green ointment … composed of herbs such as hemlock, nightshade, henbane, and mandrake.’

            “That would have been a potent mixture. Nightshade, henbane and mandrake are some of the most toxic plants in the family Solanaceae. Nightshade (Atropa belladonna) is immediately recognisable for its deep purple fruit and was said to be tended by the Devil himself. Like its close relatives henbane (Hyoscymaus niger) and mandrake (Mandragora officinarum), its leaves and berries are packed with chemicals called tropane alkaloids.

            “One of these, scopolamine (also known as hyoscine), is the active ingredient of travel-sickness medications such as Boot's Travel Calms and the skin patch Scopoderm. Tropane alkaloids are unremarkable additions to a modern medicine cabinet, but if you took the raw plant material and pounded it in molten fat, you'd extract an uncontrolled mixture of the alkaloids in their pure, base form. You will have created the green ointment of de Laguna's alleged witch.

            “Scopolamine and its close cousin atropine are "muscarinic antagonists" – they bind to receptors in the nervous system that would, ordinarily, bind to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Low doses of these chemicals will induce a dry mouth and dilated pupils – and relieve the nausea of travel sickness. But high doses can lead to antimuscarinic syndrome: a state of altered consciousness often characterised by delirium and intense hallucinations.

            “If contemporary accounts are to be believed, "witches" applied this hallucinogenic ointment with the handle of a broom, smearing the ointment onto the length of the broom and then rubbing the handle against their genitals and even inserting it into the vagina. As the drugs took effect, delusions of flight may have ensued while astride the broomstick's handle. It has been argued that this drug-induced delusion lies at the the root of the myth of witches' flight.”

            So what we are looking at here, Magick Makers, is the chemistry behind the legend of the infamous Flying Ointment. There are psychotropic compounds within the traditional herbs used in these ointments that cause the sensation of physically flying, while undergoing Otherworldly hallucinations centered on the Sabbat. Whilst conducting my research, I noticed that there are several credible sources that refute the notion of, essentially, masturbating with an ointment-topped broomstick. I suppose one may not be totally able to rule out the notion entirely, but suffice it say that it was not the main method of conducting these moments of Spirit Flight. Also, just a friendly reminder: consult an herbalist and professional mixologist of herbal remedies before attempting to make your own Flying Ointment. Can’t have any poisined Magick Makers on my hands. You have been warned!

            One great example of this notion that comes to mind, in terms of modern media, is in A24’s The VVitch. If you have not yet seen this film, PLEASE, go and watch it—it is spectacular on all levels. Regardless, there is a moment early on in the story that showcases the archetypal Witch of the Woods stealing an unbaptized babe and, shortly thereafter, using its fat to concoct a flying ointment—wherein the Witch rides off on a staff and into the night, ending the montage. This notion of using baby fat as the main ingredient derives from the infamous witch-hunting manual, The Malleus Maleficarum. It was, assumedly, the overhyped, dramatic, and Christian perspective of the evils of the witch that lead the writers of this book, and the communities it touched, to believe in not only the ointment itself, but also baby fat as its main ingredient. Suffice it to say, that ain’t the case. 

            Thus, in our modern times today, flying ointment is but one methodology of conducting Spirit Flight. But what other ways exist to enact this out of body experience to the Otherworld? From Kelden’s article titled Introduction to Spirit-Flight, “Spirit-Flight, also commonly referred to as Hedge-Crossing, is the practice of traveling outside of the physical body and passing into the Otherworld. The main purpose of this practice is typically to communicate with various types of Spirits and Gods. The nature and goal of this communication varies but common examples include making pacts, finding counsel, seeking knowledge, forming relationships, and engaging in different types of ritual such as initiation, healing, celebratory, etc.

            “However, for those who are interested in incorporating this practice into their Craft, finding a place to begin can be difficult. Spirit-Flight can be a complex topic to discuss as it is very personal, with each Witch experiencing it differently. In an attempt to help guide new-comers, [here] you will find a list of some common tools and techniques that aid in facilitating flight:

            “Drumming: Music can be incredibly helpful in altering consciousness, and drumming in particular is useful for Spirit-Flight. You may choose to drum yourself, have someone else drum for you, or make use of prerecorded music. I have found all three options to be equally effective. I would recommend using a steady beat, one that specifically mimicks your own heartbeat and progressively gets slower. This will help lower you into a deeper state of consciousness, in which your body becomes relaxed and your soul is lifted.

            “Charms and Amulets: The two main purposes for charms and amulets in Spirit-Flight are to assist in crossing the Hedge and to protect the body and spirit. How these devices are constructed and utilized depends only on the Witch’s own creativity. [Kelden] personally recommend[s] creating a charm bag that is specifically formulated to fulfill both needs, including specific herbs, stones, and animal parts. 

            “Vehicle for Flight: These are tools which can be ‘ridden’ upon in your travels, so to speak. They can include the classic broomstick, the Stang, or a Familiar Spirit…If using a broomstick or Stang, lay it next to [yourself]. Otherwise, call upon [your] Familiar Spirit, explain [your] intentions, and proceed into the ritual. You don’t need to use any of these, however they can be very helpful, especially when first starting.”

            These are but three ways to enact the inner change that opens the gates of Spirit Flight and Hedge Riding. Of course, the latter refers to the concept of crossing over and/or through the veil the separates the worlds—and allows for communication that is normally beyond our ken. And to do that? Well, stick around after the break to journey with me through the Mysterium Sabbati. 

            Refill your drinking horns, your goblets, your chalices, for the second half of Spirit Flight and Hedge Riding, after this brief break.

            (transition music)

            Close your eyes and follow my voice. Breathe in. Breathe out. Repeat. Fall into yourself and loosen your spirit from your analytical mind. Float freely. From Nigel Jackson’s The Call of the Horned Piper, here is the ritual of the Mysterium Sabbati: Riding on the Witch Way. 

            “The church bell chimes the hour of midnight behind you; you walk away from the houses through the chill air of the night, treading quietly across the damp turf towards the high thorny hedge which surrounds and encircles the village. You see its dark mass before you as you approach it and you now walk beside it, following its boundary. As you pace by the hedge, you begin to hear sounds which float over it from the wastes beyond, from the outside—the high calls of night birds and animals, rushing noises and dry, rustling leaves, the remote hoot of an owl, the croaking of toads, the shrieking bark of a fox.

            “You keep walking with the hedge to your left and after a while you come to a gap in it; before you is a stone stile which leads through the thorny wall. On each upright of the stone stile you see worn symbols carved; the hex star on one and the clawed witches foot on the other. Against the stile leans a staff and at its foot is a small pot of dark green ointment. You reach forward and take the staff in your hand, feeling its smooth surface and carven glyphs with your fingertips. You kneel and take up the pot of ointment which gives off a bitter scent.

            “With the staff, you now stand before the stone stile in silence, before the towering hedge and the mystic words of the Sabbat prayers unfold within you:

                        ‘ROBIN, DARK MASTER

                        WHOM MEN CALL THE DEVIL

                        HORNED BOUCCA OF FIELD, MOUNT AND FEN,

                        LORD OF THE SKULL AND THE PHALLUS

                        WHO RIDETH WITH THE WILD HUNT:

                        OPEN THE WAY WE PRAY THEE,

                        THE WITCH WAY TO THE SABBAT.

                        NINEFOLD MOTHER OF NIGHT WISDOMS

                        DAME HEL, DAME BIRCH, MORGAN LE FAYE,

                        WHO MEN CALL THE QUEEN OF ELFLAND,

                        GREAT HERODIAS WHO FLIETH THROUGH DARKNESS:

                        THEE WE BESEECH, QUEEN AND HAG

                        TO STEER US UPON THY WITCH WAY

                        TO THE STRANGE GLORIES OF THE SABBAT,

                        SO MOTE IT BE!’

            “Through the portals of the stone stile you now glimpse a hovering sphere of soft light, glowing in the mist beyond without casting shadows. You look at its colour as it bobs beyond the stile. As you gaze deeply into the ball of light you catch a glimpse of an animal, a shape or a bird. Beyond the stone stile your fetch-light trembles and hovers over the ground, shining softly in the dark, enticing you further on the journey to the other side.

            “Now you look through the stile and beyond and see a full yellow moon hanging low over a foggy landscape of heaths, woods and marshes; misty meadows, barrow-mounds and standing stones casting long black shadows in the moonbeams where pale hares bound in the heather. From the foot of the stile a narrow pathway runs straight ahead shimmering faintly under the moon. You perceive that the pathway is aligned on a dark hill which looms in the distance. 

            “Holding the staff and the ointment pot you step onto the stile and climb through the gap, the thorns pulling at your clothes as you emerge upon the wet grass on the other side of the hedge. For a few moments you stand, breathing the cool air, and then putting your fingers into the small earthen pot you rub some of the cold, green ointment upon your wrists and forehead. Taking the staff you now stand astride it, holding the pole between your thighs and the ancient spell whispers through your mind:

                        ‘THOUT, TOUT A TOUT, THROUGH AND ABOUT, IN THE HORNED MASTER’S                                     NAME!’

            “As you stand astride the staff a breeze rustles in the hedge behind you and a wind begins to rise, blowing from the distance; its roar begins to fill the air, and upon it you seem to hear many far-off voices that call and cry across the night. A distant horn is blown and the wind grows stronger until you begin to feel it pulling at you and lifting you off the ground. Your feet leave the earth, and you are rising upwards in the cloudy air, moving forward. The fetch-light hovers over the path before you, leading the way as you soar upwards with easy motion, gliding smoothly through the dark. Effortlessly you ride the staff through the cold atmosphere, towards the dark hill on whose crown far-off fires now twinkle red in the distance. 

            “Astride the staff you soar and speed, the chill wind in your hair and flapping in your cloak as you fly through the night skies. You sense your height and look down upon the lands outspread beneath you—fields, treetops, fen pools and rough moor, all lit up in the wan moonlight. Below you the straight track runs ahead like a shimmering thread of silver. You sense shadowy companions in flight around you, silent owl, cowledge figures astride broomsticks and goats, some in dark peaked hats, glimpsed through wisps and cloud vapours, all soaring through the murky air. Onward you fly, moving smoothly and swiftly, as in a dream.

            “The bulky mass of the Dark Hill now looms up ahead, its crown lit up by a beacon fire’ now you ride lower and lower upon your staff, descending gently through the air towards the foot of the hill which rears above you, a gloomy mass topped with a dancing flame. You float ever downwards until you feel your feet touch the earth. Now you find yourself standing, staff in hand, at the base of the hill beside an old and twisted Elder tree whose branches claw like black crooked fingers against the moon and around its roots you see purple-belled Nightshade plants growing luxuriantly. Hard by the Elder tree you see a stone doorway running into the lower hillside from which glows an eldritch light upon the grass. You stand before this portal for a few seconds and then stoop slightly to enter the tunnel into the Dark Hill. You walk into the stone-paved passageway with its low roof and hear your footsteps sound hollowly as you go down. Now you hear a faint sounds of rushing and murmuring, of low chanting, of wailing flutes, droning bagpipes and drums far below. You descend lower and lower and the passageway becomes very narrow and close. Your hands touch the rough stone walls as your creep further and further. The strange light now shines more strongly as if you are near its source. All of a sudden the tunnel widens and you pass through a low arch into the twilight realm of mystery…

            Now here, Magick Makers, is where a moment—or an eternity—of communion with the Otherworld takes place. Pause the podcast, if needed, and revel in this magick and might you have encountered. When ready, hit that play button. 

            “To return from the Sabbatic Mystery in the Underworld of Annwyn the witch rides the staff and chants the name of return:

                        ‘RENTUM TORMENTUM, IN THE HORNED MASTER’S NAME!’

            “By this spell you will return in an instant from the Dark Faery Hill of the Sabbat, you will come back from the high and lonely places of the Wild Powers and cross over the hedge back into Middle-Earth and the world of the living, awakening to your slumbering body; those who return from the deep places of Annwyn are reborn and come back as witches, women and men of dark power and secret knowledge.”

            (transition music)

            The stories, research, and production elements were done and edited, respectively, by me, Kieran, with sources attached in the description. If you want to be a guest on the show, or have a topic you wish me to explore and discuss, send me an email at beyondtheseaspodcast@gmail.com. And be sure to hit the follow button, on whichever platform you enjoy the podcast, and look forward to more content next week. Until then, seek the veil between the worlds, and allow yourself to travel…Beyond the Seas.