Gestures

Why do we Italians talk with our hands? No idea. I think it's ingrained in our DNA. Some of the gestures are mundane, some are not. Applied correctly and with intent, gestures can have as much of an effect as an entire spellworking. You can claim a space, you can direct the force of your energy toward a specific goal depending on the emotion behind it. Italians are so concerned with "the eyes" because they know it can happen by accident, with gesture as well as a look (we are a passionate and gesticulating people).

Other traditions have their common, ritual and secret hand signs too. But this isn't a blog about BTW offshoots. Some gestures have concrete evidence, er, well bronze evidence at least, as with the Roman hand of Power that I've blogged about in the past. Statues, artwork, mirrors and even some games give us clues as to hand gestures of yore. I know Wiccans who study Hindu and Egyptian Mudras which have been passed down virtually in tact. Again, if there's a system out there which will give you access to what you need, go for it. Are these the only "power gestures" out there? Of course not; However, there are the secret handshakes with the Gods that our Ancestors used. If you meditate on it, if you're in tune with your Patrons, or Ancestors, you can divine, or recover gestures your family used as keys to the Mysteries as they knew them. Or, start your own handshake with your Patrons. Many pick a "magickal name" so why not a magickal gesture?

Do you really think Christians invented crossing themselves? Hahano. They didn't even invent the cross as a symbol. I don't mean the equal arm cross either. From the Cyprus exhibit at the National Museum in D.C.:

The oldest form of worship on Cyprus was veneration of the Mother Goddess, source of life and fertility. A number of figurines from Chalcolithic villages, depicting seated or squatting women in the act of giving birth, may be an expression of that devotion.

Small cross-shaped figures also seem to represent women giving birth. These were often worn as pendants, especially in death. Great numbers of the stone pendants have been unearthed from cemeteries at Souskiou.

Taking up the mantle of your Ancestors can be like walking an old footpath in an overgrown forest: Sometimes the path is well-worn, sometimes there is barely a trace, and sometimes you're the one who has to clear away the brush or even forge the path yourself. We might find map clues in the folk traditions of our family, but you have to want it and you have to work for it. Desire is a lot but it isn't enough. Even as I look for the metaphorical path of my Ancestors, I know that I am forging new relationships with our Patrons.

I was about to post something about how I use gestures but was told to not make that public. I'll talk about it more in person. Sometimes, certain things require you to look into the eyes of another to impart information. Sometimes it's about the vibration of your voice imparting the information that makes it stick. I suppose if it's not the kind if thing you would mail in a letter, it's not the kind of thing you should put on the internet. Even though I feel like I'm "talking" to all of you, I'm technically not. I'm writing a love letter ;)

Speaking of love... Buon Mercuralia! Tomorrow I'll be posting my thoughts on the birth and the Parentage of Mercury and how the lore informs us of his true nature.