šŸŒ Weekly Witchy CHALLENGE - Liminal Magick

@christeena maybe try interacting with her at a liminal time like midnight, and see if the experience is differentā€¦?

Liminal workings can be mind bending to understand / figure out! Itā€™s the spaces between spaces, so sometimes the experiences arenā€™t planned.

I hope this helps a little :heart:

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Hi @Mistress_Of_Herbs, hope youā€™re well, miss you! Hereā€™s an article that I think is by far the best Iā€™ve seen to explain Liminal Spaces. It breaks it down into Spiritual, Personal, and Magickal. Itā€™s brilliant! I plan to use the ā€˜twilight zoneā€™ time Iā€™m in right now as my liminal space for this challenge to encourage spiritual growth and healing. Does this help at all? :white_heart:

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@jan_TheGreenWitch yesssssssss thank u so much

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Weekly Witchy CHALLENGE - Liminal Magick - Challenge Entry

Quoting my initial replyā€¦

I learned a few years back about the power of working with liminal space because itā€™s where we can peek in at the Otherworld, and sometimes it peeks back at us. At the edges of a forest, passing under a bridge, the space between asleep and awake just after your dreams, where the water kisses the shoreā€¦ sometimes I even catch something out of the corner of my eye, something there but not quite, right after a spiritual working with local land or house spirits.

Is the the edge of our peripheral vision another liminal spaceā€¦?

In architecture, liminal spaces are defined as ā€œthe physical spaces between one destination and the next.ā€ Common examples of such spaces include hallways, airports, and streets .

From ā€˜Liminalityā€™ on Wikipedia

This is why long empty hallways or dark, open doorways can be unnervingā€¦ itā€™s stepping from one space into another, sometimes into the unknown. Layer these places with liminal times and it can feel wild, like being in the Twilight Zone.

Even things as mundane as time zones can be mind blowing to consider, or how our voices travel from one place to another across time and distance when we talk on the phone. Where is that space between? It can feel like opening a wormhole, then folding it closed again.

Recent experience

My daughter and I work with liminal space often. Not always with an intent other than simply experiencing it. We always try to do this in nature. Even a walk in the neighborhood can be liminal.

Just after midnight the day this challenge was posted, she and I decided to do a waning moon banishing ritual outside. It was very quiet and still, and everything felt closeā€¦ so much so that we whispered the words of the ritual. Even the clouds above us were hovering like a thick blanket.

(Our flagstone patio is small and is bordered by a wild hedge - more liminal space!)

We had a small candle with us. The glow created an edge between light and darkā€¦ almost like a bubble. Even more liminal space!

If you have been near a campfire outside at nighttime, Iā€™m sure youā€™ll know what I mean. It can be comforting but also a little frightening. Stepping outside of that bubble, your vision changes, you go from warm to cold, and from light back into darkness.

After the ritual we took a few minutes to feel the energy, and then something happened in nature around us in a way that felt like a very strong sign that the ritual was appreciated. I donā€™t want to go into deep detail because it was very personal and very specific. We both noticed the same thing before saying it out loud to each other.

Being there alone in the dark when the rest of our neighborhood was asleep opened us up for stronger communication with the unseen. We live in a small town, so after midnight things get very quiet. No traffic, no people, bright stars and stillness.

Information on liminal times after midnight

In folklore, the witching hour or devilā€™s hour is a time of night that is associated with supernatural events, whereby witches, demons and ghosts are thought to appear and be at their most powerful. Definitions vary, and include the hour immediately after midnight, and the time between 3:00 am and 4:00 am.

From ā€˜Witching Hourā€™ on Wikipedia

(I donā€™t agree with the term ā€˜devilā€™s hourā€™, but Iā€™ve had some wild experiences around 3 or 4 am as well.)

Other experiences

Iā€™ve been through a dark night of the soul a few times, where youā€™re plunged into the unknown and have to find your way back out. Iā€™ve had encounters with spirit and some amazing synchronicities happen just as I come back out of the darkness. Itā€™s like emerging from a cave.

Anywayā€¦ being willing to work with the unknown at the edge, the spaces between spaces, can be sometimes frightening but many times rewarding! If nothing else, youā€™re telling the universe that youā€™re ready to listen to whatever it has to say.

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Melissaā€¦wow! Thank you for posting this. Tihe examples you have used, has shown me that I have been in liminal spaces more times than I ever knew. This is such an learning experience for me. You have defined these spaces in laymanā€™s terms and I appreciate that. This is my first weekly witchy challenge and itā€™s not so scary after reading this information.
Thanks again Melissa,
Blessed Be, Medea

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Think of it as in between.

  • The gray light before the sunrise
  • one leg on each side of a threshold, your not in or out, your in between
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Youā€™re welcome @Medea ! Iā€™m happy to help! :heart:

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Some very thought-provoking entries, I love it :heartpulse:

It got me to think about the subjectivity of liminalityā€¦ questions like can you live in a liminal state and will it continue to be a liminal state for you. After all many definitions of a liminality have to do with it being something you tend to cross over quickly without thinking, but when you stopā€¦ fear of unknown tends to kick in, or alternatively it can feel exciting and full of possibilities. It wakes us from the dream of our everyday life, but once noticed, it can blend back into it, being marked as explored territory, not so new and exciting anymore. Or thatā€™s at least my experience of it, Iā€™d love to hear yours.

Iā€™m feeling that I might be in one of my most liminal phases of my life, maybe of all my lives, and it feels like it scares people around me more than it scares me. For me, itā€™s just my life. Iā€™m unemployed, or like some say, ā€œbetween jobsā€. Iā€™m in between my old, ā€œrespectableā€ profession that helps no one but the old world structures and my new ā€œweirdā€ healing profession thatā€™s my heartā€™s calling. I live between the worlds of techology and magick, the artificial and the organic, and speak two languages almost daily. Iā€™m in an undefined more-than-friends relationship with someone who lives in another country, and weā€™re planning to move together at some point. Right now I live with my aging father though, who might live to be hundred or move on from this world tomorrow. Even my body is a mix of whatā€™s traditionally seen as either female or male, I can give someone a liminal experience just by taking off my clothes. Well, in a socially inappropriate situation thatā€™s probably true for most :sweat_smile: I sleep badly and live in a state between sleep and wakefulness most of the time. And you know, Iā€™m happy like this :relaxed:

EDIT: One of the articles also mentioned neurodiversity. Iā€™ll look at that one and raise, I had a neuropsychological evaluation done on me and they couldnā€™t really put me into one box or another :sweat_smile:

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I have a reflection on liminality and late summer - although I donā€™t know how magickal my challenge entry is! Iā€™m struck by how our four season calendar really doesnā€™t seem to capture the facets of the seasons and how late summer has a different feel from early summer and mid-summer, both nature-wise and culturaly. Itā€™s like we need another word for it! I particularly begin to feel a little restless this time of year ā€“ the time when you know summer will be ending ā€“ and yet, there is plenty of summer left (hot days and growing seasons) and fall seems right around the corner, with fall and Halloween decorations in the stores. Late August is back to school time and itā€™s always seemed paradoxical to me, perhaps, because in Virginia, it used to be that you never went to school before September. I feel like it is a time of fresh starts and beginnings, in a way (because of the new school year, I suppose) but also endings (when you some bees and butterflies are making their final flights) and some of the mornings and evenings are cooler. Fashion reflects this tension in what they call ā€œtransitionā€ design ā€“ youā€™ll still see tshirts, shorts and such but they will be in deeper, more saturated tones like mustard, cayenne and teal. I read that this can be a great time to plant some foods, such as root vegetables and hardy, leafy greens that will be harvested as winter draws near. We think of spring as the planting season but Iā€™m learning that there is more than one season. So, maybe that is the spirit of this time of year ā€“ I feel like it is a strong, physical time of year with a vigorous, physical and solar feel (whereas autumn feels more metaphysical to me and winter seems more reflective and like a down or resting period). Weā€™ve all spent a lot of time outdoors and in the sunshine. Itā€™s a time to plant sturdy crops and make fresh starts before the cold really set in. Here the coneflowers are just fading and some daisies are hanging on ā€“ my brightly colored zinnias are going strong. And yetā€¦there is this tension, this feeling like it is a precious time, that a frost will not be long off and there are some cool days to remind me of this. So although we think of spring and New Yearā€™s as times for new beginnings and fresh starts, for me late August into September also has that vibe and yet, it is so bittersweet to know that summer will end (although fall is really my favorite season). I guess that is what liminality is about, though, that something is not quite this or that.

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Okā€¦Well, I thought I had a somewhat grasp of Luminal Spaces but WOW I better go back and do some more research. Your post is excellent and thought provoking at the same time.

Feedback is my favorite way of learning especially from experienced, knowledgeable people who express their words in detail. You have done all that. Thank you so much and have a wonderful day.

Medea

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@Medea did you happen to check out the link I left for @Mistress_Of_Herbs? It breaks down liminal into three categories: Spiritual, Personal, and Magickal. If you did, great! If not, it could help clarify and also give more information and ideas! Light and love! :green_heart:

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Iā€™m honored! Thank you sincerely for the compliment. :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

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Jan,

Thank you so much! Yes, that is excellent information. I am all over that website; ā€œOtherworldly Oracleā€ they have a lot of interesting articles. Pinterest is one of my favorite places to obtain research, itā€™s like a live file :file_cabinet:.

Thank you again Jan, The Green Witch,
Medea

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Today I was led to realize that by embodying all these liminal qualities I have the power (and maybe even a soul contract) to bring the opposites together, to act as a bridge between two worlds. With all the polarization in the world and not seeing each otherā€™s viewpoint, it feels exactly what we need to see an end to all the conflict and separation and become whole again, as within so without. :sparkles:

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Well hello CelestiaMoon,

I like the way you think!! If more people thought the way you did the world here on Earth would be a much more pleasant place to live, for now!

Medea

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Thank you for your sweet words Medea, it may feel like a distant dream still but I have a good feeling weā€™re getting there :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:
Blessed be :pray:

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Challenge Entry

I spend a lot of time in liminal spaces of all kinds. My favorite time of day is gray light & just after sunset when itā€™s not quite daytime, but not quite night yet. They are the most calming parts of my day when I am outside at those times. Iā€™m always between learning & then being able to apply what I learnā€¦ in between that time I have to practice or slowly add it in until itā€™s changed to new phase.

Since it is my favorite time of day, I wake up & the first thing I do once I leave my space is walk out the front door. I walk the driveway & look up the street, listening for who else in nature is also awake with me. Which includes plants & as long as we have lived in this home, whenever a new flower blooms, I take a picture. I love that they are part of our home & lives here. They are each more beautiful than the year before & I have watched some of them get larger over the course of that time & they continue to be more beautiful than the previous year.

I found a nice way to explain it from the article @jan_TheGreenWitch had posted:

Why are spiritual and personal liminal spaces more difficult to navigate than physical ones?

Spiritual and personal liminal spaces are more difficult because when we are in transition, when we are between one phase or state and another, often it is accompanied by not knowing. Not knowing, for some people, is the worst torture imaginable. Everyone wants to know if the decisions they are making will lead to positive outcomes rather than disastrous messes. Most of the time, this is unpredictable. You have to take the risk to get the potential reward with little to no guarantee it will pay off. This is where you have to learn to trust yourself, your intuition, and/or your faith. You have to trust your path and the events that are occurring even as everything is falling apart because itā€™s actually falling together. Liminal Spaces: Spiritual, Magickal and Personal Places In-Betwixt

So I have done many things in this liminal space of personal & spiritual over at least the last year. I have overcome things I would never wish on anyone, found what makes me happy & who my true support team is no matter how much distance is or isnā€™t between us. Mostly what I have found in this space is right after the collapse comes to the rise & each time it feels lighter, better, & clearer than before.

I have had the most success with some deity work & spell work during the liminal spaces of the day. I have success when I do things other times, but the work that I have done has had nothing but the sweetest of rewards each time. It has also taught me that I have to do the work regardless, no one else can do it for me & thereā€™s no shortcut, but there is a continuation of a cycle that may need to disrupt for the best outcome.

I also remembered that my deities both are connected to liminal spaces of their own & so it makes sense why we work so well together. :star_struck: With that in mind my Brighid Oracle deck has a card:

I remember drawing this card for myself the last time I used it in a personal reading & keeping it on my altar by my bed for weeks. I connected to the message throughout August & Iā€™m ready for September to begin. I can honestly say things are much clearer & I feel a lot better.

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Can Liminal spaces be in our dreams ?
What about when we fall asleep and then we interpret the space we were in when we went flying in the sky :milky_way: thatā€™s a Liminal space right?

I was just thinking about this woman her name is Delores Cannon she worked with people under hypnosis and did past lives regression. I think when you visit a place under hypnosis to see where you were in the past your visiting a different time and place! For my challenge I am going to meditate to this guy I listen to once and upon a time. I literally came out me of my body once and only stayed in my room so neat! I was thinking about that time it was like I was in my body but not. Here is the video I used. I love visiting liminal spaces tonight I am going to use Michael Sealy he does self hypnosis! Do you witches have any herbs that might help!? Mugwort?Mugwort for astral projection, divination, visions
Mugwort :tea:
Tonight I am going to burn some mugwort! Iā€™ll let you know how it goes.
Once Siofra had a tea that helps with astral projection I think itā€™s called Damiana Leaf ( Turners diffusa)
Damiana Leaf
I will ask my spiritual guides to be there with me and also put a charged pentagram on my finger for protection. I hope to go back in time and see my past life!
Past life regression for liminal spaces
Sweet dreams :sleeping: :crossed_fingers:


My hope is to figure out some underlining issues that keep coming up! I will let you know know tomorrow about any dreams for this challenge! Maybe I can come out my body again! Is that lucid dreams?
Jeannie

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Siofra,
I went to work but in between time I was able to stop and see some pretty flowers :hibiscus:


It wasnā€™t long enough!
I am claiming my power through the time I spend watering my plants :seedling: spending time with nature as well! Thanks for the article was very informative!
Jeannie

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They are beautiful @jeannie1! I went out this morning, no new blooms but a few that are getting ready to bloom!

Thank you so much, i had trouble thinking of how to word it :laughing: Iā€™m happy it was a good one for you!

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