Weekly Divination - Fairy Fortune 1 Card Draw

I have always enjoyed divination.  My favorite Aunt, Maddy was a palm reader and introduced me to tarot cards as a young girl.  She feigned that she could not make heads or tails of the cards, but I was like, "Don't you see the story here?"

Much later I was introduced to Nordic runes and my Scandinavia DNA hummed with the songs of the runes.

A few years ago I had the pleasure of meeting John Michael Greer.  He was teaching a class on Geomancy Divination at the Occult Bookstore in Chicago, IL.  I was simply enthralled with the mathematical process of Geomancy.  I put away my tarot cards and my runes.  I only wanted to chart geomantic figures.

Then for the 11th year of the World of Faeries Festival, the theme was "A Journey Through Time."  So, my character Ruby Ruse, who is half pooka, looked into the future for the patrons and made prophecy to make her pooka padre proud.  I created Fairy Fortunes by infusing Fairy Folklore with Geomancy figures and principles.  I really meant for them to be a light-hearted affair, but the Fairy Fortunes (like any other form of divination) do a great job of providing a bit of creative wisdom.

Tuesday's Fairy Fortune: 

A Vila like Via loves change. 

Her home any road she can range. 

A whirlwind this sprite 

Her weakness is spite, 

But vigor and vim her exchange. 

The winds of change have arrived. Although it seems that not everyone is welcoming this. It is very difficult to give up things. Old habits especially die hard. Even when we know that our past behaviors are not good for us, we resist the changes that we know will bring us health and even happiness.

What is comfortable is not always what is beneficial. In fact comfort can in fact be our doom. Via the Vila is offering her hand to you this Tuesday. She is taking you on a journey, and yes, it is going to be pretty harrowing at times, and Via the Vila will not always be the most companionable of companions. However she is pulling you out of the muck of your comfort. You may not know yet where you are going, but it is better than where you were.

What form of divination do you favor?

Introducing Fairy Fortunes with Puer the Pooka

I was inconsistent in the best of times at regular blog posts.  However, this time, I have an interesting excuse for my absence.

I am very pleased to announce that I have a brand new website:  www.fairyfortunes.com

Ruby Ruse the Musical Muse and Pranking Pixie is back!  And she telling fortunes.  Not only that but Ruby Ruse will be returning to the World of Faeries Festival in South Elgin August 4 and 5, 2018.  For more information, visit Ruby Ruse's Facebook Page:  Fairy Fortunes by Ruby Ruse.

Fairy Fortunes is a divination system of my own design.  It allows me to combine my love of mythology and folklore, my musical and performance talents, and my intuitive gifts.  There are 16 cards, each featuring a being of the fae.  Today, I'd like to introduce you to Puer the Pooka.

Beware of the Pooka Puer!

A shape-shifting beast who will dare.

He offers a change.

Prophetic exchange.

It's risk when you seek out his lair.

Favorable for: Transformation, Quests, and Sensuality
Unfavorable for: Peaceful resolution, and Diplomacy

Associations: Aries and Mars
Elements: Fire and Air

Latin Translation: Puer = Boy

The Pooka is featured in Irish folklore. He is a shape-shifter who most commonly appears in the form of a rabbit or horse or sometimes a garish human-animal hybrid. It is said that if he is offered the last harvest of blackberries, he will reward the giver with prophecy for the coming year. But there is great risk involved in seeking out Puer the Pooka as he can be unpredictable. Not to mention the fact that he is rather fond of causing trouble, delights in pranks, and relishes in terrorizing the countryside. 

Puer the Pooka can choose to be helpful if he feels the cause is just. This shape-shifter is an omen of transformation and he appears when a quest is afoot. He will demand a commitment to one choice over another. Puer the Pooka will never mock a seeker for turning down a quest for veracious reasons, it is the regret for what “could have been” that is sure to anger him. The path not taken is useless to Puer the Pooka. He is not a creature of regret. He is independent and reclusive and as such, he favors the solitary quest. In fact, when he appears, seeking help from others may be unwise as he is an omen that those others should not necessarily be trusted. Even if they mean well, others may be motivated to derail the seeker from their quest in order to maintain the comfort of the status quo. 

Seeing Puer the Pooka is a favorable omen where conflict has already begun or an immediate (and perhaps violent) change is desired. He will lend his courage and strength for the battle ahead. He can also be helpful in social matters when one wishes to appear confident, sensual and engaging. However, Puer the Pooka can be rash. He is a creature of action and may not think things through. He is an unfavorable omen if the desire is to avoid conflict. Trouble may be ahead. In this case, it is best to face the danger head on. Accept no handouts or free rides. In his horse form, the Pooka (like his cousin the Kelpy) was said to lure travelers to ride upon his back. Once the ride had been accepted the victim was magically fixed and could not free themselves as the Pooka then galloped into the lake to drown them.

Ruby Ruse and her fairy friends are also starting Leshiis for Literacy! 
So for more information on Pookas, Ruby Ruse heartily recommends these great stories, books, and resources:

• DePaola, Tomie.  Jamie O'Rourke and the Pooka.  Puffin Books. Recommended reading age: 4-8 years. 
• Diterlizzi, Tony and Holly Black.  The Spiderwick Chronicles (Book Series).  Simon and Schuster. Recommended reading age:  7 years and beyond.

Resource Books for Fairy Folklore:

• Briggs, Katharine.  The Vanishing People:  Fairy Lore and Legends.  Pantheon Books.  1978.
• Rose, Carol.  Giants, Monsters and Dragons:  An Encyclopedia of Folklore, Legend and Myth.  New York:  W.W. Norton and Company.  2000.
• Rosen, Brenda.  The Mythical Creatures Bible:  The Definitive Guide to Legendary Beings.  New York:  Sterling Publings.  2009
• Young, Simon and Ceri Houlbrook.  Magical Folk:  British and Irish Fairies, 500 AD to the Present.  London:  Gibson Square 2018

Visit Ruby Ruse and Her Fairy Queen Meadowyn at the Gardenology Festival in Geneva, Illinois

On Saturday, May 18, 2013 the Steampunker Fairy Ruby Ruse will be making an appearance at the Gardenology Festival in Geneva, Illinois with Meadowyn the Fairy Queen.

Gardenology advisers and vendors will bring their best ideas and garden related products to jump-start your gardening season. Experts in every horticulture field including farming, landscape design, weavers, local nurseries, and more will be on hand to answer your questions.  And who better to answer questions about attracting Fairies to your garden than the Fairy Queen herself and her loyal companion Ruby Ruse? 

Watch for the Queen and Ruby at this beautiful festival in Downtown Geneva.  They will have handouts available to take home on attracting fairies and perhaps Ruby Ruse will be inclined to sing a song or two.  They will also have postcards for the World of Faeries Festival happening August 3 -4 in South Elgin. 

* Photo courtesy of Chuck Isdale