the Crows Nest

Connecting with our locality can provide a great deal of our magical energy. We can use a lot of effort learning about remote gods and spirits yet fail to make good connection with the chthonic forces immediately around us.  Below I have set out some ways we might begin to establish better emotional spiritual and psychic relationships within our vicinity.  I have found them to be very effective in my own practice. They are equally valid if you have recently arrived in a new home or lived in the same place for many decades or if you are in the urban or rural context.  

Start with the most detailed map you can find and using a compass, draw a circle around your home with a radius of one mile. If you have an OS Explorer map, that’ll need you to set the compass to about 6.4cm.  Now examine that area closely.  Look at every road and building, every contour line and any stream or river.  Look for any special markings, antiquities are identified on OS maps using a different font.  Ask yourself why the roads are where they are, and why each building is where it is. There are always reasons why people located these and it’s possible to make good guesses when you start considering slopes, and routes and waterways. Are there springs marked? 

Make a list of questions you’d like to know the answers to.  Think about the cardinal directions.  Does the wind tend to blow from the west? Where does the coldest weather come from. Look at the vegetation shown, are there woods marked? Make a note of the rights of way, you’ll need to understand these.  Look for crossroads and for running water, these are often places where many beings are and have been and their shadows can be seen.  

If you can access airial photos or videos examine those and see if they reveal additional information.  Drone footage may be available and google earth can provide insight.  This year, the atrocious drought has revealed ancient earthworks in the landscape which have not been seen in modern times.  

There may be folklore or interesting history associated with the area and this can be searched for. A local society or archive might help and much can be gleaned from chatting to knowledgable people.  One day I met a man with a metal detector who showed me where a medieval village had been situated, it wasn’t  shown on any map. You do not need to rush this process, and can regard it as an ongoing project. It’s far more important to get out. 

Take your map and explore those places. If you have identified a circular area as above, then the circumference will be about six and a half miles.  See if you can walk around the perimeter as a circular walk. You’ll likely find sections obstructed by property ownership, use common sense and your reserves of charm to access as much as you can.  

Walk different routes at different times.  Make time and repeat until unnoticed rocks become familiar friends. If you want to take photos do, perhaps as close up as you can, take a magnifying glass so you can see even better. Moss and lichen offer a world of exploration.  Watch the shadows thrown by a fern or the leaves of an ash. 

So far you’ve been using your sight and your mind, now you have the chance to include other senses.  Feel the wind on your face and notice temperature changes as you travel through the environment. Look for opportunities to take off your shoes and walk barefoot.  Make an effort to sniff and differentiate betweeen the various smells.  If you have a knowledge of foraging, try tasting suitable plants you meet.  Still yourself and pay attention to the sounds of your environment, everyone can hear the wind in the trees but few can listen to what it’s saying.  Be mindful that you are walking at a particular time of day and time of year and at a point during our ancestral continuum. 

Occasionally you might feel uncomfortable in a space, that’s Ok, note the energy, calm yourself and walk on. 

You might feel drawn to particular places, a corner of a shady wood or the bank of a stream.  Be ready to stay there.  Do not think you have to complete a route, you can just stop and walk the rest on another day.  Sit and be still, focus on your breathing until you are relaxed and the mental chatter has dissolved. Just be there.  Now is a good time to talk to the spirits of place. Ask them to make themselves known to you and be open minded when they respond. A pendulum might help if you’d like them to answer a question.  Be respectful and ask them if there’s anything you can do for them. There might be small improvements you can make by clearing litter or tasks to take elsewhere like campaigning on behalf of the local environment.  You might feel it appropriate to leave a gift, but if you do, ensure it’s something that the spirits will like, and something that won’t harm any being in the space.  You can hang an apple on a piece of twine or pour a libation onto the earth. If in doubt, offer them a song or the sound of a bell. Speak to the ancestors as you do so and thank them for how they’ve prepared your way.  

These are ideas and you can pick and choose or invent your own.  The important thing is to engage mindfully and repeatedly. Over a period of time you will build relationships with various place spirits and these will become strong. 

Please explore this and if you want, share any experiences in the comments below.