Esoteric Scotland

Restoring Boleskine's Freshwater Habitat

Restoring Boleskine's Freshwater Habitat 💛 We wish to restore an ancient freshwater habitat to support wildlife, plant life and biodiversity, helping Scotland's nature to thrive.

CALL FOR PAPERS

CALL FOR PAPERS

Conference:
Call for Papers: Outsiders, Outcasts and Eccentrics: Experiences of Deviancy and Deviant Experiences -Workshop

When/where:
Academy of Finland Centre of Excellence in the History of Experiences
Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University, Finland
7–8 June 2023

Deadline for submissions: 13 January 2023.

ABOUT:
“The concepts of deviance and deviancy once anchored a great many social scientific and humanistic studies. Beginning in the 1990s, however, scholars began to question their usefulness, with some declaring the study of deviance a dead field. Nevertheless, historians have found the theme of deviance productive, contributing to the study of a number of social processes, including marginalisation, pathologisation, social control, segregation, enhancement and criminalisation. What is clear is that to study those behaviours, thoughts, feelings, and people conventionally deemed deviant is to also study how societies define and enforce normality. The deviant thus has offered a way to defamiliarise the normal and, as result, provided insights into how the mundane itself is made.

Is it possible then to revisit the study of social deviance in a fresh way? Recent interest in the history of human subjectivity offers one possible way to do so. Studies in areas like the history of emotions, the history of persuasion, the history of madness, and the history of sexuality – to name just a few – have increasingly tried to emphasise the experiences and agency of historical actors. This workshop takes its inspiration from this research and focuses on the history of experiencing deviance…”

For all info about the call for papers, click the link: https://historypsychiatry.com/2022/09/21/call-for-papers-outsiders-outcasts-and-eccentrics-experiences-of-deviancy-and-deviant-experiences-workshop/

Art: “the Dream in the Witch House” by Harry O. Morris (1949)
From .malus

Good luck!

CALL FOR PAPERS!

CFP ESSWE9: The 9th Biennial Conference of the European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism – Western Esotericism and Practice. Malmö University, Sweden, June 26–28, 2023. Please click here for more information: https://esswe.org/current-conference

Hafed in Glasgow: Oriental Occulture in Late Victorian Scotland – The Media of Mediumship

Hafed in Glasgow: Oriental Occulture in Late Victorian Scotland – The Media of Mediumship Blog Hafed in Glasgow: Oriental Occulture in Late Victorian Scotland by mediaofmediumship|Published September 2, 2022 Scarlett McQuillan, University of Stirling Hafed in Glasgow: Oriental Occulture in late-Victorian Scotland By Scarlett McQuillan, University of Stirling Glasgow 1869. August heat ha...

Scotland connection to the Irish Gods is well known.
This looks like a super interesting online course by the wonderfully erudite Dr Jenny Butler. Details in the poat below.

My online course "Myth & Magic: An Introduction to the Study of Irish Folklore and Mythology" commences 27 September 2022 at University College Cork UCC Adult Continuing Education - ACE: https://lnkd.in/ekpJ3QzW

All welcome from any location as classes are online Tuesdays 7-9pm [Irish/UK Time/GMT] for 10 weeks. *Places are limited*

Book of Deer manuscript returns to Aberdeen after 1,000 years

Very exciting news coming through tonight. I cant wait to visit.

Book of Deer manuscript returns to Aberdeen after 1,000 years The "precious" 10th Century Book of Deer goes on show in Aberdeen from Saturday, until October.

Summer solstice: the Scottish history and traditions behind the longest day of the year

Happy summer solstice everyone.

Summer solstice: the Scottish history and traditions behind the longest day of the year The summer is finally upon us and in Scotland that means milder weather and longer days, with the longest day of all taking place on 21 June.

The Church of Scotland has openly acknowledged their role in the historic witchcraft trials in Scotland.

The General Assembly has accepted a new motion brought forward by Rev Prof Susan Hardman Moore to "acknowledge and regret the terrible harm caused to all those who suffered from accusations and prosecutions under Scotland's historic witchcraft laws, the majority of whom were women, and apologise for the role of the Church of Scotland and the General Assembly in such historical persecution."

This comes following the publication of the paper 'Apologising for Historic Wrongs' produced by the Kirk's Theological Forum.

Tickets for the Beltane Festival in Edinburgh are available.

Held on Calton Hill on the 30th April 2022.

https://www.citizenticket.co.uk/events/beltane-fire-society/beltane-fire-festival

Image from Beltane Fire Society website.

Scotland has apologised for witchcraft executions – as a historian, I worry this was a mistake

A rather thought provoking article on the pardoning of Witches in Scotland.

Scotland has apologised for witchcraft executions – as a historian, I worry this was a mistake It’s facile to claim that only the state, or even only elites, were responsible for executing witches – there is a potential witch-hunter in all of us.

Calls for Scotland to pardon witch-hunt victims gather pace

Keeping a close eye on the progress of this.

Calls for Scotland to pardon witch-hunt victims gather pace Campaigners push for full legal pardon after Nicola Sturgeon’s International Women’s Day apology

About | Witches of Scotland

https://www.witchesofscotland.com/about

For those interested in the fight to pardon the Witches of Scotland, you can keep up to date with the group here.

About | Witches of Scotland Witches of Scotland is a campaign for justice; for a legal pardon, an apology and national monument for the thousands of people - mostly women - that were convicted of witchcraft and executed between 1563 and 1736 in Scotland.

Scotland Considers Pardon for Thousands of Accused 'Witches'

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scotland-considers-pardon-for-thousands-of-accused-witches-180979316/

Following the progress of the fight to have an official apology for those executed under the witchcraft act in Scotland.

Scotland Considers Pardon for Thousands of Accused 'Witches' Advocates are calling on leaders to exonerate the thousands of women and men targeted in witch hunts during the 16th through 18th centuries

Happy Winter Solstice to one and all.

Guide to the Garden | National Records of Scotland

https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/research/archivists-garden/guide-to-the-garden

Interested in the healing properties of herbs? Check out the details of Edinburgh's own Archivists Garden.

Guide to the Garden | National Records of Scotland National Records of Scotland

Seaweed decorations and 'Viking Baileys': 5 strange Scottish midwinter rituals

https://www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/winter-solstice-2020-five-unusual-19496597

Although this article is from last year, it is a fun look at some of Scotland's mid-winter traditions.

Seaweed decorations and 'Viking Baileys': 5 strange Scottish midwinter rituals It's the shortest day of the year, so we thought we'd look back at how 'grian-stad geamhraidh' (the winter solstice) used to be celebrated in Scotland - maybe 2020 is the year to bring back some of these customs?

My lovely 1st edition 'The Book of Orm', arrived today.

By Robert Buchanan, Strahan & Co., Ludgatee Hill, London, 1870.

This book forms part of the Scottish 19th century national revival. I look forward to sharing its mystical finds soon.

Spotlight Keith Readdy, Chairman of Boleskine House Foundation: Heritage, History, and Esotericism

Boleskin house is a landmark for Esotericists and Occultists all over the world.

Situated on the East bank of Loch Ness, the house is known for being owned by Aliester Crowley and the Jimmy Page.

The excellent Rejected Religion shines a spotlight on the history and future of Boleskine with the Chairman of Boleskine Foundation, Keith Readdy.

If you would prefer to listen to the audio, you can find the episode on the Rejected Religion podcast available through all good postcast providers.

Spotlight Keith Readdy, Chairman of Boleskine House Foundation: Heritage, History, and Esotericism INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTSKeith starts our discussion by giving a short background and history of Boleskine House and the surrounding area. We then move to how the...

Edinburgh's first Witch Market will have astrologists, tarot readers and bakers

Edinburgh is set to host its first ever 'witches market' at Leith Arches on the 18th of December.

Details of the event are in the link below.

Edinburgh's first Witch Market will have astrologists, tarot readers and bakers Leith Witch Market will open at Leith Arches on December 18 and will present a whole host of local artists, makers and magickal practitioners. Organisers say it is the first of many planned events.

Revealing our eerie artefacts | National Trust for Scotland

https://www.nts.org.uk/stories/revealing-our-eerie-artefacts

Check out these interesting artefacts chosen from across the National Trust for Scotland.

Revealing our eerie artefacts | National Trust for Scotland For Halloween, our curators have picked out some of the spookiest pieces in our collection, from all over Scotland.

Scottish Halloween traditions | VisitScotland

https://www.visitscotland.com/blog/events/halloween/
A fun little article regarding some of Scotland's Halloween/Samhain traditions.

Scottish Halloween traditions | VisitScotland Discover more about the origins of Halloween in Scotland and find out about the distinct Scottish traditions associated with this spooky time of year.

Witch-Hunting in Edinburgh with Professor Julian Goodare

Online event through Edinburgh World Heritage and Professor Julian Goodare of Edinburgh University.

Details in the link below.

Witch-Hunting in Edinburgh with Professor Julian Goodare In this new talk, Professor Julian Goodare of the University of Edinburgh will explore Edinburgh's role in the Scottish witch-hunt

New “Sponsor a Stone” Campaign for Stone Repairs | Boleskine House

https://www.boleskinehouse.org/new-campaign-for-stone-repairs/

Campaign to help the rebuilding of Boleskine House. Once home of Aleister Crowley.

New “Sponsor a Stone” Campaign for Stone Repairs | Boleskine House New “Sponsor a Stone” Campaign for Stone Repairs February 4, 2021 Boleskine House The Boleskine House Foundation has launched its “Sponsor a Stone” fundraiser, which gives our supporters the unique opportunity to help rebuild Boleskine House and have their support memorialised on the estate....

HOME | Mysite

https://www.healandharrow.com

Heal and harrow is an upcomming cross disciplinary and mixed medium project looking to honour the lives lost during the Scottish witchtrials of the 16th and 17th centuries.

Check out the site below for more details.

HOME | Mysite Heal & Harrow - A new multi-disciplinary work produced by Rachel Newton and Lauren MacColl pays a humanising tribute to those persecuted during the 16th and 17th Century Scottish Witch Trials, while also exploring historical beliefs in the supernatural and modern day parallels in our society. 


The Return of Paganism in Modern-Day Scotland

Lovely article looking at paganism in Scotland.

https://theculturetrip.com/europe/united-kingdom/scotland/articles/the-return-of-paganism-in-modern-day-scotland/

The Return of Paganism in Modern-Day Scotland Paganism is making a comeback in Scotland, whose inhabitants are finding a deeper relationship with their natural surroundings.

Another clue....

Could anything be more romantic than this ivy-clad ruined church where Scottish ‘witch’ Agnes Sampson was a member of the congregation?

Looks like a programme on magic in Scotland might be coming our way soon...

In the high-security storerooms of the National Museum of Scotland
today I was fascinated to be shown a whole huge boxful of MAGICAL amulets. Looking forward to being able to tell you exactly what was going on via BBC Two and PBS when the programme’s finished⁩ perhaps early next year.

The secrets of alchemy revealed by Scotland’s oldest medical library

Article from 2018. This article discusses Scotlands Alchemy manuscripts held in Edinburgh.

The secrets of alchemy revealed by Scotland’s oldest medical library Museum Crush talks to the Iain Milne, Head of Heritage at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, whose new exhibition reveals the wondrous alchemical texts held by its library collection As any self-respecting Harry Potter fan knows, the aim...

This arrived in the post today.

Researching Scottish Esoteric Trends in a Pandemic

https://www.esotericscotland.com/post/researching-scottish-esoteric-trends-in-a-pandemic

NEW BLOG POST!

It is a reflective piece about the last year and working on Scottish history during that time.

Researching Scottish Esoteric Trends in a Pandemic A reflection on the year the world stopped. I was very aware that a lockdown was coming. At the start of 2020 I worked part time at a small, but well loved café in the centre of Edinburgh. As news of Covid-19 started to spread across the world, we had noticed that customers were less frequent. By t...

Occult and Esoteric studies Scotland| Esoteric Scotland

https://www.esotericscotland.com/

The website is still in its infancy. However, it is now up and running. More content will be added as time goes by. So join the mailing list or get in touch to be involved.

Occult and Esoteric studies Scotland| Esoteric Scotland A network for those interested in the academic field of Esoteric and occult studies about Scotland.

New Website is currently being built. Very excited to finally have the time to work on this.

My Phd is trying to find evidence of Esoteric trends in the late 15th and early 16th century in Scotland. This is a new page dedicated to all things esoteric in Scotland, past, present and future.

The focus will be academic. However, popular culture will also feature.

This is an offshoot of my sister page Occult Academia, which looks to share information across the field of Esotericism. This page will focus on Esoteric ideas in Scotland and of Scottish nationals working elsewhere.