The complete wheel of the year as incense blends. Each crafted individually, inspired by the seasons, their devas and their spirits. It’s been quite a journey. As so soften, I got lost in the details, rather than quickly writing up and following a concept. The ingredients are subject to change, as my perception of the annual cycles evolves and expands. This offer includes all 8 incense blends for the wheel of the year festivals, as well 1 baneful blend for the Rauhnächte. The bags contain approximately 30 ml of each blend. Printed instructions are included. For details please read the descriptions in the single listings.
🔥REMINDER: for receiving incense in time for Lughnasadh you have to order until Monday! Any orders placed after Monday will be handled and shipped in August, when we are back from the mountains.
Tomorrow I will be packing and shipping last orders before this much needed break.
This means there is still a narrow time window to order and receive our Summer Solstice incense et al!
Summer solstice traditions are manyfold and vary regionally. They include: dancing around and jumping naked over the fire, while wearing a girdle made of mugwort, sometimes also setting a wagon wheel on fire and pushing it down a hill, burning straw figures, burning wreaths made from weeds and scattering the ashes in the garden or field, collecting healing herbs (called Johanniskräuter) and passing them through the flames of the midsummer fire to be blessed by the fire god and increase their potency, lighting mullein torches, eating elder bread, drinking psychoactive beer, searching for the male fern’s seed.
The solstices mark important turning points in the annual cycle of the earth and the sun. In myth this is reflected in the killing of Baldur (the god of light) by Loki (Lugus) or the oak king (symbolic of the sun) being defeated by the holly king (symbolic of the dark season). While these are myths, the sacrifice of elderly priest kings on the solstice might have been a real practice among pre-celtic European people.
The summer solstice celebrations last for 12 nights, similar to the 12 nights following the winter solstice. With the arrival of Christianity, the veneration of Saint John the Baptist, who according to lore was beheaded on the summer solstice, substitutet the worship of the oak king and sun god, and the solstice celebration was replaced by St. John’s day. One of the most importrant healing herbs of Europe and even fireflies were thence re-named after the saint. Likewise, the once revered Bilwis (wise men or women who protected the fields and ensured their fertility) were turned into corn demons themselves.
+ + + +
The Summer Solstice incense blend is dedicated to the rituals surrounding the summer solstice, when the sun reaches its annual zenith. The ophidian seal adorning the incense is inspired by the viper’s bugloss (Echium vulgare) herb, which is typically blooming then and is an ingredient in nine-herbs-charms.
The ingredients for this blend are the herbs and flowers traditionally associated with the summer solstice. The incense blend evokes a vision of a blooming meadow at dusk: bushes of blue flowering viper’s bugloss cover the ground and transform into serpents. Plantain, thistle and St. John’s wort grow beside it. Fireflies begin their nocturnal wedding dance. Nearby, the fragrant yellow flowers of the evening primrose glow in the evening light and emit their sweet scent into the sweltry air, attracting the most wondrous kind of fairy folk, and their flowerheads turn into scaled dragons…
Use this blend for divination, purification and letting go of the old, for protection, renewal, celebrating the night, inspired dreaming and creativity. The blend can also aid in decision making and gaining deeper wisdom: cast out the serpent as a symbol of “evil” or embrace it as a bringer of wisdom and become a serpent yourself. The solsice is also a good occasion for consecrating a magical weapon, as well as exploring new systems of magic…
Here comes a another fresh batch of Samhain incense! This blend is was the first I created for the harvest festivals and closes the circle, being dedicated to the third and final harvest feast. At the same time it marks the beginning of the Gaelic New Year. On Samhain the living and the dead assemble and sacrifices are made. The blend is hence both protective and strengthening as well as suited for opening the gates to the spirit world and chthonic realms. It smells woody, herbaceaous and resinous.
Contains: amber, juniper, mugwort, pine + spruce resin from local forests, oak bark, rosemary, sage, thyme, vervain
Please remember my ordering deadlines for Samhain: 18 Oct. ’23 for international shipments 25 Oct. ’23 for orders within Germany
This incense blend is dedicated to seasonal feast day of Mabon, September feast days and the Autumn equinox in particular. It is part of the Teufelskunst “wheel of the year” incense series and is dedicated to the second of the harvest festivals (the first being Lughnasadh and the third being Samhain). It is all about the rituals of autumn, for example the celebration of the Autumn Equinox and blot rituals / harvest blessing and sacrificial rituals. It smells earthy, warm and sweet, but also resinous. It unifies dark and light aspects. It contains aromatic and warming ingredients, such as cinnamon, coriander, nutmeg, precious saffron, storax bark and vetiver root. The resins in this fiery blend are powerful protective agents, such as dragon’s blood, dark copal and pine resin. Sweet myrrh, oakmoss and sticky labdanum in turn revere the scents of autumn and bind the herbs. Fragrant herbs such as mugwort and mullein complete this special composition. Lastly, freshly gathered nettle is included as a reference to the goddesses of spinning and weaving, but also enhances the protective qualities of this magical Mabon blend.
The sigil adorning the blend has been desgined especially for Mabon (read more in my next post).
I made new designs for them, especially for the qliphotic blends. Step by step I am also re-doing the feast day sigils. It’s a pile of work, but ultimately it will be easier to simply print and fill these than cleansing, labeling and packing up glass jars, which also always meant more packing waste. Also, the production of the silver foil labels wasn’t particularly environmental friendly either. So…
These are meant to be smelled and burnt.
I may still do special editions in glass jars every once in a blue moon. I have in fact been gifted a big pile of small miron violet glass jars…
But for now, it’s paper bags! How do you like them?
For those who missed out on the virtual event, you can still order the VGS publication featuring my essay on Phytography (introducing the term) and my encounter with the guardian of the witch hazel, as well as two illustrations by me: https://viridisgenii.com/product/viridis-genii-series-7-vol-2/
My gratitude goes to the organizers Catamara and Marcus as well as the team of people that made it all possible, especially Kim, Katrink and Prof. Porterfield. Huge thanks also to the people that attended and took part in the workshops, especially David. We made it work, despite catching Covid, despite hurricanes and despite all the other obstacles. I am looking forward to the next point in time when the portals open for communing with the genii of the plant kingdom. Below is a summary of my presentation and workshop.
1 hour live presentation with Q&A
Creating Magical Images of Plants – Combining Phytography and Ritual Magic
1 hour lecture + 3 hour workshop included the following topics:
methods of ritual magic, sympathetic magic and planetary magic
indepth information on plant pigments
short history of nature printing
alternative photography processes feat. work by Malin Fabbri and Kristina Feldhammer
Datura wrightii flower at Pinwheel Cave California
examples of phytographs created with coffee and plants
workshop guides through the ritual creation of your own magical plant paper talismans
question & answer on anything plant/ritual related
Workshop materials provided to attendents included:
ritually harvested, pressed flowers and plants
absorbent paper
signed print of the witch hazel seal
Phytographs created during the 3 hour workshop:
Magnolia, hour of Venus
Fennel, hour of Mercury
California Poppy, hour of Mercury + Moon
Blue Lotus, hour of Moon
Witch Hazel, hour of Saturn
Phytographs created during VGS VII workshop, using planetary hours
I am pleased to be giving a lecture and hosting a workshop at this year’s Viridis Genii Symposium!
It is only possible thanks to the event being held online again that I am able to participate and share my knowledge. So this is a rare opportunity for people outside of Germany to attend and ask me all the questions that you always wanted to ask me about plants and my art with plants, including my plant sigils.
So what can you expect that will make it worth to purchase tickets?
You will:
receive a unique workshop kit with powerful magical plants that have been harvested ritually and are already arranged and pressed for you (to be purchased separately for a humble 12 USD fee)
work creatively in a relaxed and meditative surrounding
expand your ritual routine and connect collectively to the plant spirits
get a unique chance to ask me questions about your favorite plants
at the end you hold a concrete and potentially magical talisman in your hands
In the lecture I will introduce the term “Phytography” and guide you through the history of nature printing, from cave paintings, to medieval herbals, to Leonardo da Vinci, to modern alternative photography, including examples by contemporary artists such as Malin Fabbri and Kristina Feldhammer. We will talk about the “blood” of the plants and their other juices, plant pigments and in how far the coffee based phytographs that we will produce in the workshop can be considered “magical images” of the plants, through the use of sympathetic magic and astrological correspondences.
NOTE: The number of workshop participants is limited to 30!
Besides, there is an annual publication accompanying the event. This year’s book features my essay on Phytography, two illustrations and a lucid experience with the guardian of the witch hazel. The book has just arrived fresh from the print and can be ordered now from Rosarium Blends!
Note: deluxe ticket holders will automatically receive a copy.
Preview of the plants that come with the workshop kits – included among others are: thorn-apple, bryony, bindweed, lily-of-the-valley, forget-me-not, periwinkle, ferns, enchanter’s nightshade, barrenwort, wormwood, mugwort, fennel, various spring blossoms such as violets, daffodils, linden leaves, cherry, lilac, elder, hellebores etc. all carefully arranged and ready for use. It’s been a hell of a work… 😉
I am writing to you from my “home office”. In this regard not much has changed. Except, I am no longer alone here, but in the constant company of my – now 10 months old – baby boy.
Corona forces us to stick together and stay home. Most of my time is spent with housework and watching after the little one and the big things he is doing. Since January 21st I am also trying to get back to working and making a living as an artist, since my parent leave has officially ended. But it is not simply getting back to business as usual.
I am currently not able to manage an online mail-order. I have hence removed the shopping cart from the Teufelskunst website.
(Do not worry, your accounts are not deleted and you can still access them – just email me and I send you a custom link.)
I plan to bring the shop back though. I also plan to start offering downloadable content, e.g. info material on spiritual working systems, herbalism as well as interviews with other artists and practitioners of occultism.
Once international shipping is working again, I may also bring back physical goods.
In the mean time I will accept individual commission requests for anything that counts as art and can be delivered digitally or in letter form. Especially illustrations/graphic design requests are highly appreciated, or if you would like to use any of my photography, illustrations or writing in a publication of yours…
You know my work. Have a look around on my social media.
Publishers could also chose from my large archive of plant and nature photographs (including a great amount of material I have not shared online), or commission me for purpose specific illustrations.
Now is the chance to get a custom piece from me!
To do so please use the contact form or e-mail me at info@teufelskunst.com
I have been silent but not lazy, as I am heading into the last weeks of pregnancy and continue being creative, while embracing the transforming effects of this wondrous process.
I continue working with the birch’s wood, which will likely be my last artworks before giving birth. Here is my second “Berkano” disc:
Pyrographed during the lunar eclipse, that occurred earlier in January 2020
I have also began work on the third and fourth birch wood disc, which will focus on the birch’s roll in the Ogham and other animistic attributions connected to the birch, featuring the heron as one of my favorite spirit animals.
There have been a lot of requests for new seed boxes – expect an update on these next week!
Bloody halo and partial lunar eclipse, photographed January 10th 2020
