He Won't Leave Me Alone I'm Being Forced To Draw Him

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“(Warning! Long post! Also, Trigger Warning for discussions of rape, violence, gender, and sexuality!) Ishtar, the ancient Babylonian goddess of love, war, and sex is a complex figure. She evolved from the goddess Inanna in the earliest civilization in the world; ancient Sumer. (Modern day Iraq.) Her figure is at least 5,000 years old and her worship enjoyed popularity throughout all ages of Mesopotamia. (Unlike many other goddesses whose popularity waxed and waned.) She had many aspects, that added to her character over the ages. It was because of this some scholars theorize that Ishtar may have originally been a combination of several local goddess, which explains the complexity of her character.

While the mainstream academic view is that of Ishtar being a spoiled “brat”, trying to get what she wants, and that of a capricious teenager in mythology, this view ignores what could be garnered from modern  feminist interpretations. Looking at it from an ancient perspective, Ishtar is an independent woman in patriarchal societies that frowned upon that sort of thing. 

In a modern perspective, Ishtar stood up for herself when she was raped, back in time when rape wasn’t always a big deal,  owned her own sexuality, was independent of men, and remained an important figure of fertility in nature.It was because Mesopotamians didn’t like demonizing and oppressing their goddesses too much, even if they went out of the gender norm, that the wild aspect of Ishtar’s lust (Killili) and violence seem to have contributed to the myth of Lilith, a more popular feminist figure of the modern age. Lilith (Babylonian Lilitu) became then, and subsequently in cultures who inherited the myth (Israelites),  a woman that was used towarn other women about the dangers of being independent woman in a society where women were owned by the males of their respective families. (In fact the Babylonian word for “prostitute” and “independent woman”, both of which Ishtar and Lilith typically identify, are similar for such reasons because both ideals are looked down upon in their respective societies.)

This essay will explore Ishtar’s character and myths in the ancient world, while offering a modern feminist interpretation of such mythology. She can be used a modern symbol of female empowerment, much in the same way her maiden Lilith is used by feminists. (The main reason why Ishtar is not viewed in the same lense of Lilith, is because Lilith enjoyed being interpreted by Romantic artists of the Victorian period and evolved into a symbol of modern Jewish feminism. Whereas, Ishtar became hopelessly lost in the veils of time, mostly.)”

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“spa-ghetti”

Quick and ugly sketch of Vivec my dear

🌻🌞Litha🌞🌻

🌻 Midsummer, or summer solstice

🌻 Art By: Lanajay_Art on instagram

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🌞 When Is Litha?

🌻 Northern Hemisphere:

20-24 June

It is typically celebrated on the longest day and the shortest night of the year

🌻 Southern Hemisphere:

20-24 December

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🌞What Is Litha?

🌻 Litha is the celebration of the longest day and the shortest night of the year. The sun god is thriving and at his most vibrant peak, giving warmth to the earth and growth all around. We are celebrating the potential and successes that surround us. From now on the days will begin to become shorter again and darkness will begin to take over. The summer and warmth are still sticking around for a while, though, and it is still a very happy occasion. We are celebrating the pregnancy of the Triple Goddess with the Horned God. The Oak King is currently ruling the waxing half of the year while the Holly King is ruling the waning half of the year. The Holly King and the Oak King are battling with each other and the Holly King will eventually overrule the Oak King. Litha is a time for important magick and major spell work that needs to be put into action; It’s the best time to complete any huge magickal workings that need tackling. Before the darker days return, we must celebrate.

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🌞How To Celebrate It

🌻 Litha comes at such a positive time of year and your celebrations will reflect this.

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🌞Activities

🌻 Tackle the most challenging and most anticipated spells and rituals at midsummer, the ones that require the most energy from you; what better time to do it than when the world’s energies are at their peak! It’s the best time of the year for rituals to do with fire,faery magick, love, passion, energy and luck for the warmer times to come.

🌻 It’s also a good time to renew any tools or create or purchase any extra magickal tools you may require.

🌻Throw a midsummer bonfire or have a fire ritual. Or organize an outside gathering to simply enjoy the sun! There are loads of different ways that you can do this, a traditional midsummer bonfire would (obviously) be outside, although if this is not an option, a wood burner inside would also be fine. Burn pieces of old oak, light them on the evening before midsummer, then let them burn out as they reach the morning. It is also common to scatter herbs on the fire. Some Wiccans also burn the nine sacred types of wood (birch, rowan, ash, alder, willow, hawthorn, oak, holly and hazel) to bring them good luck and a good harvest. During the midsummer bonfire they would jump over the fire, then let the fire burn down completely and sometimes collect ashes from the fire and scatter them on the fields or on their herb garden to bring good fortune in the harvesting season coming in the near future. You could also keep some ashes for luck within spell work or rituals.

🌻 Create a god’s eye: it is typically made from wool or string and its purpose is to give protection and luck for the darker and colder days to come. Hang the god’s eye above your altar or on your door.

🌻 Go for a walk and enjoy the peak of summer! Collect things from the natural world that you need for magickal workings and to place at your altar. Have a picnic or barbecue or even just go to the beach or go for a bike ride.

🌻 If you work with the fae or just like to appreciate them, midsummer is the time for the faery rede. At this time, the fae will be riding magickal animals across the countryside, so hang out, either outside your house or in a nearby field, Bells and offerings such as sparkly decorations and food can be used to create the perfect area for the fae.

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🌞Altar Ideas

🌻 Light green, yellow, gold and red candles to represent the sun god at his peak and the green earth at its fullest.

🌻 Decorate your altar with summer flowers such as sunflowers, carnations,poppies and hydrangeas.

🌻 Place a ring of flowers around your altar or around specific items for protection.

🌻 Pictures of the sun or ornaments symbolizing the sun honour the sun god being at his peak.

🌻 Oak leaves represent the Oak King, who has been ruling for this hald of the year, but will be laid to rest soon. Oak in different forms can be relevant to Litha.

🌻 Gold, yellow and orange ribbons and cloth can be draped at your altar.

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🌞Food And Drink

🌻 Warm-colored vegetables such as butternut squash,sweet potatoes, carrots and tomatoes are all great to eat around this time of the year. They represent warmth and the wonderful produce we receive from the summer.

🌻 Home-grown or locally produced leafy green vegetables

🌻 Spicy foods

🌻 Curries

🌻 Spiced cakes

🌻 Spiced punch and rum

🌻 Anything with honey or as an alternative golden or maple syrup- bees are another representation of Litha, the midsummer full moon is acutally also known as the honey moon!

🌻 Barbecued food or flame-grilled food is good to eat too; once again it represents the heat and the sun’s energy.

🌻 Ice cream- not only is it cooling in the summer months, it also represents the colder days to come.

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🌞Crystals

🌻 Relevant crystals to carry around with you this time of the year, to meditate with, to use in divination and spell work, and to place at your altar are:

Emerald

Sunstone

Citrine

Yellow Tourmaline

Yellow Topaz

Calcite

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🌞HERBS

🌻 Seasonal fresh herbs are great of Litha, as is anything that represents heat, flavour and greenery and ties in with Litha’s celebrations.

Mint

Basil

Rosemary

Sage

Honeysuckle

Carnation

Paprika

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🌞INCENSE

🌻 Good incense to use during casting circles and burning at your altar around Litha time and for cleansing and consecrating, as well as for magickal workings, are:

Lavender

Citrus scents, such as orange and lemon

Musk

Pine

Rose

Summer Flowers

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they have a concert next week, are you going?

being born lonely is so fucking suffocating bc you feel like no matter what you do or who you’re with deep down you’re just not palatable to other people. something about you is so inherently other and nothing can ever dispel that. and it haunts you w every social situation you walk into but you just have to be okay w it for the rest of your life

Oh hi, hello. Another silly doodle with Vivec. This one I did for my birthday a few months ago

You know what? Moominvehk