The Lunar New Year is actually a lunisolar holiday in that it is celebrated according to a combination of solar and lunar events. The solar event is the Winter Solstice or the day of the year with the least amount of sun. Typically the Winter Solstice falls on or adjacent Read more…
Anywhere people have lived in forested areas, mythology and folklore about the woods co-exist with humanity. After all, before the internet and CNN, most of us perceived the nature of reality through the material world around us. As Marie-Louise von Franz writes in her classic The Interpretation of Fairy Tales: Read more…
Shadows of the past lay over the present and spill towards the future the way my father’s Estonia obscured and at times illuminated my experience in Estonia. My father’s Estonia was a secret, hidden away space and one I believe that he only let himself dwell on when he drank, Read more…
Estonia is full of old wooden houses. Many of them are a few hundred years old. You’ll find them in cities like Tallinn and in the countryside as well. These old wooden houses provided shelter for both families and often times their farm animals as well. In a land where Read more…
In the thirteenth century, the German Livonian Brothers of the Sword entered the lands we now call Estonia as part of the medieval crusades. Lembitu was part of the Estonian resistance to the German invasion. According to some sources, he was a leader of a small area in what is Read more…
In July, I presented preliminary research on Estonian folklore and depth psychology using the work of James Hillman and Mary Watkins at the Fates and Graces Mythologium. Thanks to the wonders of modern technology you can watch the presentation. I would love feedback, comments, criticisms, etc.. Let’s start a conversation. Read more…
I will be presenting at the Fates and Graces Mythologium on Friday, July 28 at 2:00 PM. My presentation is called “The Forest as Cultural Heart of Estonians.” In Estonian folklore, the forest forms an integral cultural theme that serves as an anchor for “Estonianness,” culture creation, and nation building Read more…
Disclaimer: I mean no disrespect to those who believe in the god of the Christian faith, just exploring what makes sense to me. As someone whose understanding of human culture goes back longer than two thousand and twenty one years, I find the central idea surrounding Christianity to be that Read more…
Do people look at you strangely when you mention the trickster? Does your family ignore your goddess sightings? Do they roll their eyes at your favorite phrases: imaginal realm, liminal space, follow your bliss? Then join the Fates and Graces Mythologium! The Mythologium is a two-and-a-half day conference and retreat Read more…