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| House Head-Count! |
| Gryffindor! |
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0% |
[ 0 ] |
| Hufflepuff! |
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50% |
[ 5 ] |
| Ravenclaw! |
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30% |
[ 3 ] |
| Slytherin! |
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20% |
[ 2 ] |
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| Total Votes : 10 |
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 Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 3:48 pm
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Divination
Obviously, I have not finished setting up the classroom. The teacher, employed by the Headmaster, to teach Divination this year is Professor Tiyo Chumana, a gifted and celebrated seer from the Hopi Native American tribe (the Hopi reside in the northeastern part of the state of Arizona). Unfortunately, Professor Chumana has recently been experiencing extremely powerful visions. Fearful that these visions (and the state they leave her in) might interfere with her ability to teach, the Professor requested a teacher's assistant and I, Hope Maxime Hagrid, volunteered. Right now, Professor Chumana has returned to the village she grew up in, Hotevilla, to seek a possible treatment to help deal with her visions. I assure you that she will be back before the term starts. She also left me instructions in how she would like me to set up the classroom, but since I am also helping out my father with Care of Magical Creatures, I hope you can have a little patience with me.
I'll get it all sorted out just as soon as I can. In the meantime, however, I encourage anyone interested in signing up for the class to register here. Be sure to do it by September 18th, because the term begins the next day and I won't be adding anyone to the roster past that day. Also, as always, please post in your house colors.
To register, fill out and post the following: ((Note razz lease do not post in ornate style, as I will being doing that to make my posts stand out for your convenience.))
1/15
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 3:49 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:00 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:01 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:05 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:07 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:08 pm
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A Preparation for Divination I:
Core Divination Principals
(First Years)
Preface to Lesson One:
An Introduction to Opening the Mind
-----I’m sure many of you are wondering what on earth will prepare you to learn the arts of Divination. This lesson you will be learning about aroma therapy, the knowledge of which will help you throughout your years of Divination with opening your mind. For you, the ability to use scent to help you in your divination practices may very well be the difference between seeing foggy and strange shapes and looking into the past, present, and future. Thus broadening your mind and your sight is the eventual goal for us to accomplish this lesson.
-Lesson One-
Aromatherapy:
Opening the Mind by Opening the Senses
-----Aromatherapy is widely known to have been used since the beginning of time to bring good omens or spirits, to show respect for others or Gods, to attract others, to heal the ill and the soul, and to just relax for a while. It's use that is usually overlooked is in magic, especially Divination.
-----Aromatherapy utilizes three forms of aromatics: fresh plants, dried plant materials, and essential oils.
Fresh Aromatic Plants
-----Fresh plants contain vast amounts of energy. Because no essential oils have evaporated from them during the drying process, fresh herbs are ideal for many types of aromatherapy. Those flowers that lose their scents when dry mush be used fresh or in essential oil form.
How can you get them?
-----Most of these plants can be grown at home in small gardens or containers. Many of the flowers sold by florists are magically potent. However, some (such as roses and carnations) have been hybridized for their staying power, their appearance and color, with scent losing out to those other three factors. Check with your nose before buying; however, do NOT sniff plants which have been sprayed with synthetic insecticides! Many fresh fruits, herbs, and often fresh flowers can also be found at grocery stores and farmer's markets. If all else fails, go to a public park or arboretum, visualize and inhale the scent of the flower or leaves. But don't pick them! It's rude! Not to mention bad Karma...
How can the scents produced by these plants be inhaled?
-----A great number of fresh plants and flowers may be purchased or harvested. If you gather your own, do so with love. Remember: plants are living things just like you and I are. Therefore, they possess the same type of energy that empowers our bodies. Place any flowers in fresh water and be sure to either dispose or replace them at they begin to wilt. Collection of flowers isn't even necessary. If they grow in a private place, simply kneel or sit beside them with your choice of divination tool, inhale, open your mind, and begin reading into the future.
Dried Plant Materials
-----Many of the more exotic tools used in aromatherapy are only available in dried form. I don't know anyone with clove trees in their backyards or sandalwood gracing their gardens. Dried herbs are an important part of magical aromatherapy and are as valuable in this practice as are fresh plant materials and essential oils.
How can you get them?
-----Once again, our modern grocery stores offer a wide selection of once costly spices and herbs. Other sources include ethnic food stores as well as Chinese medicine shops. Most mail-order sources for herbs are reliable. Still, it pays to purchase herbs carefully.
How can the scent of dried flowers, leaves, seed, and wood be inhaled?
-----Obviously, no collection is necessary, be simple processing may be required before they fully release their scents. For most spices, lightly crush in a mortar and pestle or between two rocks. For leaves and flowers, rub between your fingers (wash hands first) to break them up. Most woods release so much fragrance that they needn't be ground. If this isn't the case, rub on a sharp grater for a few seconds. Whatever method is used, only a small amount is necessary for aromatherapy. If it has a sharp, strong scent, you've processed enough.
Essential Oils
-----Essential oils are not oils. They aren't greasy, are usually as light as water and quickly evaporate, none of which is true of oils. Essential oils are actually volatile, aromatic substances which naturally occur within certain plants.
-----Essential oils are obtained from plant materials by a number of methods, most of which are costly, potentially explosive and best left to professionals. It is virtually impossible to create true essential oils at home.
-----Essential oils are the distilled or expressed products of naturally aromatic plant materials. Lavender essential oil is extracted from lavender, not from a plant which smells like lavender. Additionally, synthetics are not essential oils!
How can you get them?
-----Genuine essential oils are usually sold in millimeter amounts and vary in price from inexperienced to costly. Though many true essential oils are expensive, they're used in such small proportions that the overall costs are actually minimal.
-----It's difficult to determine whether an essential oil whether an essential oil is genuine. One tell-tale is price. (A $3.00 price tag on "Jasmine" oil, which usually costs around $50 for one to two millimeters of oil, is a sure sign that it is the product of laboratories and not the Earth. The real test is smell. Even those who have never smelled an essential oil can quickly tell the difference between the rich scents of true essential oils versus the sickly and antiseptic scent of the imitations that easily create headaches and bad tempers. There are many reliable true essential oil suppliers who sell by mail order.
-----Once you've purchased a few, guard them carefully. Essential oils rapidly break down if not properly stored. Their enemies are as follows:Light. Keep essential oils out of sunlight.Heat. Never place essential oils near heaters, stoves, fireplaces, lit candels or other sources of heat.Air. Keep them firmly capped and never leave the cap off for more than a few seconds.Moisture. The bathroom is the worst place to store essential oils. Keep them in a cool, dry place and they should last for some time.
Opinions differ, but most essential oils should continue to be effective for one to three years. REMEMBER: these are highly concentrated plant essences. NEVER DRINK THEM! How can essential oils be inhaled?
-----The easiest way is to open the bottle and inhale, but this can lead to expensive spills ( which is , surely, unwanted, when some oils can cost over $50) and certainly hastens evaporation of the costly treasures. You can put one to three drops (depending on the scent's strength) on a cotton ball (not a cosmetic puff!) or a clean, freshly washed handkerchief (not washed with scented detergent.) After fragrancing the cotton ball or handkerchief, hold it up to your nose. To fill an entire room or home with the scent, you could purchase either an essential oil diffuser or a potpourri simmer. Follow the instructions given with them and inhale deeply as the aromas fill the area. Water can also help spread the aromas of essential oils. Bring distilled or purified water to a boil in a non-metallic pot. Place this in a large, heat-proof bowl and add a few drops of the essential oil. Inhale the scented energized steam, open your mind, and begin your reading. Finally, a few essential oils can be used in baths. However, you should be very wary as to what oil you use. Some essential oils are highly irritating to the mucous membranes and the skin in general. It would be wise to search online to see if you can use the oil in your next bath. A half-tub or less is fine . Add the oil to the bath drop by drop just before you get in, so that it doesn't evaporate from the water's heat. For most baths, six to ten drops is pleanty. A good soak in such aromas is a wonderful way to open your mind before you sit down to your cards, crystal ball, or other divination tool.
The Homework -Lesson One-
In at least 4 inches, briefly describe the three forms of aromatics.
(To be PMed to me)
7/15 |
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:16 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:17 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:23 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:24 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:25 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:27 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:28 pm
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:56 pm
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