First Degree: My Personalized Candidate Curriculum

[eardcwen]

DAILY WORK

- Meditation (minimum of 15 minutes)
- Sphere of Protection Ritual
- Daily rune pull or divination spread for at least 9 weeks (270 daily divinations minimum)

WEEKLY WORK

- Movement meditation (Yoga, most likely) at least twice a week
- Spending time in nature at least 15 minutes once a week
- Memorize a ritual for opening and closing magical space, and practice it at least once each week*

ONGOING WORK

- Make at least 3 lifestyle changes for sustainability
- Write about holydays as they happen
- Read at least 3 books on divination and from them select at least 30 themes for meditation
- Read at least nine books on the natural history of the area in which you live & relate as much of this information as possible to your own experiences of nature.

PROJECTS
(I am keeping a few aspects of the Magic spiral because I really think they’re applicable to my practice at this stage)

- Plant at least 1 tree in the year I am studying.
- Prepare a wand, cauldron, and crane bag*
- Magically prepare at least 3 stones with different intents*
- Perform at least nine other divinations, besides my daily readings, during my initiatory year
- Create a personal handbook of divination, writing out the meanings of each of the symbols in my divination method. (Half a page per symbol minimum)
- Write at least 3 pages on the importance of divination in Druidry
- Write at least 9 pages on the importance/significance of the Wheel of the Year

The books I have selected for the Divination Spiral are:

Nigel Pennick, The Complete Illustrated Guide to Runes

Diana L Paxson, Taking Up The Runes

Freya Aswynn, Northern Tradition Mysteries & Magick or something else… (I own the Aswynn book, but I don’t know if I really like it…)

Note: The * marked criteria are essentially optional, they are the parts of the Magic spiral that I really would like to incorporate into my practice now rather than waiting until my second degree.