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massaged her shoulders, neck, arms, and back. After about five or ten minutes of this, we both simultaneously began to breathe raggedly and audibly as if we were having sex! This increased in intensity as my hands continued to work into her flesh, and then hot flushes, followed by cool, relieving sweats swept wave after wave through our bodies. It was as if our flesh had merged together, and the dance of this union had empowered our experience. Another experience that burns brightly in my mind was one of the last devotional circles I had in my garden temple at my mother’s house, before I moved away from home after finishing school. I was meditating, and then suddenly I had the desire to dig a small hole in the soil with my fingers. The whole process felt very sensual to me, and I knew that on some level I was making love with the earth—a beautiful thing!
    Pressure Touch
    Pressure touch is a technique I learnt while learning contemporary dance in high school. My teacher gave no name to this method; however, I have passed on the technique several times now as “pressure touch,” which describes it rather aptly.
    You can practise pressure touch alone or with a partner (or several) and in larger company. In the ritual of land at the summation of this part of the book, I suggest it as the way to cast the circle. There are two principles of pressure touch, and with a bit of obviousness they are “pressure” and “touch.” The individual places their palms on the partner’s (or their own) body and applies a soft pressure, increasing gradually with time. The pressure should never be so intense that it arouses pain; it should only reach a firm level. In terms of where the pressure should be applied on the body, the answer is anywhere and everywhere. Be intuitive! In partner and group work, it is essential to always ascertain what boundaries (if any) there are when it comes to physical touch.
    Ground and centre; breathing deeply, begin to channel energy through your flexed palms, and then place them on either your own skin or someone else’s and gradually increase pressure. This is also a useful way to revitalise the body and to cast spells: simply hold strong a particular intent while performing pressure touch. Once again, as with any touch, this technique can border on the sensual and can easily become it if the participants are open to it. Exercise with ethics always.
    [ 1 ] I was born to a devout Balinese Hindu father and a highly intuitive mother; however, I began to explore the Craft and the Wiccan traditions when I was twelve. I am now an initiated priest of the WildWood Tradition and a Witch who weaves ancestry with the inspiration of the spirit. I do not identify myself as a Wiccan.
    [ 2 ] A geis (pronounced gay - sh ) is a Celtic custom and can mean a vow that is binding. It can be placed upon you by another (somewhat like a curse), or it can be self-imposed. Once a geis is placed, it must not be broken, and those that do break a geis do so in full knowledge of the repercussions that may ensue.
    [ 3 ] Mircea Eliade, the late Romanian historian and philosopher, described shamanism as a “technique of ecstasy” in Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy (USA: Bollingen Paperback Printing, 1972).
    [ 4 ] For more information on the Woodford Folk Festival, visit www.woodfordfolk
festival.com.
    [ 5 ] Spinal rolls and floor rolls are characteristic of modern contemporary dance styles. They are used especially to warm up the body of a dancer before routine work. Specifically, a spinal roll is the gradual, vertically aligned downwards roll of the spine as the dancer dips their head, neck, shoulders, and back to parallel the alignment of the legs. A floor roll can be any and all movements that use the floor/ground as the pivotal axis, or foundation. Floor rolls build balance, grace, and rhythm.
    [ 6 ] “Doof” is Australian slang for a rave party, referring especially to the bass sound.

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    Nature is the physical