Thursday, October 31, 2013

a Halloween Treat

Loush is a cutie, but for some reason, I can't get his pictures to work. :( Sorry!
Happy Halloween! I've got a little treat for you. As you know, writers befriend many people from all over the world. This man is one of the most interesting and unique of them. As I get to know him, I learn all kinds of fascinating things about him. And he's agreed to be interviewed about Samhain, Cel Di, and other cool things. I give you Loush O' Raven. 




1) When did you first realize you were different?

lol I suppose you mean when did I realize that I could see things that other people couldn’t see. Well I was always aware that most people couldn’t seem to see the spiritual beings I saw (Angels, Demons, Totem Animals, Fairies, Spirit-guides, Ancestors, Ghosts, Etc…). I was kept by my Grand-Mother often and she has gifts. The gifts of Seership run in her blood-line. I don’t know why I got them being a male child because usually it was the females who got it. I have always thought it was because there was no right female person for it to pass to in my family at that time. I have also thought it might have to do with my sexual orientation….I am a proud Queer (and or fairy)! lol.

Beyond this... it took me years to realize that other people didn’t see Auras, I just thought it was they way everyone saw things. I didn’t know that is what they were called when I was a child. I just saw Rainbow lights around everyone and everything. I could tell when some people were sick, closed off, or less spiritual…. because their rainbows were dimmer or damaged looking in some way. I used to draw these rainbows around everything I drew.... and a teacher who was disturbed by it commented to my mother about it. I was scolded for it, but unlike most people who undergo that…I didn’t stop seeing or experiencing things. I just learned to stop talking about it to people who didn’t know anything.



2) What was it like growing up?


Well my childhood had a few fleeting moments of happiness, almost never with my parents however. My household was as abusive as can be growing up. My father abused us in almost every way, including physically. My mother…her abuse was more mental, emotional, and spiritual. I ran away from home at the age of 12 one day and called my Beloved Gran-Ma, and told her that she had two choices…..she could let me come live with her or I could kill myself... and at that point I was fine with either choice. She sent someone to get me where I was hiding. I moved in with her and my Gran-Da, and my Nan (Great-Grand-Mother). Nan was getting on in years. I became her caretaker so that my Grand Parents could go out and work. Nan had Alzheimers and Dementia so that was an interesting time of life experience. Also for a long time I went to my Gran-Da’s church. They are in the ministry you see. Our family has been in The Ministry on and off for four-hundred years we can trace. Though I know that some of my ancestors were Drui ( Druids - Ancient Celtic Priesthood). When I was around 9, I think it was... my family underwent a major shift. My uncle went to seminary and when he came back ...literally over night everything I was always taught to believe was ripped away from us; they changed the doctrine of the church that fast. It was a huge spiritual betrayal that left me hallow and un-trusting to a large degree. I went on a spiritual journey to try on all the different cultures and religions I had studied about growing up. Mother always insisted on us reading which is the one great thing I can say about her parent skills lol. I met some people around the age of 16 and stopped going to the family church and started going to visit other churches and faiths...which till this day is an issue lol. Eventually I found Christian Mysticism…specifically for me, wrapped up with the Celtic side of my Heritage which is the prevailing culture in our family. I found an ancient sect of Christians called Celi De. Though as a Celi De there isn’t really organized anything. We are scattered and varied in our beliefs. We are Christians (or Followers of The Way as the early Christians called themselves), but we have a distinctly Celtic and even Druidic style to the ways in which we express our Worship.

I went to private religious school where I was bullied for not being of their religious persuasion and having at the time seemingly un-heard of learning disabilities. I left and went into the public school system in the 5th grade and the bullying, torment, and torture increased a thousand fold. I had no idea anyone besides my father (or as I call him my sperm-donor) could be that cruel and evil. I won’t bother telling you everything I went through. It would be hard for most to read and most people wouldn’t believe the things I went though at the hands of the public school system anyway. Though I will say Knives, Guns; Death threats and attempts, as well as… regular beatings, and never ending verbal bashing played a part in the abuse at school; and that was just the kids....never mind what the staff did to me. People don’t want to hear that their children are monsters or that the school faculty is almost as bad.

 I stopped being suicidal half way through the 9th grade and found my true path which has never wavered since then and never will; I found my true spiritual home tradition. The only thing I ever really learned in school was how to survive torture. I left in 10th grade at the encouragement of one of my teachers. She said one day to me after we had become friends, “I have never said this to anyone before in my 30 plus years of teaching in Europe and America, but for your own sake leave this place….it is going to destroy your soul…leave and don’t even look back”! I listened to her words….I will never forget them. Thanks Nancy! I will always believe that leaving that place was one the best things I ever did in my life. I went to vocational school after that. I eventually met the woman who would again change my life forever. My Reiki Master Laura. My spiritual education continued and still continues. Once you really start it never really stops lol! I will tell you a truth….forgiveness is one of the hardest and most necessary things to learn. In the end forgiveness is not about letting the other person off the hook, but about being willing to let go of the burden of carrying around the fatal poison of anger. It is not about forgetting… because we can not learn by forgetting. It is about coming to a place of true peace within yourself and putting a stop to other people having control over your life and reality. It is about taking back your Power! It is one of the most freeing things in all of life! One of the other most freeing experiences is truly and totally submitting to the awesome Love of Divine Will! If people could only realize the vast depths of how much they are utterly loved, all fear and all other negative things would start to disappear from their lives; and be replaced by all that is good….by Spirit!  



3) Do you have a favorite subject or area of expertise in the paranormal?


Well yes…a few really. Theology, Ritualism, and Healing. So I guess I would personally lump all of that under two categories; Religion and Shamanism. The words I tend to use are Minister and Facilitator. By facilitator… what I mean, is that I create sacred space for someone to heal; and or learn, grow, and evolve. I then facilitate rituals and or various medicine modalities for them to create a change in the quality of their health. This is my Ministry and Vocation!  Having said that…I also have the scholarly type of work I do. I would probably characterize myself as an unofficial Mythologian and Symbologist. I have made a life long study of world mythology and the language of symbols and Archetypes. In fact if I am being totally honest I would have to say that symbols and the language of symbols is what my utmost expertise is in; it plays a part in all I am, do, and think. Symbols have a powerful effect on our lives and beings. I have been in my life very inspired by the works of C.G. Jung, and Joseph Campbell. Having said that…my work is not just academic or out of books…. in a very even physical sense….what I know, teach, and practice comes from real world and real life experience! I am not impressed with degrees or pieces of paper. I have met truly intelligent people with and without degrees. Likewise I have met people with a host of official letters after their names who were some of the most stupid and often fake people I have ever encountered…whose arrogance and ego seemed to know no bounds lol. I am impressed when people really know or seek to know Spirit, and when they are truly Authentic. I love all sorts of diverse and interesting people. Variety is the spice of life after all. 

If I could share something with you…my two favorite words to study are Inspiration and Grace. In Celtia we have a concept called The Awen…the Divine flowing Spirit of Inspiration which nourishes all Life! It my be well worth people looking up the term and various symbols having to do with The Awen; which is a force that can be invited into ones life and being…. to serve one and to help one to serve. Grace as well is a powerful word that more people should devote time to studying and understanding. My relationship with God goes beyond Faith…I have a Knowing beyond faith. I have a deep vital loving relationship with God that I do my best to cultivate every day....this is part of Grace. Some days are better than others lol. It isn’t about being perfect….it is about the striving for perfection and wholeness! I want to encourage everyone to do the same thing. Find Spirit in what way you can and do your utmost to cultivate a relationship with it!



4) What does it mean to be Céli Dé?

 Well as I said before… there are no set dogma’s for everyone who claims that title. Each group may have a set of teachings and core beliefs but they are varied from group to group... or from person to person. Céli Dé literally; Spouses of God or Servants of God,  is a sect of Celtic Christian Mystics who have a focus on inner spiritual life, development, and evolution.
Here is a link to a Post I wrote about it on one of my Blogs;
 We Celi De all seem to have, or try to foster… an intense relationship with both nature and the spiritual realms or “The Otherworld” as we often call it in Celtia. We follow a path close to that of the early Christians. At some point in the history of Indo-Europe we existed before the time of St Patrickus. Christianity was already in Ireland long before Patrick got there. What he did was bring the Roman church and Roman Catholicism into Ireland. He despised the druids and also the early Céli Dé who lived in harmony and peace with the Druids; and tried his best to eradicate them. Some druids became monks to hide or survive. Many of the Céli Dé, were absorbed into the Roman church during that time period and their true essence was largely lost sadly. I feel like… we… who claim the title today, are reclaiming the sect… and that this honors our early spiritual ancestors and predecessors. The first Céli Dé were druids or druid followers who converted to Christianity but kept their style of worship as it were. They just stopped worshiping the old pagan gods and started worshiping The Holy Trinity. Many think they just changed the old gods into saints, but this is not really the case. Most of the Celtic saints were very real people who did extraordinary things for their people during their lives; and these so called saints were often named after the old gods; which was more than common… it was standard practice at the time. That is not to say however that certain traits from the old pagan gods weren't grafted onto the saints.  I do not claim to be exactly like the early Christians or exactly like the early Céli Dé ….these are inspirations for how we are evolving our faith path traditions now.

Here is a link to a group I think has several great points about this path (Not that I agree with everything they say mind you lol);


Also I have always considered myself part of The Grail Quest. For those that aren’t familiar with that term it has a lot to do with spiritual interpretation of the Arthurian Legends and how we can apply the lessons found within those stories to our lives. It is the search for The Holy Grail or more correctly… it is a spiritual tradition who has as its major objective to Become The Holy Grail… that servant vessel of God. Finding The Grail within ones own self and unifying with that truth. 

I believe that Spirit is not just for Sundays. Spirit is supposed to be part of our every breath. Everyday spirituality is the only way for me to truly live fulfilled and be authentic and true to myself! Finding the sacred within the mundane and profane is paramount to my way of life! This also applies unlike in mainstream so called Christianity to the issue of sexuality! I view sexuality as fluid, natural, beautiful, and Sacred!!! I am as God made me! 



5) Do Céli Dé celebrate Halloween/Samhain? If so, how?

As I said before... we are all varied. Yes, many of us do however celebrate the old Celtic holidays in our different ways….I know I do. Personally it is one of the most sacred days of the entire year to me. I don my ritual robes and regalia… and my clan colors; and I hold ritual for three days or more. After all of my spiritual workings are finished for each day I might go out and do something frivolous to have fun with friends….in elaborate costumes lol. I have always loved making costumes my entire life. I guess even as a child I was writing characters and becoming them to experience the world from a different point of view and just never knew it…not in those terms at least! lol

Samhain pronounced Sow-in,  is the Celtic new year, and it is also The Day of the Ancestors where we honor those that came before. The Hallowed Eve is followed by New Years day, All Saints day, and All Souls night. It is common in most traditions to light candles and honor God and The Saints as well as all our spiritual aids which in my tradition we call The Brehon. It is also common to pray for the souls of the dead at this time. 



6) Why the name Loush O’Raven? What does it mean to you?

It is a business name. A reflection of the name I changed to. My birth name never suited me. Name changes are a common spiritual practice around the world. God in the bible often changed peoples names to reflect their new paths. In the ancient Celtic tradition a boy at age thirteen, and a girl at the time of first moon blood tide... would choose a new name to enter into full adulthood. I decided that I wanted a new name that would reflect my new life and my new path. I tried on several different names over the years until I found the one that suited me. My real name is Lucien O’Corvi. My business name Loush is a phonetic pronunciation or transliteration of Luis; the second letter in the old Celtic Ogham alphabet. It has ties to the Rowan tree which is my Celtic zodiac tree (I am an Aquarius, or Rowan-Moon). So really I have many names. My Ritual name which I only use for ritual or teaching, My business name, and my real name. I also have three pen-names for my writing work. Names are powerful and important and carry strong spiritual energy and significance. I used to as a youth adopt a new temporary name for myself whenever studying a new culture as a way to embrace that culture during my study of it. My real name Lucien O’Corvi …well I have always been drawn to the name Lucien meaning among other things Light or Bringer of Light / Illumination.  I also wanted to change my last name….not to dishonor my ancestors but to illustrate that I was on a very different path than before. I wanted to honor my Raven-Crow which is my main Totem animal guide; and I wanted something to reflect the Irish part of my heritage hence the ‘O’ in front of the Corvi. O in Irish meaning basically Grandson of... is sort of like Mc in the Scottish culture. I chose the Surname O’Corvi which means Grand-son of The Raven. If there are any people out there who have always felt their names don’t suit them…go find your real name and change your name. Don’t go through life as someone else….live fully and authentically. In the end all we really have that is our own.... to truly leave behind and also take with us into the otherworld, is Our Name....what we made of ourselves....what we did with our name and with who we are and that is all!  Blessed Be Most Excellent! 


 I want to thank you so much for this most interesting experience Donna! It has not only been fun but it has helped me re-frame some of my perceptions about my own life! Thank you so much for the honor of having me on your lovely Blog! 

Thank YOU, my friend :) --DM


Links to my various Blogs;





WARNING!!! Two of my three Blogs are so not kid or work friendly! The A.G.M.S. Blogsite is kid and work friendly. The other two however contain very explicit graphic sexual images in many of the posts. You have been warned lol!

No comments:

Post a Comment