After practicing what I can only define as Neo-Pagan Craft for some time I felt the need for something a little more raw, something to really get my hands dirty and connect with the Land and my Ancestors. So I went searching, and I came across the Meadows of Elfhame website by Robin Artisson and I was completely captivated.
The journey that you took through the various areas, moving from the Cunning Man’s Cottage to the Covenstead, and even taking a trip to the Faery Realm, all to learn Traditional Paganism from the characters that literally came to life, was enthralling.
What was just as exciting at the time was the knowledge that these characters bestowed upon you. Real, down to the grainy earth, Blood and Bone type of Craft that made you feel alive.
I went on to join Robin’s various Yahoo Groups at the time and the learning continued. I also directed many people to the Meadows of Elfhame site so that they could get a solid introduction to Traditional Paganism and Witchcraft. Unfortunately the website had a lifespan and became unavailable, until now.
With Robin’s permission, I am resurrecting Meadows of Elfhame. I have attempted to keep it as close to the original site as possible, therefore all images and texts that go with each trip into this “Weald of Traditional Witchcraft” are from the original website and unaltered.
I hope you will find this journey as exciting and life changing as I did.
Dear Friends:
Where do all the years go? I remember creating Meadows of Elfhame, and the inspiration that led to it- it was a website from the very early internet which simulated a journey through some kind of fairy-inspired forest landscape. I don’t recall the name of it, only how it made me feel clicking along through it. I was from the generation that read “Choose Your Own Adventure” books growing up, and it seemed a pleasing thing to re-create virtually, back when websites were all just basic HTML code.
At the time, I was very smitten with the writings of Roy Bowers, a.k.a. Robert Cochrane, and the paraphrasing and re-statements of many of his artful teachings appear (particularly) in the words of Bruane, the Cunning Man, who was naturally based on Cochrane. While the intervening decades have certainly given me and others more perspective on Roy and his work, the mystical feeling we enjoyed thanks to him is surely evergreen.
Looking at “Meadows” again after all these years, I feel more than just nostalgia; I see in these first (virtual) creative expressions of mine the seeds of what would grow over many years. The yearning for powerful things hidden in the land and below it; lonely places containing within themselves agents of wisdom; a love and longing for the land itself, and the legends that grew upon it. It’s nice to know that so many other people were touched by this work of a much younger hand.
My friend and ally James Faulk- one of the first people to wander through the Meadows of Elfhame after it was created- has the same kind of love for it as our friend Lee Johnson; Mr. Faulk, I believe, has begun the long process of collecting original works of art to publish Meadows of Elfhame as a book. For his project, I will be updating the text, making it more reflective of our present comprehension of the same mysteries that this original website was grasping for.
I hope everyone enjoys this, and I hope that we all find our way to the places we want to be.