Seeking Numina: The Sacred Places Podcast

In this episode of Seeking Numina: Sacred Places Podcast , Elyse Welles welcomes occult herbalist and author Coby Michael to discuss sacred plant allies, poisonous herbs, entheogens, witchcraft, and his groundbreaking new book, The Poison Path Oracle .  Together they explore the fascinating relationship between poisonous plants, sacred places, and altered states of consciousness, including the end...

In this episode of Seeking Numina: The Sacred Places Podcast, Elyse Welles speaks with renowned scholar and author Tobias Churton about heaven across cultures and time explored in his book Celestial Realms: A History of Heaven Since Before the Dawn of Time. Together, they explore how cultures across the world have understood heaven, the afterlife, sacred space, spiritual dimensions, and the cosmos...

In this episode of Seeking Numina: Sacred Places Podcast, Elyse Welles speaks with mixed media artist Jenny Davies-Reazor about sacred creativity, goddess art, pilgrimage, ceramics, mythology, and the spiritual power of artistic practice. Jenny shares how mythology, witchcraft, nature spirituality, and sacred places like Glastonbury shaped her artistic path and helped her embrace creativity as a s...

In this episode of the Seeking Numina: Sacred Places Podcast, Elyse Welles sits down with Finnish folklorist, author, and illustrator Niina Niskanen to explore the mystical world of Finnish tree magic, animism, sauna spirits,  ancient folklore traditions, and a Lord of the Rings connection. Together they discuss the spiritual significance of saunas in Finnish culture, the connection between trees...

 What does it really mean to awaken in today’s rapidly changing world? In this powerful episode of Seeking Numina: Sacred Places Podcast, spiritual teacher and Ayurveda pioneer Maya Tiwari shares profound wisdom on Shakti (feminine power), 5D consciousness, the middle path, and reclaiming personal sovereignty in a time of global transformation. Maya Tiwari is the founder of the Wise Earth School o...

What if the land is speaking… and we’ve simply forgotten how to listen? In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast , I am joined by Jane Matthews, director of World Divination, teacher of intuitive arts, and author,  for a rich conversation exploring the Ogham, Ireland’s sacred landscape, and the spirits that dwell within it. Together, they explore the Ogham as the earliest Irish alphabet and it...

What if your wounds are something sacred? In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I am joined by Ness Bosch, author of Divine Wounds , Iberian shamaness, and founder of the Path of the Bones for a deeply reflective conversation on the divine feminine, healing, and the spiritual significance of our wounds. Together, we explore the idea that our wounds can act as pathways to connection with de...

What does it mean to be called to a place? In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I am joined by Katie Ness, author of Word Witchery , hedgewitch, yoga teacher, and Magdalene priestess, for a rich conversation on personal gnosis, pilgrimage, and the sacred lands of Sardinia and Cyprus. Together, we explore the deep, often unexplainable pull toward certain places and how Spirit guides us to...

In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, we travel to the ancient temples of Malta, a place that may hold the missing link in the story of Mediterranean goddess worship. Joined by Maltese folk witch and creator of Lunar and Wild , Steph Rose Wild (@stephrosewild), the conversation explores Malta’s remarkable sacred landscape from the mysterious underground chambers of the Hypogeum to the isla...

This week on The Sacred Places Podcast. I sit down with Tudorbeth, a hereditary practitioner, author, and deck creator, to explore the magic of the hedge and what it means to walk the boundary between the physical and the spiritual. What is a hedge, and why has it become such a powerful symbol within witchcraft and folk magic traditions? Together, we discuss liminal places, trance work, hedgewitch...

In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I’m joined by animist practitioner, scholar, and author Vanessa Lavallee for a deep conversation about the true roots of ancient magic and what it means to decolonize our spiritual practices today. Vanessa is currently working toward a doctorate in religious studies, and her work is driven by a passion for understanding where magical traditions began,...

In Part 2 of my conversation with spiritual teacher, author, and psychologist Philip Carr-Gomm , we step fully into the sacred landscape of Sussex and explore what it means to walk the land as a pilgrim. This episode centers on Philip’s book The Long Man and Friends: Sacred Sussex and the deeper questions it raises: how to share sacred places without turning them into something to be consumed, how...

In this first episode of Season 3 of The Sacred Places Podcast , I’m joined by spiritual teacher, author, and psychologist Philip Carr-Gomm for a thoughtful conversation on Druidry as a living spiritual path. This episode focuses on the foundations of Druidry and why relationship with the land is central to the tradition. Philip shares reflections from his early life growing up in post–World War I...

Travel has the power to open us mentally, spiritually, and emotionally. In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I’m joined by ritual teacher and author Lisa McSherry for a thoughtful conversation about what it means to approach travel as a magical and sacred practice. Lisa shares how her life in the Pacific Northwest and her move to Portugal shaped her understanding of place, ritual, and mov...

In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I’m joined by author, psychotherapist, and somatic guide Carly Mountain for a profound exploration of Inanna’s Descent and one of the world’s oldest myths of transformation, embodiment, and return. Together, we explore how descent work can root us more deeply in our bodies, our breath, and the land beneath our feet, especially in a world that constantl...

In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I’m honored to be joined by one of my dear friends, Nicholas Pearson, to explore the deep magic of stone, land, and the mineral kingdom through his newest book, The Witching Stones . Nicholas has been immersed in all aspects of the mineral realm for nearly 30 years and is widely recognized as a leading expert in crystal healing today. What makes his wo...

In this episode, I sit down with Fotoula Foteini Adrimi, author of Sacred Mysticism of Egypt and director of The ISIS School of Holistic Health, for a conversation that touched a very personal part of my lineage. The Egyptian side of my heritage has always been the hardest for me to connect with, and Fotoula’s presence felt like both a guide and a reminder of something ancient within me. We explor...

In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, we travel into the heart of the Appalachian Mountains with author and folk magic practitioner Leah Middleton, also known as @TheRedheadedWitch. Leah’s new book, Magic from the Hilltops and Hollers: Folk Witchery, Superstitions, and Healing Practices from Appalachia , is a beautiful tribute to the living traditions, ancestral wisdom, and land-rooted spi...

In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I’m joined by Jessica Howard, a practicing witch of over twenty years and author of The Art of Lithomancy , to explore the ancient and deeply earthy world of divination with stones. Stones have always held a quiet kind of wisdom for me. They’re not just crystals from a shop, they’re pieces of the land itself. They live in our gardens, line riverbeds, a...

In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I’m joined by Laura Perry who is a pagan author, artist, and founder of Ariadne’s Tribe , to explore the fascinating world of Minoan spirituality in Bronze Age Crete. I had the privilege of visiting Crete this past summer, and the island left a deep impression on me. It doesn’t always feel like an island, you can drive just 30 minutes and find dramatic...

In this episode, I am joined by Polish folk practitioner, witch, and psychologist Joanna Tarnawska, whose upcoming book Polish Folk Magic (out this December) dives deep into the traditions of her homeland. Together, we explore Poland’s sacred mountains, springs, and land spirits, weaving together history, resilience, and the lessons the land is always whispering to those who listen. From centuries...

 In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I welcome witch, teacher, and author Ivo Dominguez Jr. to share the wisdom of more than fifty years of magical practice. With the newly updated release of his classic book Spirit Speak , Ivo reflects on what it means to communicate with spirits, especially the spirits of place, who first spoke to him as a young practitioner. Together, we explore the v...

In this episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I sit down with the amazing Mary Ann Clements to talk about the Red Tents movement and the power of creating sacred spaces for women’s self-expression, rest, and community. Mary Ann shares how she first encountered a Red Tent during a time of major life shifts, and how stepping into that simple, agenda-free space became a profound experience. Together,...

In this advanced episode of The Sacred Places Podcast, I am joined by Solomon Pakal, a modern-day practitioner of Mayan spiritual traditions. Together, we explore the profound journey of maintaining and living ancient spiritual practices in today’s world, especially when these paths are often seen as "other" or marginalized. Solomon and I share our unique experiences as practitioners of...

We begin this new season with a deeply meaningful conversation: What To Do With Angry Land Spirits, featuring author, priest, and fairy expert Morgan Daimler. In this episode, Morgan and I explore what it means to be in relationship with the spirits of the land especially when that relationship is complicated or even strained. We talk about what happens when the land holds grief, when it holds mem...