The Hand
Although the exact meaning may vary, The Hand is a symbol of some form of personal power in many cultures and religions. The presence of The Hand is an indication that your personal powers are at or near their zenith. The Hand suggest a time when you should leave your mark on the world.
The challenge of what has traditionally been known as the Hermit card is to be able to recognize a teacher in a humble disguise. This font of mysterious knowledge will not make it easy for the student to acquire his wisdom, as it takes time and long contemplation to fathom what he knows. He often speaks wordlessly, or in ancient and barbaric tongues, communicating with the elements, animals and Nature herself.
While the hourglass was an identifying feature on the earliest Hermit cards, more modern ones have shifted the metaphor, showing more or less light released from his lantern. In either case, the Hermit card reminds us of the value of time away from the hubbub of civic life, to relax the ego in communion with Nature.
We may worry that our most sincere efforts won’t be recognized today. Or, perhaps, new responsibilities are limiting our freedom of movement as the radiant Sun is cooled by its conjunction with restrictive Saturn. Our good intentions can run into walls of resistance because this awkward planetary combo fosters self-doubt. However, we’re willing to work diligently to get what we want once the Moon shifts into ambitious Capricorn at 4:43 pm EST.
Your natural inclination is to race through a task so you can hurry on to the next one. But today you can appreciate the benefits of slowing down and sticking with a job all the way through to completion. Accept any delays as a part of the process and stay focused on the project at hand, even if you wish you were doing something else. Your persistence will be rewarded sooner than you think.
If you’re not willing to take responsibility for your behavior today, someone else could do it for you — but at a price. If others do come down heavily on you now, your first impulse may be to blame them for complicating your life. Even if they just want to help, it’s difficult to respond positively to their criticism. Nevertheless, you still might not be able to avoid the fact that you need to change your ways. Your willingness to learn a necessary lesson alleviates the pressure and improves the dynamics.
Although you have obligations that demand your attention today, it’s not necessary (or even wise) to forego all pleasure. In fact, making a bit of time for structured play — like going outside for recess when you were a child at school — might be exactly what you need to be more productive. But don’t just take off when you feel like it; instead, create a schedule and stick to it for the best results. Balancing work and play is key.
It’s relatively easy to keep your thoughts to yourself today. Even if you have a very definite opinion, it may be nearly impossible to talk casually about your current plans. If you end up sharing what’s on your mind with someone else, you still might feel misunderstood. There’s no reason to question your own point of view just because others don’t understand your perspective. Trust your common sense; it won’t steer you wrong now.
You might find yourself drifting down Memory Lane today, thinking about how a previous failure could negatively impact your current life. Your nostalgia can remind you of how you fall short of your own lofty expectations, turning a minor setback into a more serious one. Thankfully, you are not a slave to your past. Rather than letting old fears limit your choices, move beyond your personal history and do something brilliant. There is no one to stop you but yourself.
Don’t be satisfied with maintaining a comfortable distance between you and an acquaintance today. Bringing up a sensitive topic can transform a casual friendship into something more meaningful. Today’s Sun-Saturn conjunction occurs in your 3rd House of Communication, making this an ideal time to tackle a difficult issue. Remember, following frivolous desires only distracts you with trivial information, so pick a subject that is practical enough to improve your relationship in a positive and lasting manner.
Sometimes you find it challenging to make a final decision because you naturally see the pros and cons to each and every possibility. However, you can narrow your field of vision today, enabling you to focus your intentions on whatever you decide is most important. Concentrate your energy on accomplishing a task that makes you feel good about your work. If you start to think about something you did wrong in the past, consciously switch your attention to what you can do right in the present.
Reality may have an obstacle or two to place in your way now, as the Sun joins Saturn in your magnetic sign. Consider the extraordinary pressures you have encountered since Saturn entered Scorpio last year to determine what lessons you can learn from this hard-nosed planet. Awareness is crucial; fortunately, understanding your role in what’s currently happening empowers you to push through to the other side and plant the seed to create something significant.
You could exhaust yourself as you vacillate between overly optimistic thinking and an accurate analysis of the facts — especially if you can’t tell which is which. You might overcompensate by acting as if you know more than you actually do. Instead of pretending you have all the answers, just ask for help. Usually, you are the one cheering others on, but now it’s your turn to lean on someone else for a change.
You are more realistic than ever as you make plans for your future because the Sun is forming its annual conjunction with your key planet Saturn. However, as the energy crystallizes in your 11th House of Long-Term Goals, Saturn can also bend your thoughts toward negative thinking. Don’t give up; fortunately, your critical analysis enables you to make improvements to a current project if you’re willing to act on your conclusions with a positive attitude.
If you experience trouble at work today, don’t simply assume that you did something wrong. Instead, look at the resistance you face as a lesson from the universe. Even if your original attempt was not met with much enthusiasm, you have an opportunity now to improve on what you did and then try again. Don’t give up on your goal; instead, work even harder to prove that you deserve it.
Setting a goal can mean serious business today, because you won’t be able to easily change your mind once you make a decision. Whether you are considering a new residence, job or school, it’s crucial to take your time and think through all your options before choosing what to do next. But merely knowing that you’re capable isn’t enough. You must resolutely overcome your own inertia and take action, however small it may seem.
Seek inner wisdom as giant Jupiter spins back
Tarotcom Staff on the topics of retrograde planets, Jupiter, cancer, astrology
Enthusiastic Jupiter, the happy-go-lucky planet of expansion and growth, slows down and turns backward in the sign of Cancer just after midnight on Nov. 7, 2013, lasting until March 6, 2014.
During this time, we may not feel as optimistic about things, and our plans to tackle big new ideas or endeavors will slow and perhaps stall. But Jupiter is a philosophical planet, so we can still use this time to contemplate our beliefs and expectations, and re-examine where we’re headed.
We all have inner wisdom if we take the time to listen to it, and Jupiter Retrograde encourages just that: Take a time out, slow down and listen to your inner voice. What is it telling you to do? It should be easier to hear now.
Do you like your job? Are you happy in your relationship? Have you been fooling yourself about something? Jupiter Retrograde asks those kinds of questions, and gives you more than three months to think about the answers before going direct.
Even while retrograde, bountiful Jupiter wants to help you figure out how to grow and change and become the best version of yourself. Use this time wisely — it’s a gift!
As mentioned in this Cosmic Calendar yesterday, the biggest planets in our solar system ramp up their influences on Earth today as the Sun makes its annual union with Saturn in Scorpio (4:02AM) while Jupiter makes a station at 21 degrees of Cancer and begins four months of retrograde motion at 9:04PM. However, keep in mind that a void lunar uncertainty zone started yesterday morning and will stay in effect until 1:45PM (when the Moon enters Capricorn). Thus, this morning’s Sun-Saturn rendezvous may be extra challenging — along Saturnian lines, which (when negative) may include a temporary rise in worry, stress, doubt, frustrations and pessimism. Nevertheless, the positive components of any Sun-Saturn conjunction can include an illumination of old fears in order to eliminate them from your psyche. Adding insult to injury in the early going is a square between Venus and Ceres (9:49AM) — a frictional tie that can equate with a decrease of productivity in arts, crafts and hobbies. Once the Moon leaves void status in Sagittarius by entering earthy Capricorn (1:45PM), the lunar orb joins forces with Venus (4:23PM) — providing a notable boost for creative-artistic expression across the board. The Jupiter station and shift into reverse (9:04PM) puts an emphasis on all Jupiter themes — the power of positive thinking, good fortune and good luck, golden opportunities, providence and benevolence, philosophical and religious beliefs, faith and trust, Big Business, large-scale enterprises, seeing the future ahead of time, literary and educational pursuits, publishing, levity and enthusiasm, adventures in the great outdoors, long-distance journeys, but also overdoing a good thing, weight gains, pride, know-it-all attitudes, and self-centered behavior (when Jupiter turns negative). Jupiter’s lack of motion right now makes all the themes mentioned above super-powerful — for good or ill. Think more about your higher destiny on Spaceship Earth and be thankful for your blessings. [Note to readers: All times are calculated for Pacific Standard Time. Be sure to adjust all times according to your own local time so the alignments noted above will be exact for your location.]
Reed Month
Color: Blue-green
Element: Water
Altar: Upon cloth of blue-green place a vase of reeds, a single blue-green candle, a great bowl of water floating with wetlands plant leaves, and a knife.
Offering: Recycle something useless into something useful.
Daily Meal: Vegetarian soup and sandwiches. Only water or herbal tea to drink.
Ngetal Invocation
Call: Now is the time of the bleak cold.
Response: Now the reeds whisper in the swamp.
Call: Now is the time when we see the growing dark.
Response: Now is the time when we begin to shiver.
Call: Now is the time of bare trees.
Response: Now is the time of rain and wind.
Call: Now the rain fills the wetlands to overflowing.
Response: Now the swamp overflows into our lives.
Call: We feel our feet dragged down into the cold waters.
Response: Yet the wetland is the source of greatest life!
Call: We feel ourselves pulled into the unfamiliar.
Response: Unfamiliar to us, but no less of value.
Call: The damp cold begins to reach our bones.
Response: We must welcome its touch.
Call: We must keep it far away with fire’s warmth!
Response: We must welcome its touch.
Call: Why should we not ban it from our lives?
Response: For this, too, is a Mystery of water.
Call: Not the deep mystery of the Ocean…
Response: Not the running flow of the river…
Call: Not the crystal of snow and ice…
Response: But the secrets of the still waters.
Call: From the still waters springs the greatest number of lives!
Response: And it is this that we must honor.
Call: Welcome into ourselves the song of the whispering reeds!
Response: Welcome into ourselves the oncoming winter.
Chant: Cold as stone
Marshes heart
We will own
What is apart
6 Blutmonath
Herne’s Day II: Predator
Colors: Black and red
Element: Earth
Altar: On a black cloth lay the skulls and bones of animals, spearheads and flint arrowheads, arrows, and knives. The room should be dark, lit by a single red candle.
Offerings: Make an end to something that needs to die. Cull out things in your life.
Daily Meal: Meat.
Invocation to Herne II
All Hail the Mighty Hunter!
Leader of the Wild Hunt,
Hounds leaping and baying
At his command,
Alpha of the pack,
With teeth that close on the throat
Of the largest, strongest prey,
Predator against whom none can stand.
You who understand the cycle,
Who accepts the sacrifice,
Who takes the offering of your prey,
Wolf who runs with his brothers and sisters,
Great panther who hunts alone,
Bear huge and fierce of claw
Weasel and marten, dark and sly,
Faithful dog that runs to the kill,
Teach us that when Fate comes for us,
It is our place to surrender.
Teach us that when we are overrun,
It is our place to weed out.
Teach us to understand Death
From the side of your implacable eyes.
Chant:
Cernunnos Cernunnos
The Hunt is On
(Ritual ends in a great howl, after which the single candle is snuffed out and all leave the room silently.)
During this Moon phase, there is a slight slowing down of enthusiasm due to an emerging desire to produce tangible results from the energy being expended. The issue of values enters into the equation and an urge to tie together the data available so that you can utilize current opportunities. There is still plenty of forward motion, and this is a great time to continue initiating and progressing forward. This Moon phase favors gaining more information and the input of others to further your plans.
From Malaysia, a power spell that harnesses the power of the earth. This spell can be used to empower yourself in any situation.
You will need:
A small stone
A small amount of soil or sand
A piece of cloth
A bowl of spring water
This spell can only be begun two nights prior to a full moon.
Put the soil or sand into the bowl. Fill the bowl halfway with spring water. Place the stone in the bowl of water. Place the bowl, with the stone in it, in a place where it will be exposed to the light of the moon. Leave it there for two nights prior to the full moon.
On the night of the full moon, remove the stone at midnight. Wrap the stone in the cloth and place it under your pillow as you sleep.
In the morning, you must be up before sunrise. Place the stone in a place where it will receive the light of the rising sun. When the sun has fully risen, the spell is worked.
Carry the stone with you whenever you need to be empowered.
The Lady and Her Three Aspects
Maiden: She is an innocent girl. Everything is new to her.
Mother: She had matured she is all loving, nurturing and protective.
Crone: She is now the old woman and holds all our life’s knowledge. She can be stern, but she is a good teacher. In death she takes us back into herself.
The enchantress is part of the Goddess and of all women. She is the sexy, playful spirit. She is both maiden and mother. In such a way she relates to the moon as it goes from new to full.
The Lord and His Three Aspects
Prince: Full of youthful awe and wonder.
King: As a man he is in his noble and protective state.
Elder: He is an old man, wise, weathered and strong.
As there is a Charge of the Goddess, so one exists for the God.
Hildegard is jumping for joy because it’s…..
Archangel: Raphael
Candle colour: Yellow
Incenses: Lavender or fennel
Crystals: Citrine or yellow calcite
Use Wednesdays for spells for money-making ventures, learning new things, passing examinations and tests, house moves and travels, overcoming debt and repelling envy, malice and deceit.
Where possible, work in a windy place or when the clouds are moving fast across the sky.
Wednesday (Mercury): The conscious mind, study, travel divination and wisdom.
Waxing Moon
The Waxing Moon is the ideal time for magick to draw things toward you.
Moon Sign: Sagittarius
Sagittarius: Encourage flights of imagination and confidence. This is an adventurous, philosophical and athletic.
Moon Phase: First Quarter
Moon enters Capricorn 4:44 pm
Capricorn: Develops strong structure. Focus on traditions, respoinbilites,and confidence.
Incense: Bay laurel
Color: Brown
THE ABC’S OF A WICCAN LIFE
by Victoria Marty
Accept others as they are. We are all individuals.
Belief in yourself is a necessity.
Concentration is important in any endeavor, both magickal and in life.
Do what you will, so long as it harms none.
Empathy is an important life skill… learn it, practice it.
Find strength in yourself, your friends, your world and your actions.
God is multifaceted… the Lord and Lady, all deities take many names and faces.
Help others every chance you get.
Intelligence is something that cannot be judged on surface.
Judge not… what you send out comes back to you!
Karma loves to slap you in the face. Watch out for it.
Learning is something that should never stop happening!
Magick is a wonderful gift- but it is not everything.
Nature is precious. Appreciate and protect it.
Over the course of time your soul learns many lessons. Make this life count!
Pray.
Quietness both physically and mentally restores the soul; meditate often.
Remember to take time for yourself as well as others.
Spells can help you, but you must also help yourself!
Tools can only do so much… they are not the foundation of all.
Unless you enjoy worrying, keep a positive mindset!
Visualize the success of your goals before you set out to achieve them.
Wisdom can often be found in the least expected places!
Xenophobia (a hatred of those different from you) is a path to misery.
You are a beautiful person who is capable of anything!
Zapping away all of your troubles is not going to happen
It has been one of those mornings. I have been trying to get some business done and looked at the clock and freaked. We will be here in just a moment. What I have been aiming to do and while I am think about it, I might as well ask. Do you have a website that is posted on our Links/Awards Page? If so, I want to know if any of you listed there have a banner. Why? Because I want to start a scrolling banner marquee. It will feature everyone’s banner scrolling happily along on the front page. I am sure you have seen them and know what I am talking about. But I would like to give it a try, plus it is free advertisement for your site.
I figure by doing this I am helping out the Pagan community. We are a large and fast growing Pagan site. But one site can’t get out our message the way it should be. I want more bigger and prosperous sites. I want our community to become big and strong like it once was. Giving me your banner to put on the front page of this site, I guarantee you will get visitors. The more members or followers that each of our sites attract, the stronger we grow.
You know what the WOTC’s mission is: To bring our Religion back to the mainstream. Please give me your banner or point me in the direction of it. If an individual doesn’t find what he likes on this site, he has other options. Right now, it looks like we are it. I know that is not true. There are gorgeous Pagan blogs and Facebook pages that just haven’t been found yet. This is the perfect way for our community to come together and grow and become strong. With the Goddess behind us, we will be unstoppable.
If you would like to become a part of this, please drop me a link or your site addy in the comment section. Or you can email me at thewotcstrustfund@yahoo.com.
Thank so much for your help.
*A Quick Revision* You site doesn’t have to be on the Links Page to have your banner posted in the marquee. So we are looking for all Pagan sites right now!
Witches Of The Craft® 
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