April 20

Shad Planking

During the 1950s in rural America, outdoor political rallies were commonly held preceding elections. They were usually highlighted by flamboyant oratory, hard liquor and regional food prepared outdoors. Sponsored by local lodges and sports-men’s clubs, huge barbecue pits were assembled that could service the entire community. Chicken and rockfish were grilled directly over the fire, but the shad was tacked to planks and placed next to the coals rather than over them. The shad was basted no less than 15 times and cooked to perfection. In some areas of Virginia, this festival is still celebrated, and, although it has been opened to women and Republicans, it still remains the province of the gentlemen and Democrats.

Source

Celebrating Wiccan Spirituality
Lady Sabrina, Author of Exploring Wicca

Daily Magickal Applications for Wednesday

To the Romans, this day was called Dies Mercurii, or “Mercury’s day” Mercury was a popular character in the Roman pantheon. A messenger of the gods, he presided over commerce, trade, and anything that required skill or dexterity. The Celts also worshiped Mercury and eventually equated him with the Norse god Odin (some spelling variations on this name include Wotan, Wodin, and Wodan). In Norse mythologies, Odin, like Mercury, is associated with poetry and music. Interestingly enough, both Odin and Mercury were regarded as psychopomps, or the leaders of souls, in their individual mythologies.

Odin, one of the main gods in Norse mythology, was constantly seeking wisdom. He traveled the world in disguise as a one-eyed man with a long gray beard, wearing an old, beat-up hat and carrying a staff or a spear (which brings to my mind images of Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings). In the Old English language, this day of Mercury evolved into Wodnes daeg, “Woden’s day,” or Wednesday.

Wednesday carries all of the planetary and magickal energies and associations of the witty and nimble god Mercury himself. Some of these mercurial traits included good communication skills, cleverness, intelligence, creativity, business sense, writing, artistic talent, trickiness, and thievery. And don’t forget all of those wise and enigmatic qualities associated with the Norse god Odin/Wodin, not to mention the goddess Athena’s contributions of music, the arts, handmade crafts, and writing. Wednesdays afford excellent opportunities for seeking wisdom, changing your circumstances, and improving your skills, be they in trade and commerce, music and art, or in communication and writing.

Source

Book of Witchery: Spells, Charms & Correspondences for Every Day of the Week
Ellen Dugan

Wednesday Is Ruled By Mercury

Wednesdays are wild and wacky days. They are for communication, change, cunning, and the arts. This is a Mercury day, and just its patron god this day is full of contradictions, change, and excitement. Some suggestions for Wednesday enchantments would include:

Pulling a little Wednesday color magic into your life by wearing purples or orange

Carrying a multipurpose agate with you and tapping into its various charms

Working with magical plants such as the fern for protection. This plant will also boost the power of any other magical plants with which it is arranged.

Incorporating lavender into charms and spells for transformation

Using the charming scent of lily of the valley to improve your memory, or working with the aspen tree for communication

Calling on Athena, patron of arts and crafts, for inspiration for a new project

Fanning out a Tarot spell to increase you creativity

Calling on Hermes on a Wednesday night to bring movement and good luck into your life

The Witches Almanac for Wednesday, April 20th

Wednesday (Mercury): The conscious mind, study, travel, divination, and wisdom.

Drum Festival (Japanese)

Waxing Moon
The Waxing Moon (from the New Moon to the Full) is the ideal time for magic to draw things toward you.

Moon phase: Second Quarter

Moon Sign: Libra
Libra: Favors cooperation, social activities, beautification of surroundings, balance, and partnership.

Incense: Honeysuckle

Color: White
 

Source

Llewellyn’s 2016 Magical Almanac: Practical Magic for Everyday Living

April 20th

Gore-loving Goddess

Mars is about to cede its position as predominant planet to Venus, which means that the astrological flavor of days on Earth is on the verge of switching from masculine to feminine, an from martial to pacific. This is not to say that all goddesses are gentle and peace-loving, however. Far from it for many female deities are more akin to Mars than to Venus in their relish of battle and bloodshed, such as the Norse Valkyries and the trio of Celtic sister goddesses, Nemain(Frenzy), Babd(Fury) and Morrigan(Specter), who were said to stalk around battlegrounds in the form of crows.

Day of Judgment

Take the time to study the major-arcana Tarot card of Judgment (or the Day of Judgment, XX). This card’s imagery is similar to that associated with the Christian day of reckoning, suggesting that a symbolic rebirth (and, perhaps, reward or punishment) may be looming.
 

Source

The Wicca Book of Days
Selena Eilidh Ash

The Pagan Book of Days for Tomorrow, Thursday, April 21st

Parilia/Earth Day/Egyptian Day

The festival of the Roman pastoral deity, Pales, known as the Parilia, included decorating sheepfolds with green branches, kindling fires, through whose smoke the animals were driven; and offering milk and cakes to the divinity. In more recent times, it has become Earth Day, when people remember their responsibility toward the environment.
 

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

Wednesday, April 20

Wednesday is the day of the Teutonic deity known as Wodin or Odin, an aspect of the Allfather, god of knowledge, wisdom, enlightenment and combat, the parallel of Hermes, the planet Mercury.

Deity: Woden

Zodiac Sign: Gemini & Virgo

Planet: Mercury

Tree: Ash

Herb: Cinquefoil

Stone: Emerald & Sardonyx

Animal: Raven & Cat

Element: Air

Color: Red & Blue

Number: 6

Rune: Odal(O)

Celtic Tree Month of Saille (Willow) – April 15th thru May 12. The Willow tree is associated with healing and growth. During this phase, work on rituals, involving healing, growth of knowledge, nurturing, and women’s mysteries.

Runic Half Month of Man (human being) April 14 thru 28

Goddess of the Month of Maia April 18 thru May 15
 

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

Wednesday Witchery

Be bold and daring today! Expand your knowledge of the Craft by working with the planetary energies of Mercury on this multifaceted day of the week. Consider the Greco-Roman gods Mercury and Hermes and all of the many lessons they have for you. Embrace change and movement, and work on your communication techniques. Conjure up a little good luck for yourself with that Mercury dime spell. Call on Athena to inspire you to try magickal arts and crafts and to be more creative in your own spellwork and witchery.

Meditate on Odin and see what you can discover about him. I wonder what sort of fabulous and fascinating magickal wisdom you will uncover? Odin is a shaman, after all; he may appear in many guises and faces. I guarantee that he will make you laugh at yourself before he is through with you, but you will learn. It’s up to you what you do with that knowledge. Will you let it shapeshift into wisdom?

Wednesday is the wild and wily day of the week, so try to go with the flow; don’t fight the quirky energies of the day. Most importantly, follow your heart, and always keep a good sense of humor, because of Wednesdays you will really need it.
 

Source

Book of Witchery: Spells, Charms & Correspondences for Every Day of the Week
Ellen Dugan

Wednesday

Ruler: Wodin, Mercury

Colors: Orange, light blue, and gray

Power Hours: Sunrise and the 8th, 16th, and 24th hours following

Keywords: Success, creativity, communication

The word Wednesday is reminiscent of the Norse wind god Wodin, which is referenced in the popular rhyme verse “Wednesday’s child is full of woe.” This does not mean that those born on this day are full of sorrow or trouble. To be full of Woden (Wodin) means to be full of wind, to be spirited. Woden was such a powerful pagan god that the German church fathers changed the name of his day to Mittwoch, meaning midweek, in an attempt to exorcise his influence.

In the Spanish word for Wednesday, miercoles, we clearly see its connection to Mercury. Under the guidance of Mercury; Wednesday is a day of swift activity, communication, correspondence, and phone calls. This is a good day for journalists, writers, poets, bargaining, hiring employees, and visiting friends.

On Wednesdays, the hour of sunrise and every eight hours after that are also ruled by Mercury, making these times of the day doubly blessed. These are the strongest four hours for ritual work. Check your local newspaper, astrological calendar, or almanac to determine when sunrise occurs.
 

Source

Gypsy Magic

The Sky This Week: April 20 – 24

Jupiter and Mars rise before midnight, Mercury shines its brightest for 2016, and the onset of spring chases Orion the Hunter from the night sky.

Wednesday, April 20
Saturn rises shortly after 11 p.m. local daylight time this week and climbs highest in the south shortly before morning twilight starts to paint the sky. The ringed planet shines at magnitude 0.2 among the much fainter background stars of southern Ophiuchus. Any telescope will show you Saturn’s 18″-diameter disk surrounded by a spectacular ring system that spans 41″ and tilts 26° to our line of sight.

Thursday, April 21
Full Moon arrives at 1:24 a.m. EDT tomorrow morning, but it looks completely illuminated all night. It rises in the east shortly before the Sun sets and reaches its peak in the south around 1 a.m. local daylight time. The Full Moon lies in southern Virgo, only 10° east of that constellation’s brightest star, 1st-magnitude Spica. By coincidence, today also marks the Moon’s apogee, the farthest point in its orbit around Earth. It reaches this position at 12:05 p.m. EDT, when it lies 252,495 miles (406,351 kilometers) from Earth’s center.

Friday, April 22
The annual Lyrid meteor shower reaches its peak this morning. Unfortunately, the Full Moon nearly ruins the shower this year. The best views likely will come just before morning twilight commences. The Moon then hangs low in the southwest and the constellation from which the meteors appear to radiate, Lyra, lies nearly overhead. If you face away from our satellite, you should see at least a few shooting stars. The only good news to come from the Moon’s interference is that it will wane to its New phase in two weeks when the Eta Aquariid meteor shower reaches its peak.

Saturday, April 23
Asteroid 6 Hebe currently lies among the background stars of eastern Leo the Lion, just a stone’s throw from 2nd-magnitude Denebola. This region rides high in the southeast during the early evening hours and peaks in the south around 11 p.m. local daylight time. This evening, 10th-magnitude Hebe lies some 3° north-northwest of Denebola.

Sunday, April 24
The waning gibbous Moon passes 5° north of Mars at midnight EDT. But the scene improves dramatically by the time this part of the sky climbs highest in the south around 3 a.m. local daylight time. The Moon then stands above both Mars and Saturn while the 1st-magnitude star Antares lies just below. All four objects appear within a 10°-wide circle.
 

Source

Astronomy Magazine
Article’s Author, Richard Talcott

Your Sun & Moon Data for Wednesday, April 20

Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 101.12° E
Sun Altitude: 33.50°
Sun Distance: 93.404 million mi
Next Solstice: Jun 20, 2016 5:34 PM (Summer)
Sunrise Today: 6:13 AM↑ 75° East
Sunset Today: 7:34 PM↑ 286° West
Length of Daylight: 13 hours, 21 minutes

Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 302.35° WNW
Moon Altitude: -40.61°
Moon Distance: 252244 mi
Next Full Moon: Apr 22, 201612:23 AM
Next New Moon: May 6, 20162:29 PM
Next Moonrise: Today6:20 PM
Current Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous
Illumination: 97.6%

Source

timeanddate.com