A Little Trivia for all of us getting snow this beautiful morning

The first snowfall can be very peaceful and soft. It represents unity because while each snowflake is unique, they work together to create an impact. Snow is white and clean and renders everything it touches with a new coat of purity. it is quiet, but also presistent at times. The energy of snow is effective for encouraging peace and cooperation.

Magickal Activity for January 5, The Eve of the Feast of Epiphany

Hearth Blessing

Items needed:
A broom; one
3-foot length of natural cord;
one white 3-wick candle.

Place the candle on a table near the hearth along with the broom and the piece of cord. The entire family should gather around the table. The head of the household will step forward, light each candle wick, and say:

I bring light to this home,
I bring love to this home,
I bring honor to this home.

In turn, each member of the household will then tie a knot in the cord. The last person to tie a knot in the cord will then tie the cord around the handle of the broom. He or she will pass the broom to the mother of the household, who will symbolically cally sweep all of the negative energies away from the hearth while chanting:

All that is evil is now swept away,
And nothing but good shall come this way.

The broom should then be placed next to the hearth. The candle is left to burn for one hour and extinguished. Each evening, the head of the household will light the candle in Befana’s honor to ensure peace and harmony within the home.

Eve of the Feast of the Epiphany

This 11th day of Christmas is dedicated to the Italian fairy-Goddess Goddess Befana. Although they are rapidly disappearing, many of the customs associated with this day are still held, especially in rural-Italian farming areas. At sunset, an effigy of Befana is placed on a stack of brushwood, which is then burned. If the smoke blows to the east, it is believed that the year will be filled with prosperity and abundance.

Reminiscent of our Christmas Eve, Italian children put out stockings on this night in hopes that Befana will fill them with presents while the adults write their wishes on pieces of paper.

The papers are then tossed in the hearth where they catch fire and float up the chimney, granting the petitioners wish.

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The Energy of Jupiter

Weekday ruled by Jupiter: Thursday

Stones:
Sugilite
Amethyst
Turquoise
Lapis Lazuli
Sapphire

Herbs and Plants:
Cinnamon
Beech
Buttercup
Coltsfoot
Oak

Magickal Intentions: Happiness, luck, health, legal matters, male fertility, treasure and wealth, honor, riches, leadership, public activity, power and success.

The Witches Correspondences for Thursday, January 5th

Thursday (Thor’s day)

Planet: Jupiter

Colors: Purple, Deep Blue

Crystals: Amethyst, Lepidolite, Sugilite, Tin

Aroma: Melissa, Clove, Oakmoss, Jupiter Oil, Cinnamon, Musk, Nutmeg, and Sage

Herb: Cinquefoil

Ruled by the planet Jupiter and dedicated to Thor, god of thunder and agricultural work. His parallels in various European Traditions include Zeus, Taranis, Perun, and Perkunas.

Magical aspects: controlled optimism, energetic growth, physical well-being, material success, expansion, money/wealth, prosperity, leadership, and generosity.

Thursday is the day of Jupiter, the largest of the planets and said to be the most powerful.

Spellcasters would be wise to use this day for attempting wealth, success and prosperity spells.

Thursday is also associated (in Greek mythology) to Thor – Thor’s day – and some even say that Jupiter and Thor are one in the same. Both are strong and powerful, yet wise and just. Try a small prayer to Jupiter before commencing any ritual on Thursday as a sign of respect.

This is the proper day of the week to perform spells and rituals involving luck, happiness, health, legal matters, male fertility, treasure, wealth, honour, riches, clothing, money, desires, business, group pursuits, joy, laughter, and expansion

 

The Witches Almanac for Thursday, January 5

Thursday (Jupiter): Expansion, money, prosperity, and generosity.

Bird Day

Waxing Moon
Waxing Moon is the ideal time for magick to draw things toward you.

Second Quarter 2: 47 pm

Moon Sign: Aries
Aries: Good for starting things, but lacks staying power. Things occur rapidly, but quickly pass. People tend to be argumentative and assertive.

Incense: Clove

Color: Purple

The Witches Guide to Thursday

Thursday is the fifth day of the week in the Judeo-Christian calendar, falling between Wednesday and Friday. In countries that adopt the Sunday-first convention, it is considered the fifth day of the week. However, in ISO 8601 it is the fourth day of the week. In Slavic languages and in Chinese, this day’s name is “fourth” (Polish czwartek, Russian четверг, pronounced CHET-vierg). Portuguese, too, uses a number for this day: quinta-feira, “fifth day”, (see Days of the week for more on the different conventions).

The contemporary name comes from the Old English Þunresdæg (with loss of -n-, first in northern dialects, from influence of Old Norse Þorsdagr), meaning “Day of Thunor”, this being a rough Germanic equivalent to the Latin Iovis Dies, “Jupiter’s Day”. Most Germanic and Romance-speaking countries use their languages’ equivalents: German Donnerstag, torsdag in Scandinavia, Italian giovedì, Spanish jueves, French jeudi, Catalan dijous, and Romanian joi. The Hindi word for Thursday is Guruvar, with Guru being the Sanskrit name for the planet Jupiter.

In Thailand, the color associated with Thursday is orange, see Thai solar calendar.

 

Thursday in religion

In the Hindu religion, Thursday is Guruvaar, from Guru, the Sanskrit name for Jupiter, the largest of planets. Guruvaar fasting is very common in the various parts of north India.

Quakers traditionally refer to Thursday as “Fifth Day” eschewing the pagan origin of the name “Thursday”. The name of the day is also called by words meaning “fifth day” in Icelandic, Modern Greek, Portuguese, and modern Semitic languages.

In the Christian tradition, Maundy Thursday is the Thursday before Easter — the day on which the Last Supper occurred. Ascension Thursday is the day 40 days after Easter, when Christ ascended into Heaven.
In the United States, Thanksgiving Day is an annual festival celebrated on a Thursday in November, currently the fourth Thursday.

A religion (which is a joke version of omphalism) known as Last Thursdayism teaches that the world was created last Thursday, but with the appearance of age: people’s memories, history books, fossils, light already on the way from distant stars, and so forth.

 

Astrological and Astronomical sign

The astrological and astronomical sign of the planet Jupiter (Jupiter) represents Thursday with similar names in Latin-derived languages, such as the French Jeudi. In English, this became “Thor’s Day,” since the Roman god Jupiter was identified with Thor in northern Europe.

In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, the character Arthur Dent says “This must be Thursday. I could never get the hang of Thursdays”. A few minutes later the planet Earth is destroyed. Thor, for whom the day was named, also appears later in the Hitchhiker’s series and in other Adams books. Appropriately, in The Long Dark Tea-time of the Soul, one of the characters says to Thor: “I’m not used to spending the evening with someone who’s got a whole day named after them”.

 

Source

Pagan Calendar

 

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The Pagan’s Guide to Thursday

The name Thursday is derived from Old English punresdaeg, which means “Thor’s Day.” In Norse mythology. Thor is associated with thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind and also hallowing, healing and fertility. The Romans associated him with Jupiter, who was the god of sky and thunder. In India, Thursday is called Guruvar, named after the guru to the gods.

The Goddess Book of Days for Thursday, January 5th

Eve of the Epiphany of Kore and Aeon (Byzantium), also for Demeter/persephone, Ceres/Proserpina, Isis/ Osiris, Inanna/Tammuz, Venus/Adonis, Erzulie/ Damballah, the return of light and life to the Earth. In Italy, La Befana, the good witch who brings gifts to children, forerunner of Santa Claus.

 

The Goddess Book of Days
Diane Stein

 

Thursday, January 5

Thursday is the day of the planet Jupiter, dedicated to Thunor(Thor), God of thunder and agricultural work. His parallels in various European traditions are Zeus, Taranis, Perun, Perkunas and St. Olaf. The faith of the Northern Tradition holds Thursday sacred, just as Islam reveres Friday, Judaism the Sabbath(calculated from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday), and Christianity, Sunday. This is why almost all adages about Thursday are positive, such as “Thursday’s child has far to go,” “Sneeze on Thursday, something better,” or “Cut nails on Thursday for wealth.” Thursday rules controlled optimism, energetic growth, physical well-being and material success.

Deity: Thor

Zodiac Sign: Capricorn/Pisces/Sagittarius

Planet: Mercury

Tree: Oak

Herb: Henbane

Stone: Turquoise/Bloodstone/Topaz

Animal: Fish/Goat/Aurochs

Element: Fire

Color: Brown/White/Orange

Number: 3

Rune: Thorn

 

Celtic Tree Month of Beth (Birch) – December 24 – January 20

The Runic Half Month of Eoh (yew tree) – December 28 – January 12

Goddess of the Month of Hestia – December 26 – January 22nd

 

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

 

Today is Thursday, January 5th, We Celebrate…..

Befana Fair (Italy)
BEFANA

Themes: Overcoming Evil; Wisdom

Symbols: Broom; Horns; Hag Poppets

About Befana: Befana is the Italian crone goddess. Call on her for wisdom and guidance through the other eleven months of the year. Because she has lived a long life, her astute insight will serve you well. Today is her festival day in Italy, celebrated with horns, noise makers, songs, and music. These loud sounds drive out evil and mark the passage of winter’s darkness out of the region.

To Do Today: Have any children in your life follow the Italian tradition of leaving Befana a broom to fly on and a gift basket. According to legend, Befana rewards this kindness with little gifts in stockings, much like Santa Claus.

Find a “kitchen witch” at a gift shop and hang it up near the hearth to welcome Befana’s wisdom into your home. Or, take a broom clockwise around your house, sweeping inward toward a central spot to gather her beneficent energies.

To protect your home for the rest of the year, use a kazoo or other noise maker (pots with wooden spoons work well). Go into each room and make a loud racket, saying,

Allevil, fear! Befana is here!
Away, away, only goodness may stay.

If your schedule allows, make a poppet that looks like an old woman. Fill it with dried garlic, pearl onions, and any other herbs you associate with safety. Keep this near the stove or hearth to invoke Befana’s ongoing protection.

 

365 Goddess: A Daily Guide To the Magic and Inspiration of the goddess
Patricia Telesco

 

The Magick of Thursday

Planet Ruled: Jupiter

Colors: Blue, purple, green

Deities: Jupiter, Juno

Magickal Intent: Abundance, protection, prosperity, strength, wealth, healing.

The Sky This Week for January 5 to January 8

By Richard Talcott

 

Thursday, January 5

First Quarter Moon arrives at 2:47 p.m. EST. Our satellite rises in the east around noon local time but doesn’t become prominent until the Sun sets around 5 p.m. By 6 p.m., it appears due south and nearly two-thirds of the way to the zenith. The Moon’s half-lit orb then lies among the background stars of southern Pisces.

Friday, January 6

Jupiter dominates the morning sky in early January. The giant planet rises before 1 a.m. local time and climbs nearly halfway to the zenith in the southern sky by the time twilight begins. Jupiter shines brilliantly at magnitude –2.0 and shows a disk that spans 36″ when viewed through a telescope. A small scope also reveals the planet’s four bright moons, though you may have to hunt for one of them this morning. The shadow of volcanically active Io starts to transit Jupiter at 5:24 a.m. EST, and the moon itself begins to cross the planet’s disk at 6:37 a.m.

Saturday, January 7

The variable star Algol in Perseus appears faintest at 12:30 a.m. EST tomorrow morning, when it shines at magnitude 3.4. If you start watching it immediately after darkness falls, you can see it dim from its peak brightness (magnitude 2.1) to minimum and then rise back to maximum all in a single night. This eclipsing binary star runs through a cycle from minimum to maximum and back every 2.87 days, but the drop from peak brightness and subsequent rise lasts only about 10 hours. Algol appears in the eastern sky after sunset and passes nearly overhead around 8 p.m. local time.

The dwarf planet Pluto is in conjunction with the Sun at 2 a.m. EST. The distant world then lies on the far side of the Sun from our perspective and can’t be seen.

Sunday, January 8

Although Mercury passed between the Sun and Earth in late December, it already has returned to view before dawn. This morning, you can find the inner planet 9° above the southeastern horizon 30 minutes before sunrise. Shining at magnitude 0.2, it should show up through the twilight glow. If you don’t see it right away, binoculars will bring it into view. A telescope reveals Mercury’s 8″-diameter disk, which appears one-third illuminated.

Source

Astronomy Magazine

 

Your Sun & Moon Data for Thursday, January 5th

The Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 106.47° ESE
Sun Altitude: -16.00°
Sun Distance: 91.405 million mi
Next Equinox: Mar 20, 2017 5:28 am (Vernal)
Sunrise Today: 7:08 am↑ 118° Southeast
Sunset Today: 4:52 pm↑ 242° Southwest
Length of Daylight: 9 hours, 43 minutes

 

The Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 3.53° N
Moon Altitude: -51.90°
Moon Distance: 232891 mi
Next Full Moon: Jan 12, 20175:33 am
Next New Moon: Jan 27, 20176:07 pm
Next Moonrise: Today11:44 am
Current Moon Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 46.5%

Source

timeanddate.com