Author: ladyoftheabyss

https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEgoogle/SEgoogle2001/SE2017Aug21Tgoogle.html

Monthly Astro-Forecasts August 2017

a message from Sarah-Jane Grace

To view more of Sarah-Jane’s insight, please visit her website, Sarah-Jane Grace

Message for August 2017

I’m not sure if it’s just me, but there are days at the moment that seem to be moving in slow motion, and there are other days which are most definitely on fast forward. Overall, one would hope this would balance out somewhere in the middle, but the stop, start, slow, quick pace of life seems to feel more like the lurching on a fairground ride than it does anything else. There is little time to pause or take a breath, and there is a sense of the intensity of the slow motion/fast forward effect increasing, as though both are now happening at the same time. It really is hard to put into words, but it feels multi-faceted and way beyond the language we currently have at our disposal: how can we explain the unexplainable?

Yet, despite the effervescent and excitable energies popping up into all areas of our lives, there is also a sense of release and letting go at the same time. It’s as though we are subconsciously allowing ourselves to let go of everything that no longer serves us in order to open up our hearts and souls towards the new. Even though we may not, as yet, know what the new is, intuitively it feels right to let it in as we can sense the eager anticipation deep within our hearts and souls.

August looks set to be a month of reverence. This may seem like an odd choice of word, but it feels like the only word that can truly sum up the expected shifts in the days and weeks ahead as we step deeper into the lurching fairground ride in order to find a more serene and tranquil state of living and being. Whilst, in many ways, life will still feel confusing and complex (as that’s the nature of being human), there looks set to be a wave of hope rising up from deep within, weaving and lacing together with the hope rising up from other souls from all around the globe.

There’s a shift in tone from confusion to one of respect and compassion; a willingness to rise above the confusion we see all around in order to focus on the things that unite us rather than the things that divide us. We have far more in common than we often notice, finding it easier to see the forces that segregate, isolate and divide. The more willing we become to be wholehearted and to stop denigrating and dismissing others, the more we can shift towards a warmer, more compassionate way of living and being.

It’s all too easy to look around and see division, intolerance, hate, prejudice and suffering because it’s everywhere, yet, is injecting more of this into the world going to help? Maybe it’s time to allow compassion to take the lead as we allow the true light of our souls to shine brightly and to acknowledge it’s love that unifies, not race, money, sexuality etc.

Reverence for every soul, reverence for ourselves; it’s a sense of waking up to the amazing, awe-inspiring world in which we live. To see the bigger picture: the macrocosm and the microcosm, to feel the wonder of life and to let this wonder and reverence seep and filter into the collective consciousness from all angles and pathways. Of course, this is unlikely to bring about a rapid change in the world, but every oak has to start as an acorn. It’s time not to think about walking a mile in someone’s shoes, but to walk with them, to walk together and to see the true equality of humanity…

Well, a girl can dream.

With love,

Aries

♈

As you continue to contemplate opportunity and possibility beyond the four walls of your everyday life, there is a sense you are beginning to think about what’s truly important to you. It’s as though your awareness is expanding into the infinite space beyond the boundaries of your mind as you realise life doesn’t have to be shaped by ought’s, must’s and should’s, but it can also be defined and re-defined by your own beliefs, ideals and expectations. Whilst, life carries no guarantees, it’s easy to hover on the periphery waiting for a ‘better moment’ to thrive without acknowledging the fact that even the status quo isn’t set in stone and guaranteed as everything changes. Now, this isn’t to say you should drop everything and never make a commitment to anyone or anything again, but equally, it is important not to feel imprisoned in the life you’ve created for yourself. Change is inevitable, opportunity is everywhere; it’s up to you if you choose to embrace these concepts or not.

You’ve spent a lot of time waiting for the ‘right moments’ in life, waiting to let your inner light shine and waiting to grab life with both hands. You’ve also spent a lot of time giving yourself a hard time for waiting. Instinctively you know waiting causes stagnation, and whilst there is always wisdom in thinking things through, there are times when you know you need to step from where you are now to where you need to be. Life is complex, frustrating, unknowable and indecipherable, but that’s not going to change and waiting for it to, is likely to lead to a long wait. You therefore have a choice: accept the status quo or don’t. Either way, the most important lesson for you to learn now is the lesson of self-belief…

Taurus

♉

As your twinkly, sparkly essence, also known as your sense of self, continues to break cover and head towards the surface of your soul, there is a growing sense you are beginning to allow it some breathing space to stretch, expand and come to life. Although you have always been aware of your true, sparkly self, you have often found it hard to find ways to incorporate this into your everyday world as there has been a void between your everyday life and the space where potential and dreams reside. It’s as though you have grown into a belief that there simply isn’t time to twinkle, sparkle and let your soul shine as you are too busy keeping on keeping on. Of course, in many ways this is true, but keeping on and twinkling are not mutually exclusive, you can do both! It seems you have become so focused on trying to do everything for everyone you have forgotten to include yourself in the equation.

It’s also important to realise that embracing your essence doesn’t have to mean turning your back on everyone around you, it simply means a willingness for you to honour yourself much more. Compassion is something you have in bucket loads, but self-compassion? Well, it’s time to love, honour and respect yourself far, far more. Compassion can sometimes feel overwhelming, particularly as you have such deep respect for others and would tend to do just about anything to help, support or keep them safe, but when the cost of doing this is a diminishment of your own light, intuitively you know things have grown out of kilter and you need to turn to face this in order to establish a new equilibrium. Whilst you will never stop being there for others, it’s time to be here for you too…

Gemini

♊

As you continue to explore your inner space and look deeply within your own heart and soul, there is a growing sense of bewilderment emerging from you as you had hoped to go deeper to find answers but have, in fact, ended up with even more questions. It’s understandable to want to make sense of your life and to know why things are the way they are, yet there is no end point to this quest as you are on an ever-moving treadmill into unknowable terrain. Whilst you long for a pause in order to re-centre and re-focus, intuitively you know you can’t have this as nothing ever stays the same, so a realisation in one moment becomes past tense in the blink of an eye and you find yourself seeking answers to the next chapter of your life. In many ways, life is a linear experience, one year after the other, but it is also cyclical and perhaps this is the key for you to explore now?

If you step back to look at the bigger picture of your life you will see numerous repeating patterns and cycles, some repeat due to lessons not learned and others repeat because that’s what they do, just like the four seasons. Maybe by exploring the cycles of your life, you can begin to gain a stronger sense of purpose once again? It is unquestionably hard to feel lost up the creek without a paddle or GPS, but instead of using every ounce of energy to find the paddle and GPS (and to understand why they were lost), it seems time now for you to tap into your innovative ingenuity and find another way. Life isn’t about going backwards and forwards along a linear pathway, it’s about having the courage to take a deep breath and explore with an open heart and an open mind…

Cancer

♋

August looks set to be a month for some honest self-reflection and introspection as you continue to sort out the wheat from the chaff when it comes to what you truly want in life. In many ways, you have become stuck in a rut, a repeating cycle of ‘sleep, shower, breakfast, work, food, Facebook, TV, bed, shower, work…’ Of course, there may be some other aspects to your routine missed out from this list, but you get the gist. Your life has become predictable and, if you are honest, a tad boring; whilst keeping on keeping on is important as it pays the bills, you are beginning to wonder ‘why?’. Why are you feeling so unfulfilled? Why are you going through the motions day after day after day? Why aren’t you looking beyond this cycle to the world beyond? Why are you stuck in a rut but seem unwilling or unable to do anything about it? Well, life is often a matter of perception, so if you feel stuck you create an inertia of immovability making it so hard to break the cycle.

Yet, you are not one to believe in the concept of ‘think positive: change your life’ as it seems rather twee to you. However, consider this: what if how you think shapes your ability to look at life in a different way? So, a willingness to break the cycle from time to time doesn’t have to feel unsettling but it can feel liberating as you are giving yourself a well-earned rest from the cycle you have created for yourself. You may not feel as though you created this cycle as it’s an inevitable part of life, but it’s also important to take ownership for the choices and decisions you make. What happens next is up to you…

Leo

♌

Perhaps more than most, you have been caught up in the wash, spin, rinse, spin cycle of life over recent weeks and months. You have found yourself in the middle of a whirlwind of energy, moving multi-laterally and multi-dimensionally at the same time; never pausing in the same moment twice but never having the time to take stock or get your bearings. It’s been a challenging time for you as you haven’t been able to get your head around where you are and why; you’ve felt lost, discombobulated and overwhelmed, often all at once, and it’s been hard for you to grab hold of your inner lion to roar and re-centre. However, all is not lost, and, as hard as it may seem, this whirlwind hasn’t been a waste of your time and energy as you now find yourself on the leading edge of a new chapter in your life.

It’s as though being tossed about like a little boat in stormy seas has shaken away all the inner cobwebs and doubts, leaving behind your true, colourful, vibrant and passionate self: the real you. This real you has always been present of course, it’s just that life has often muddied the waters and left you caught up in places to go, people to see and things to do. Distractions can fill life up if you let them as the ‘to do list’ never really shortens; when life gets busy, distractions get bigger and bigger until all sense of proportion is lost. So, the only way forward from this is to pause for a moment in order to re-connect to your true essence. It’s not rocket science, just a willingness to allow yourself some breathing space as this will help you to put all of the distractions back into perspective once again. Well, it’s time to breathe, re-centre and be you…

Virgo

♍

August looks set to be a month of insight, inspiration and intuition as you begin to gain a new sense of perspective when it comes to living the life you were born to live. You have always been a visionary and you have long held a vision of the life you intuitively know is your true path as you have kept it close to you throughout your years on earth. However, whilst knowing your path gives you a sense of direction, it’s also important to acknowledge the life you are living now as, whatever way you look at it, this is the life you were born to live as you’re already living it! It’s easy to see your destiny as ‘over there’ whilst you are ‘over here’, but the present is on the pathway to the future, and over here is a part of over there; they are intertwined and interwoven in a most delicate and intricate fashion.

Your quest, if you choose to accept it, is in bringing together the two ends of where you are and where you want to be and allowing them to merge and become one. This isn’t giving up on your dreams but it’s a willingness to acknowledge the importance of the present moment and accepting it’s just as important as the promised land of ‘living the life you were born to live’. In fact, you can go even deeper than this in order to wholeheartedly acknowledge you are already living the life you were born to live and, by doing so, bringing back together the many different facets of your perspective into the here and now. The life you were born to live isn’t just the destination, it’s the whole experience, so right turns, wrong turns, dead ends or going off road, it’s all a part of life…

Libra

♎

The concept of ‘over-thinking’ is one that has often puzzled you, after all, how can one over-think? Surely one can only think to the full capacity of one’s brain, not more than that? Over-thinking is a concept managed only by a select few and understood by even less. As an over-thinker, it’s hard not to want to make sense of this as it suggests you are not very good at something (oh, the perfectionist in you!), yet, over-thinking is the skill that’s allowed you to take huge strides forwards in life, to think outside of the box and to reach towards the stars when it comes to reaching for your dreams. However, over-thinking has also left you struggling at times feeling overwhelmed and unable to make sense of why things are the way they are. Over-thinking is a natural state of being for you, it isn’t a ‘problem’ most of the time as it’s your spark and va-va voom, but there are times when it becomes your nemesis as you just keep on digging, digging, asking questions, weighing up possible outcomes and more digging.

It’s as though you become so focused on finding out why things are the way they are that you have lost sight of everything else. Perhaps changing the phrase ‘over-thinking’ to ‘boundary-less philosophising’ will make you feel more positive about this trait? Your brain is a powerful supercomputer that moves at a million miles an hour, few can keep up with you, but this doesn’t stop you from using this gift to fly high in life. It’s only when you hear someone calling you an ‘over-thinker’ do you question its validity in your life so – stop! Over-thinking is just a way for others to try to make sense of your ever-expanding brain, so stop over-thinking it (!) and get back to your philosophising beyond boundaries…

Scorpio

♏

August looks set to be a month of unravelling some of the more complex conundrums of your life as you begin to see how the different facets of your being all fit together (or not). You have long had a sense of the bigger picture of your life but you have struggled to find a way to make sense of it all or to understand why things are the way they are. You are, on many levels, a mysterious soul as your depths are boundless and you rarely expose your softer underbelly to the daylight. It’s not that you are distant or unapproachable, but you can find it hard to let your real essence dance free. There are many reasons for this, from past experiences to a wariness of allowing others to get too close in case they are not as honourable as they appear. Trust can be hard for you at times as you have been stung in the past and this has created an in-built caution when it comes to letting others see, touch or feel your depths.

It seems clear that the key to making sense of why things are the way they are is to find a way to bring together your inner depths with the rest of your formidable self; inner union can create a stronger sense of equilibrium, enabling you to step back even further from the bigger picture to see the ‘even bigger picture’; one that includes you living with an open heart and an open mind. You may recoil at the thought of exposing your underbelly, yet you also yearn for it as you want to feel a sense of inner unity again and you know the only pathway to this is through wholehearted vulnerability; being real, being seen and being authentic. It’s your time to dance…

Sagittarius

♐

What do you truly want? What do you, wholeheartedly, genuinely, truly want? Yes, it’s that question again. It keeps popping up, so clearly there’s a need for you to answer it. July asked you to explore the question, August is asking you to answer it. You have long had ideas of what you want in life and you have long had a sense of your gifts and talents, yet you have also long had a massive ‘to do’ list of things to do, people to see and places to go which never gets shorter and acts as a huge distraction that takes you away from ever having to do anything about what you truly want. Why? Do you fear failure? Success? Do you wonder if your life would feel empty if you were no longer striving towards your dreams? Or do you just prefer your dreams to remain dreams as you rather like being in a constant state of longing?

Most of these questions seem unlikely but clearly, something is thwarting your progress as you would rather unclog the sink than sit down and reconnect to what you truly want. Only you can know why this is the case but it seems important for you to explore this now otherwise you may end up looking back on your life thinking ‘what if’ or ‘if only’. You are a visionary, a creative, passionate spark of lifeforce, so why on earth are you so self-doubting and self-deprecating? Why is it okay to give yourself a hard time or deny yourself the opportunity to let your talents and gifts thrive? They may be your gifts but keeping them locked within your heart and soul denies everyone the opportunity to feel the joy of them, including you. You have reached a crossroads, and this is your moment to stop procrastinating and start living…

Capricorn

♑

For a long time now, you’ve been waiting for a special moment: a moment where the planets align, unanswered questions get answered and where you know exactly and precisely what to do. It’s understandable to want such a moment, after all, when you are making some big life decisions, you don’t want to make them lightly or without due thought and consideration. Whilst this makes sense, intuitively you already know how unlikely it is you will step into such a moment as it’s sat up on the pedal-stalled horizon of what a perfect life might look like. Of course, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have aspirations or hopes, but when you hold back waiting for a moment you already intuitively know won’t come, then perhaps you need to ask yourself what your true motivations really are as it clearly isn’t really about the ‘right time’. Life is never straightforward, or black and white, as it is a kaleidoscope of shades of greys as well as the unending palette of colours in the spectrum.

Whilst it’s understandable to want ‘clear-cut’, is it really helping you to hold back when you know you can’t have it? Yes, this frustrates you and, yes, it is a deeply annoying part of being human, but it seems the frustration created from not getting something you already intuitively know you can’t have is growing ever-more intense and it’s this frustration that’s creating the true barrier to you knowing when to act and when not to; it’s getting in the way of you being you. Listen to yourself and trust your intuition as you know it’s formidable. Self-doubt only undermines you, and frustration clouds the view, so turn this around now, and start seeing just how blessed you are to be standing at a crossroads; what happens next is up to you…

Aquarius

♒

There are times in your life when you feel caught up in a moment, unable to sense where you are or why. You can feel overwhelmed and underwhelmed at the same time, as well as both excited and fearful, joyful and sad. It’s as though every pathway in your life has suddenly converged into this moment and you can’t quite make sense of it, or work out what’s happened. The first time it occurred, you put it down to chance, the second time you thought it was co-incidence, but now you have experienced it on numerous occasions you are beginning to see things from a slightly different perspective. Although you are still unsure exactly why you have these convergent moments, you have begun to see them as a blessing as they each give you a rare opportunity to see the bigger picture in a nicely condensed version in the blink of an eye. It’s as though you suddenly get every thought process and idea coming together as one so things that you once couldn’t understand or make sense of, are now clear and concise.

It’s hard to articulate as it’s more of a feeling, but it seems you are now approaching another ‘convergence’ of several different pathways of your life bringing you an opportunity to merge many of your skills and talents into a more cohesive whole. Whilst the process can feel a little overwhelming, you now know it’s part of the process towards clarity in your life, so your willingness to allow the pathways to converge and explode in a powerful display of colour enables you to become a part of the process rather than be a perplexed spectator and, as a result, you are able to take an active part in re-shaping and re-defining your life…

Pisces

♓

As you continue to work out a balance between your everyday life and your creative spark, there is a sense you are beginning to realise just how important your creative, spiritual, imaginative and emotional well-being actually is. This may sound like an odd observation, as of course you know how important they are, yet, just how much do you offer tenderness and love for these aspects of yourself? You are so often caught up in the throng and buzz of daily life that you forget about your own, deeper, needs. It’s easy to overlook your creativity, spirituality and emotions as they frequently get in the way of the business of keeping on keeping on. Yet, you intuitively know you can’t ignore these for long as, over time, your overall well-being will begin to suffer as you shift out of kilter and find yourself unable to fully function in life. Why do you feel as though these get in the way of your life? Can’t they be a part of your life? The more you see them as separate forces, the harder it becomes to re-unify and re-balance.

To live disconnected from the forces that ultimately create your true essence takes a lot of strength and courage, yet why would you want to? They’re not distractions, nor are they irritants, they are the keys to you living a full, rich and rewarding life. It’s time to restore your perspective in order to acknowledge your true essence and allow it to flow freely in your life, then you will see just how important it is to live in harmony and balance. Once you realise they are not distractions, but potent enhancements to life, you will find yourself more able to achieve balance between being super-you and being your true self…

August 2017 Ascension Energies

a message from Jamye Price

To view more of Jamye’s insight, please visit her website, Jamye Price, Soul Progression for Ascension

July Review

July had the focus of Integrating Time. It is part of this Year of The Empowered Sovereign as we move into a new spiral of empowerment that supports the Ascension of humanity into a more connected and conscious species. Understanding your power with time is about mastering fourth-dimensional expression (a subset of fourth density).

Areon, the Lyran Council of Time, say that time responds to us and through us. There are physical laws and subtle laws that affect us. The physical laws are what we see as the “immutable” effect of time. For example hours/days/seasons – the effect of movement around the sun. Your subtle realm is your inner realm. Your subtle bridge—how you connect directly with the subtle realm—is your thoughts and emotions. Your subtle bridge responds and interacts with the field of life, invisibly creating the future. Because it is subtle, it is mutable, but it cannot be controlled and manipulated like the realm of form.

Your present moment has the past and the future in it, so being fully present and empowered flows your energy strongly into your moment. Things like fear, drama and chaos can take one out of their power, out of their present moment. This is the difference between awake and asleep, empowered or disempowered. When you anchor in your present, you are able to connect more consciously and clearly with your subtle bridge.

The real work is always your inner work. It’s what determines how you utilize and respond to the outer experiences like eclipses, influxes, downloads, gateways…

And we’ve got some doozies coming up. Time to surf!

August Energies

August is a powerful time each year as the Leo energy blazes us into a fiery new phase. I hope you all have a Leo you love in your life—they are magical. Mostly. Like all signs. ;o) We’ve got some really cool astrology in these times with a black moon in Leo, an eclipse series traipsing across the United States.

The Ascension energies I was shown was shown a light zooming all over the earth and touching down for a second in places, gathering momentum with other lights, splitting off, gathering new momentum. During this vision I heard, “Ignite Your Soul.” This is a time of powerful focus into your energy of what you want to create in your future.

Areon has been preachin’ for awhile about “get YOUR energy into the world.” You are Life, you have a powerful spark of creation within. Use your focus to pray for humanity’s future, you get a vote! From your desires, your actions will be inspired as you participate with your moments from that clarity of what you want.

August amplifies that.

Animal Assistance

When we were filming the August energies, we had two animal messages. The first was dragonfly. It circled over or near where we were filming the entire time. Dragonfly’s message is “The Power of Light.” “Use the creative imagination as a force within your life. Dragonfly brings the brightness of transformation and the wonder of colorful new vision.”

As I finished the last word of the video, I heard a screech. It was hawk. Hawks don’t screech continuously (except when they’re young), so it was special to hear. Hawk’s message is “Visionary Power and Guardianship.” “It holds the keys to higher levels of consciousness. It awakens our vision and inspires us to a creative life purpose.”

Wow! What a perfect message from the animal kingdom! Both animal messages excerpted from Animal Speak by Ted Andrews.

The “meek inheriting the Earth” (those strong enough within to operate from compassion and balance rather than dominating due to fear) begins in this way. The compassionate ones roar their silent Love into the ethers. They participate in structures that are out of balance in a conscious and balanced way and they change them from within, as well as with their powerful focus of Love. Ignite your soul in August!

Ignite the August Eclipses

Eclipses offer us a reset of energy. They are potent focusers of two powerful energies for us, the sun and the moon. The two opposites that lead us through day and night such that we connect with the outer and the inner, honoring the full breadth of the dual engine of life as we create. Eclipses occur in pairs of opposite signs. The lunar eclipse on August 7 is in Aquarius. The solar eclipse on August 21 is in Leo.

I was shown two aspects of the eclipse to share. It bisects the USA in a diagonal line, cutting it in two. Separation is the physical realm. It’s a fact of experiencing this reality, though only part of the story. Separation serves evolution as it gives a new perspective. From a new perspective, you have the option of a new choice. Areon has been saying since mid-2016 that we would start seeing more polarization between people. It’s not brand new, but I’d say we’re seeing more of it. Sometimes things have to get really obvious and uncomfortable for people to change. (When you pay attention to the subtle clues of life, you don’t always need to learn through obvious extremes)

The eclipse enters the US landmass in Oregon, a state that is currently rather progressive. It exits through South Carolina which has a history of slavery. I was shown “in with the new, out with the old.” Remember, these are generalizations, which can show you a pattern, but it doesn’t just completely apply. It is not to say that Oregon has a perfect history, or the people currently in SC reflect that history (I grew up there and I know many powerful Lightworkers that live there!). Take the overall generalization (or leave it), but don’t read too much into it.

“In with the new, out with the old.” Build the future, learn from the past. Lightworker, what kind of future do you want to see for humanity? All Life being honored equally? Don’t worry about the how or when, focus on it! The how and when as it applies to you will surface in your heart and mind and inspire you into creation.

Do you see a huge clue? In with the new first. Hasn’t this been what we’ve been working on as we learn to use our thoughts and emotions positively? Yes, of course sometimes it’s out with the old first in the physical world. But even that begins with a desire. We recognize our desire for peace, love and abundant flow for All Life, then readjust to create that—getting rid of beliefs, habits and physical things that hold us back from that.

In with the new. It’s in you. Live it, breathe it into your world. Be it. Renew your focus on what you want to create. Start within. We have more support for this than it seems. The Light Language transmission surprised me with this. Ignite YOUR Soul in August. Spend some time each morning to focus on your desires for the future, yours and humanity’s future. This is your time, Lightworker. Be present and gift the future with your Love.

These are the times we’ve been preparing for. Powerful times, indeed.

Weekly Forecast: July 30 – August 5, 2017

a message from Kelly M. Beard

To view more of Kelly’s insight, please visit her website, www.KarmicTools.com

The Karmic Tools Weekly Forecast covers the current planetary transits which affect people in different ways and to various degrees of intensity. Take notice when it is a Personal planet (Sun / Moon / Mercury / Venus / Mars) interacting with a Social (Jupiter/Saturn) or Collective planet (Uranus / Neptune/Pluto). And pay extremely close attention when it is a Social planet interacting with a Collective planet because that means something *big* is brewing that will move large groups of people along their evolutionary paths. Tuning into the energy and rhythm of the planets can serve as a useful *guide* as you move along your Individual Path. It also helps to understand your place within the context of the larger Social & Collective Story. Below, you will find out how these energies tend to manifest, as well as guidance and direction.

*NOTE* There are some days when there are NO CONTACTS (besides the Moon), please note that there are no missing entries, we just list the actual Activations of each week + the day they happen.

Weekly Forecast: July 30 – August 5, 2017

7/30 ~ Venus (relationships, love & money) ~sextile~ Uranus (clarity & inspiration):

This energy, thanks to Uranus, activates a certain spark of electricity in the air. New relationships will have an unusual aspect to them and old ones can break-to-realign in a positive, even fun way with this energy. No monotonous routine, humdrum people or boring collaborations with this one. Use it to access your unique genius and deep well of creativity and then share if you can, with other like-hearted Souls. Take advantage of this energy to tap into areas you may not have realized were available to you before. Keep it light and upbeat; socialize and enjoy the experience of different people or new activities. Keep in mind, however, any relationships begun this week may not be based on qualities needed for long term survival. It is more a time to enjoy the people and experiences that pass through at this time and accept this gift!

8/4 ~ Jupiter (your story) ~square~ Pluto (transformation): (3 of 3: 11.24.2016 ~ 3/30 ~ 8/4)

These two energies are potent by themselves, but when challenging each other like this, permanent change is underway. Squares push you “out of comfort zone – in to – new territory”, that, essentially, you could not get to on your own as you need the friction or the push. Keep your own motivations pure to avoid getting hurt by the karmic debris swirling nearby, know your own Truth & Story and allow what’s no longer true to fade, while embracing a renewed sense of purpose and dedication to something larger than you. Pluto is the Purifier and Jupiter represents justice and laws and is a social planet, so look for changes in government and revelations of the movements and machinations that are covert or hidden from the public view. There is a cleansing happening as we speak. It is time to question everything ~ especially your own belief systems. Reflect to see if what you hold as Truth is still adequate or even accurate. This energy is best for working toward positive change and restoring clean power structures within and out in the world and helping the individual transform their personal story considerably.

Your Cosmic Weather Report for August 2017

by Jane Lyle

From the Astrology Room

Welcome to August 2017. It’s a super-busy time of revelations, secrets, exploring new possibilities, and really getting to grips with what’s been going on since last autumn.

Major August cosmic highlights include the final lunar and solar eclipses for this year, in Aquarius and Leo. You can find out much more about what those crackling, game-changing events may bring in two Moon Diary eclipse specials.

Astrology advises us to defer decisions on the day of an eclipse, plus a couple of days before and after these important celestial events. Things, facts, and feelings can be ‘eclipsed’ at these times and we may not know what’s what until we’re free of all that discombobulating cosmic magnetism. The lunar eclipse is on 7th August, while the powerful total solar eclipse occurs on the 21st August.

Mercury is turning retrograde on 13th August in the meticulous sign of Virgo. We’ll all have to keep a close eye on life’s pesky little details until early September, allow extra time for travel, and prepare for all the usual Mercury retrograde shenanigans. There’s more about this in the Cosmic Weather for 13th August.

And finally, generous Jupiter brings up some longstanding issues with partnerships, alliances, and relationships. Have you been putting something off? Jupiter’s leaving Libra in October, so these late summer and early autumn weeks are a favourable time to deal with our connections. Exploring new friendships and alliances, or even making marriage plans, could be a great use of this energy.

Friday 4th August:

It’s all about power, money, plutocrats and games playing as Jupiter in Libra squares off with Pluto in Capricorn for the final time. Strategy, legal matters, and secrets are all around us in the atmosphere – and as this is the final time these big boys challenge one another from these dynamic signs, much is likely to come to a rolling boil now. Processes that began last November are very much in focus. We can look afresh at what happened then, or see what’s been brewing up since that time and make some provisional decisions about what’s next.

If you have planets or points at around 17 degrees of Aries, Cancer, Libra or Capricorn in your natal horoscope then here’s an opportunity to reform, regenerate or recycle. Money, love, alliances and relationships are meaningful areas to consider. Do try and avoid control-freak behaviour if at all possible!

Monday 7th August:

Mind Meld: New Moon and Partial Lunar Eclipse in airy Aquarius.

August’s supersize Moon Diary has all the details about this bouncing, sparks flying, geeky lunar eclipse. One way or another it’s electrifying.

Wednesday 9th August – Saturday 9th September:

Keeping It Real: Jupiter in Libra sextile Saturn in Sagittarius

The wise owl in this illustration is drawing the glyph for Mars, while the glyphs for Jupiter and Saturn sit completed at the top of the page.

These next weeks bring us some constructive, cautious optimism plus a chance to be realistic when making our plans for the future.

Jupiter and Saturn highlight everything connected with the law, opportunities for business, work, or studying abroad, while offering a clear-sighted view of long-term projects or relationships. Any delays to your plans will turn out to be useful moments to make sensible necessary changes, or find a more economical way of getting what you want.

If you have planets or points at around 21 degrees of any sign, you can move (slowly) towards creating something valuable and lasting.

Sunday 13th August – Thursday 31st August:

Back to the Future: Mercury Retrograde in Virgo

Mindful Mercury turns retrograde in Virgo from 13th – 31st August. Then it’s back into Leo, turning direct on 5th September. So recollect, rewrite, redo, rewind…..and during this Virgo journey, remember to always read the small print. Yes, terms and conditions apply, even if written in fiendishly tiny letters by scholarly ants.

Mercury retrograde flags up all the usual – travel confusion, communications going astray, computer madness, misunderstandings, and arrangements that have to be rearranged or cancelled. Mercury retrograde in Virgo is an excellent time for nit-picking, drilling down into the finer points of a dilemma, and collecting research.

We’re currently between two eclipses too – this is really not a helpful time to push through hugely important decisions. It’s more favourable, if possible, to stay flexible until Mercury turns direct. All manner of new information and changed circumstances may alter the kind of choices we make in September.

‘Peace and Music’, as advertised at Woodstock forty-eight years ago this August, could be exactly what we all need to seek out this month. And why not add a little love too?

The definitive documentary movie, ‘Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace and Music’ directed by Michael Wadleigh, would likely bring Mercury in fastidious Virgo out in hives at the sight of all that mud and free love. It is, however, available from all the usual suspects. Feed your head. Mercury is definitely in favour of that.

Mercury finally leaves Virgo on 30th September. It’s a long session in the library, but (possibly) we’ll all be tidier and more organised by the end of it.

Monday 21st August:

Going for Gold: New Moon and Total Solar Eclipse in Leo the Lion

So this is the big one – the much anticipated ‘Great American Eclipse’ of 2017. However much we might sneer at people in the distant past who were deeply unsettled by an eclipse, there’s still something awesome about seeing the bright Sun disappear behind a black disc. You can see the stars, and all the birds stop singing.

You can find out more about this powerful, pivotal event – and how it might affect you, those around you, and Donald Trump – in ‘Going for Gold’: Moon Diary Eclipse Special.

The NASA Eclipse website with maps of the eclipse path is here:

For the week of Monday, Jul 31st, 2017

- General Horoscope
  
  Love planet Venus moves into tender Cancer on Monday, and will remain in this sign until August 25. You can expect matters of the heart to take a sentimental turn as a result. You might fall in love with someone who shares your roots in some way — either the same heritage or other customs that nourish your soul. Another possibility is that you and your sweetheart will spend more time together nesting. You might also entertain at home with your lover, or decide it’s time to introduce your sweetie to your clan.

- Aries Horoscope Mar 21 – Apr 19
  
  This week Uranus will turn retrograde in your sign, helping your love life out in the process. With Uranus moving direct, you can’t help but go after things in a way that is personally serving, rather than what’s best for your relationship. After Thursday however — and until January 2, 2018 — Uranus will hibernate slightly from his erratic ways, allowing you to gain healthy traction in partnership matters. How? You’ll stop shocking your sweetheart at every turn.

- Taurus Horoscope Apr 20 – May 20
  
  Talking about love, thinking about love, and making decisions about love are on the agenda. Venus will move into your communications sector this Monday, and remains here until August 25. As a result, you’ll have two things on your mind: love and money. A conversation about your love life with one of your siblings might prove to be quite helpful. Another possibility is that you and your sweetie will decide to take a short trip together. It’ll be so romantic.

- Gemini Horoscope May 21 – Jun 20
  
  You and your sweetheart might be talking about financial matters this week. In fact, until August 25, you might have several conversations with your lover about your personal money-making prospects. If you start to feel insecure about your earning potential, your partner will surely lift your spirits. He or she will remind you that you have many talents and that you are more than capable of marketing them. The confidence booster will work wonders.

- Cancer Horoscope Jun 21 – Jul 22
  
  This week Venus will move into your sign, granting you extra powers of attraction until August 25. You might decide to spend more time on your appearance over the next few weeks. The changes you make could be minor such as a new wardrobe, or they might be more dramatic — such as cosmetic surgery. Whatever you do, you’ll certainly feel and look more attractive. This translates into extra confidence and that is what other people will be drawn to the most.

- Leo Horoscope Jul 23 – Aug 22
  
  If you are pining away over someone you know you can never be with, the next few weeks might be extra frustrating for you. Until August 25, you’ll either keep fooling yourself, or you’ll begin to find a way to release yourself from this unhealthy and unrequited love. This might be a good time to seek counseling or forms of spiritual self-help that can help you discover why you’re pursuing the unattainable in matters of the heart. It’s time to dig deep.

- Virgo Horoscope Aug 23 – Sep 22
  
  Your social life will become romantically rewarding this week. Starting Monday, and until August 25, you might find greater pleasure in all of your social connections. Attending parties, events, and nights out with friends will not only give you more joy, but it’ll also expose you to potential dating prospects. One of your pals might set you up on a date, or it’s possible that a friend will reveal he or she has feelings for you that are beyond platonic.

- Libra Horoscope Sep 23 – Oct 22
  
  Your partner might become slightly more predictable this week — but only slightly. On Thursday Uranus, the planet of unexpected behavior and events, will turn retrograde in your relationship sector, and remains napping until January 2, 2018. This will help you regroup as a couple since your mate will likely become less capricious. In fact, your partner might show greater interest in stabilizing the bond you share — provided you can manage to keep the spark alive.

- Scorpio Horoscope Oct 23 – Nov 21
  
  Venus will edge into your 9th House of Mind Expansion on Monday, and remains here until August 25. If you’re in a relationship, you’ll be interested in expanding your horizons in some capacity with your mate. This can be accomplished through international travel, studying a subject that interests you both together, or even through spirituality. A metaphysical workshop during this time may be especially eye opening. If you’re single, you’ll be drawn to people who are unique from you in some way. You’re looking to learn from love. And you will.

- Sagittarius Horoscope Nov 22 – Dec 21
  
  Your capacity to achieve real intimacy in your relationship will be expanded starting Monday, and lasting through August 25. If you have wanted to explore the deeper possibilities in your relationship — emotionally, physically, and psychically — now is the time to do so without fear. Your partner might be more willing to reveal his or her vulnerabilities in order to build a trusting, nurturing relationship. You, in turn, will feel safer revealing your own. It’s a definite win/win situation.
  
  More for Sagittarius:

- Capricorn Horoscope Dec 22 – Jan 19
  
  Your love life is about to receive a major cosmic boost. Starting this Monday and lasting until August 25, Venus will tour your relationship sector. This once-a-year event has the power to smooth over any and all rough edges that might currently prevent you and your partner from achieving romantic bliss. If you’re dating someone, this transit might lead to a more serious commitment. You may decide to set up house together, become engaged, or even marry.

- Aquarius Horoscope Jan 20 – Feb 18
  
  You and your lover might decide it’s time to improve your health. Starting this week and until August 25, you might see great progress in achieving this aim if you work together. Consider hiring a personal trainer for couple’s sessions. Or, you might want to start biking or jogging together in an effort to become fit. If you both are ready to commit to a new eating program, making it a joint effort will ensure your success. You’ll both be extremely supportive of each other now.

Pisces Horoscope Feb 19 – Mar 20

Your love life is about to feel like a breath of fresh air! Starting Monday and until August 25, Venus will tour your romance sector, making love sweeter than ever. If single, be sure to accept as many social invitations as possible. You’re likely to meet a special someone with the ability to capture your heart. If you’re in a relationship, you and your sweetie will enjoy extra bonding time.

Your Daily Horoscopes for Tuesday, August 1st

Aries

There is continued focus on your deeper needs and feelings until this morning, dear Aries, after which the Moon moves into your adventure sector, and you begin to crave more space and light on an emotional level until Thursday night. Expanding your mind or your personal experiences can be in focus. Nevertheless, as the day advances, you benefit from a Mercury-Vesta combination that encourages concentration and focus on details and work. In fact, you can feel pleasantly committed to a task now, and can quite easily become lost for hours solving problems or making plans. This can be a time for dedicating yourself to a work project or a health program. You might come up with fabulous ideas on how to best pursue a particular goal, and conversations can readily turn to planning and strategy.

Taurus

The Moon moves into your intimacy sector this morning, dear Taurus, and you’re seeking more depth and intensity to your activities and relationships for the next few days. Today, try to honor a desire to focus on a creative hobby or pursuit. Expressing your commitment to someone or putting more of yourself into a project can be satisfying now, even if it’s more mental than active. Focusing and concentrating without very much in the way of distractions can be a rare thing for you these days, but much appreciated right now. Creative pursuits and time alone spent on expressive or leisure activities can be felt to be healing. It’s a potentially excellent day for expressing yourself.

Gemini

The Moon moves into your partnership sector this morning, dear Gemini, and until Thursday night, you’re in an exceptionally companionable mood. You’re in good shape for partnering up. However, you’re also able to focus and concentrate, so do take some time for yourself now. Concentrating on family or a practical project can relieve stress, particularly if you cut out distractions and focus on one thing at a time, one step at a time. It’s a great time for working from home or working on the home. Making plans with or about family and domestic matters can figure strongly.

Cancer

The Moon moves into your work and health sector, where it will stay until Thursday night, dear Cancer. You’re gearing up to handle details and problems, and you can enjoy getting organized now. Helping you with this is an influence that increases your mental focus. Your interest in your projects, learning, and communications increases and you can become quite pleasantly absorbed in making headway. People are taking you more seriously than usual today! A commitment might be made to a new project or to help a relative or acquaintance. Friends are supportive right now.

Leo

The Moon moves into your creativity and romance sector this morning, dear Leo, and will enliven and bring more color to your emotions until Thursday night. You could feel smitten with someone or something, and you enjoy spreading the love and happiness around. As the day advances, you’ll feel exceptionally mentally focused. Discipline is easier to harness than usual, and you can experience a strong desire to get money matters or business back on track. You’ll want to apply yourself to building a talent or business today, and it’s satisfying!

Virgo

The Moon moves into your home and family sector this morning after spending a few days in your busy solar third house, dear Virgo. Until Thursday night, you’re in a more introspective phase. Emotions tend to settle, especially if you find a project or cause that excites you. The likelihood of this happening is quite excellent today as your ruler, Mercury, moves into alignment with Vesta. This is a time for making plans, working harder, and feeling more committed and purposeful. Your dedication to your work or a project is apparent now, and it becomes you! It’s a time for going your own way and for satisfying independent work.

Libra

The Moon moves into your busy, curious, and connected solar third house this morning, dear Libra, keeping you on your toes until Thursday night. You’re putting out mental feelers now, making it a great couple of days to pick up tips and ideas, and perhaps a little gossip, as well! Even so, you’re also in an excellent position for independent or behind-the-scenes work today as Mercury and Vesta align in your privacy sector. It’s a great time for mental concentration and focus. Even if the Moon transit wants you to circulate and connect more than usual, take some time to regroup and recoup your mental energy, and you’ll do particularly well for yourself. This may be an important time for a private conversation with someone you trust.

Scorpio

With the Moon’s move out of your sign and into your resources sector this morning, dear Scorpio, you’re in great shape for applying your intuition in successful ways to a pet project, business venture, or financial planning and thinking. This Moon transit lasts until Thursday night and is useful for getting established and testing the waters. You’re also in a good position to commit to a goal, pet project, or cause with a Mercury-Vesta alignment influencing the day that narrows your focus and improves your concentration. With a cherished dream in mind, not much can stop you now! Focusing on long-term happiness goals is, in fact, healing for your nerves.

Sagittarius

This morning, the Moon moves into your sign, dear Sagittarius, and will be your guest until Thursday night. This position harmonizes well with the Sun and Mars and supports your ability to express your emotions through your activities in satisfying ways. People in your life tend to cooperate with you or step out of your way and let you get where you want to go! Mercury and Vesta meet at the top of your solar chart, suggesting that your mind is on work or long-term goals. In fact, with a goal in mind, you can be uniquely focused and ambitious today. This can be a perfect time for making long-term plans and lists, organizing, leading, and managing. You’re able to tune out distractions now for great results.

Capricorn

With the Moon’s move into your privacy sector this morning, dear Capricorn, you’re gearing up to wind down a four-week lunar cycle. Until Thursday night when the Moon will enter Capricorn, you’re inclined to take things easy, at least on an emotional level. You need to regroup and reclaim your energy. A Mercury-Vesta connection forming now can help you concentrate on details. You’re ready to commit to self-improvement activities and better attention to your spiritual and emotional needs going forward. Learning something special to you can figure strongly now.

Aquarius

With the Moon’s move into your social sector this morning, dear Aquarius, some of the pressure to perform releases and you’re inclined to seek out happier, easier activities until Thursday night. Even so, today’s energies favor an intensive focus on personal interests, research, and investigation. While relating and connecting are in the spotlight today, you’ll also benefit from some time to pour your mental energies and dedication into absorbing pursuits or passion projects. You’re so engaged and intrigued that you can spend a lot of time lost in thought or research. Some form of counseling or therapy, or simply a conversation about private matters with someone you trust, can figure strongly now.

Pisces

The Moon moves to the top of your solar chart this morning, dear Pisces, where it will transit until Thursday night, stimulating your ambitions and turning your attention to your duties, reputation, and performance. This is a fine time for finding an area of focus and working towards a specific goal, and you get help today from a Mercury-Vesta alignment that encourages concentration and dedication to an idea or project. It can also be a time for dedicating particular attention to a partner or a relationship. There can be someone special who helps motivate you to set important work or projects in motion now. Listening attentively can benefit you greatly now. You’ll want to make things right and balanced in your environment and relationships today.

Get A Jump on Tomorrow…..

Your Daily Horoscopes for Wednesday, August 2nd

Aries

Uranus has been transiting your sign for over six years, dear Aries, and this has altered the way you express yourself as well as your relationships and independence. More than half the year, Uranus is direct, and internal changes easily translate to the outside world. You are direct and confident in your pursuit of new experiences and expression of your independence. During Uranus’ yearly retrograde period, which starts today and runs until January 2nd, 2018, however, more is going on inside of you than on the surface. Use now and the coming months for getting in touch with what is driving your behavior, and which fears or attitudes have been limiting your independence and authenticity. Personal plans may be put on hold or could slow down, whether this is due to circumstances or because you are not as quick to make changes or take personal risks. Accept that some slowing down is a necessary part of the cycle. Today’s Moon transit highlights your need for non-routine experiences. This can also be a particularly creative day for your work, or your creativity is recognized or on show.

Taurus

Uranus has been transiting your privacy sector for more than six years, dear Taurus, and will enter your sign in 2018 — a long-term cycle that will greatly impact your self-expression and independence. Uranus’ current transit helps prepare you for its upcoming transit of your sign by helping you break free of the past in significant ways, although there can be times when this is abrupt. Some surprises and moments when you’ve felt vulnerable or on edge have been part and parcel. Every year, Uranus spends approximately five months retrograde, and this year’s retrograde cycle begins today. Until January 2nd, 2018, changes are not as apparent on the surface of things. This is a period for processing recent events and modifications as well as for dealing with your feelings towards putting things behind you. Dreams and intuition are more pronounced at this time, and they’re giving you meaningful messages. The more you let go of the weight of secrets and inauthentic behavior, the more you enjoy your life. The Moon spends the day in your intimacy sector, and you’re in an introspective frame of mind. Today is useful for finding ways to satisfy both your need for familiarity and comfort or family and your desire for adventure and discovery.

Gemini

With Uranus transiting your solar eleventh house for more than six years, dear Gemini, friends and group connections have been lively, unusual, nontraditional, and sometimes hard to count on. You’ve been breaking out of old molds and expressing yourself in new ways vis-a-vis friends, the group or your community. While there is some abruptness to this transit much of the year, with Uranus turning retrograde today and for the next five months, things tend to calm down, at least outwardly. The period ahead of you, until January 2nd, 2018, is good for processing recent changes and events in your social life. This will benefit you greatly so that you avoid impulsive, regrettable decisions. You are learning that you are truer to yourself when you act from your heart rather than simply react to others and to changing circumstances around you. With the Moon in your partnership sector all day, you’re exceptionally accommodating. Today is good for finding ways to satisfy surface curiosity as well as the need for more depth to your relationships or projects.

Cancer

Uranus begins its yearly five-month retrograde cycle today, dear Cancer, and you tend to ease up on reacting to external circumstances in favor of examining attitudes you can change inside of yourself. Uranus has been transiting your career and reputation sector for over six years now, and this has prompted a desire to find yourself, to reshape your reputation, to carve out your unique identity, particularly through your status or career, and to express more of your authentic self in what you do. The retrograde cycle starting today and running until January 2nd is useful for dreaming up ways to take a few risks so that you can get to a more authentic place professionally speaking. Introspection is appropriate now. Analyze, plan, and reassess rather than react too quickly to changing circumstances. Today, the Moon spends the full day in your work and health sector, and your eye is on the details of your life. You can creatively combine independence and partnership today, finding it easier than usual to balance things out.

Leo

Uranus has been transiting your adventure and spirit sector for over six years, dear Leo, and each year, it turns retrograde for approximately five months. Today, Uranus turns retrograde, and in the coming months, the changes you’re making to your approach to travel, adventure, beliefs, sharing, and education are a little less dramatic than they are during the remainder of the year. This is a period of toning things down a little as you process recent changes, beliefs, and experiences. Personal adventures may take a back seat to responsibilities now, even though they’re still very much a part of your life. As well, a partnership may be in a quieter stage. Today, the Moon transits your creative sector, bringing the need to focus some of your attention and energy on pleasure, romance, and creation. You’re able to combine personal pleasure and independence with your work quite expertly, bringing an extra touch of magic to your work and projects now.

Virgo

Uranus has been influencing your solar eighth house for over six years now, dear Virgo, and will continue to do so until 2018-2019. This transit has changed the way you approach money and support as well as relationships and intimacy, possibly quite dramatically. With Uranus transits, there are cycles of heavier change followed by cycles of internalizing issues and less visible, outward change. The latter is what is beginning for you today with Uranus turning retrograde for five months — something that happens every year. It’s natural, and it’s good for you! Use this time for examining how you depend on others, and how you can alter these dependencies in ways that benefit yourself and people you love. If financial or support matters have been up in the air, disorganized, or unreliable, now’s your chance to figure out why. Today, the Moon transits your home and family sector, prompting some extra time with familiar people and places. Even so, you’re in a great place to creatively combine getting some peace and enjoying some self-expressive fun today.

Libra

Uranus in your partnership sector turns retrograde for five months starting today, dear Libra. This tends to underplay the changes and freedom issues you’ve been dealing with in close relationships for the next while. How you respond to partners or relationships, in general, is not as automatic while Uranus retrograde, although these matters are still with you on a psychological level, prompting some meaningful introspection and examination of your relationship needs. Even if issues of unreliability are temporarily no longer screaming at you, try not to ignore them! In fact, you can do well for yourself if you explore your inner needs for change or an overhaul on a relationship level so that you can feel more in control when Uranus turns direct in January. Seek out your own enjoyment, happiness, and fulfillment if you face unreliability in your social life. Today, the Moon spends the day in your communications sector, stimulating your curiosity and your need for light and easygoing exchanges. This can be a good time for entertaining in the home or otherwise combining your need for people and familiarity.

Scorpio

The Moon spends today in your resources sector, dear Scorpio, and you’re drawn to activities that help ground and center you emotionally. It’s not a time of the lunar month for taking personal risks. Even so, you’re in great shape for communicating your needs right now. People are noticing you for your unique ideas and style of writing or speaking. Also today, Uranus turns retrograde for the coming five months (until January 2nd). This yearly retrograde cycle is good for slowing down and examining recent changes, particularly related to your daily routines, work, and health. These areas of life have been up and down over the past few years – Uranus has been transiting the sector of your chart ruling these matters for more than six years. There’s now a need to look inward for answers rather than simply react automatically to changes. You’re seeking out more authenticity in your work and for more creativity or suitability in your schedules and daily routines, and now it’s time to learn more about yourself and try to align your behavior so that it more accurately reflects your true nature, particularly in the work you do or in the services you provide.

Sagittarius

The Moon spends the full day in your sign, dear Sagittarius, and you seek out a stronger connection or more relevance today. It’s a time for recognizing your emotional needs and expressing your feelings in satisfying ways. With Uranus transiting your solar fifth house for more than six years, your style of expressing yourself, your creativity, how you spend your leisure time, and the people you attract into your life are changing. Today, Uranus turns retrograde for almost five months as it does each year, and it’s time to slow down with the changes. Life is less about spontaneously reacting and more about considering what changes are best for you in the long run. The period ahead (until January 2nd) is strong for looking within at a possible inner need for change, which could be attracting the external events. With introspection, you can come up with ways to steer your life so that you feel more in control. Creative projects and possibly even a relationship can benefit from some review and refinement. Today is good for finding interesting ways to satisfy both your need for stability and your desire for adventure.

Capricorn

Uranus transiting your home and family sector for over six years has had the effect of rather drastically altering your living arrangements or your view of what home or family mean to you, dear Capricorn. Home life or inner feelings of security have been in a state of flux in recent years, and your attitudes towards security, dependency, attachment to the past, and family or domestic life have been evolving. Even though there may have been some upsets and frustrations to deal with as you’ve adapted to unexpected and unreliable elements of your life, you are growing towards a more authentic way of living — one that you can truly call your own. Uranus turns retrograde today as it does every year for about five months, and over the coming months, you respond to changes less automatically in favor of examining your needs and wants. This is a great cycle for discovering what you need and whether you might be able to modify your responses to the world so that life changes less randomly and more in your favor. The Moon spends today in your privacy sector, signaling a need to recharge your emotional batteries. Taking some time to yourself is natural and can even be healing and revitalizing.

Aquarius

Your ruler, Uranus, turns retrograde today, dear Aquarius, and this can bring repressed feelings to the surface, and yet you may not feel that you can express them adequately. This is temporary as the shift/station occurs. You are entering a five-month cycle of re-examination of the path you’re taking, how you’re expressing yourself, and how others are receiving you. Uranus has been transiting your communications sector for more than six years and will only venture beyond it in 2018 and 2019. Every year, Uranus spends approximately five months retrograde — a natural period of some introspection and review of current mental interests, projects, studies, and the ways you connect and communicate with others. The Moon spends today in your social sector, and as a result, you tend to focus on friendships or goals related to happiness and enjoyment. Today is good for both independence and companionship — these are not mutually exclusive, and you prove that now!

Pisces

Uranus has been gradually detaching you from the values you’ve previously held in its transit of your resources sector for over six years, dear Pisces. Even with some worry involving particular upsets in your finances, as well as some moving around of funds, ultimately you’re moving towards a whole new way of expressing yourself. As well, as you rewrite what you value, the respect you attract into your life evolves. You are discovering unique natural talents and learning to embrace and develop them. With Uranus turning retrograde today– a yearly five-month event — the coming months will be useful for working on inner attitudes that need to change so that you can move forward more authentically. This is also a time for dreaming up inventive ways of making money. Shifts such as this one are confusing at first, making it a less than ideal time for final decisions. However, use this time to review plans, particularly related to business and money. The Moon spends the day in your career and reputation sector, stimulating your need for goals and plans.

Tarot Card of the Day

Three of Pentacles

This suit, most often named “Coins” or “Pentacles”, is a symbol for a magical talisman that represented wealth or potential. This suit represents something supportive that is available to you — whether it be health, some kind of talent, a material or financial resource.

The Three is traditionally the card of genius. Here we usually see a master craftsman conferring with his masons on the installation of a beautiful stained-glass window in the cathedral. This designer is often likened to Leonardo da Vinci or Michelangelo, a multi-talented visionary who has no peers in talent or productivity.

The masterwork is being proudly showcased for future generations, as an object of personal and collective pride. On some cards, the genius is portrayed at his studio, alone and burning the midnight oil, in a creative ferment — driven to draw, paint, invent, or whatever work genius wants to bring into creation. As a subtext to the rewards of genius are the days and weeks of intense concentration it takes to solve the problems that great works entail.

This Week’s Tarot Card Reading

A one-card reading gives you a glimpse at what’s coming

Tarot 101: How Tarot Readings Work

Bring the Tarot into your life for good — start now

Introducing the third video in your Tarot 101 tutorial series, Understanding How the Tarot Works! Presented by me, Brigit Esselmont — founder of BiddyTarot.com and creator of the Tarot Foundations online training programs.

Here, you’ll learn how Tarot really works, and how you can make the most of it to connect with your intuition, make positive choices, and manifest your goals and dreams.

Accessing your intuition

Every Tarot card has a detailed image, enriched with spiritual symbols that help you connect to your intuitive mind. For example, perhaps you see a cup overflowing and it reminds you of your emotional state when you’re feeling overwhelmed. Or maybe the story within a particular card represents a metaphor for what you’re currently experiencing.

These are intuitive messages triggered by the Tarot cards. And it’s these intuitive messages that are often more powerful than the traditional meanings of the Tarot cards — because they are personal and specific to you.

Channeling your energy

The Tarot works with your energy. When you shuffle Tarot cards, your energy is being channeled into the cards so that when you select the cards for your reading, you’re being drawn to the cards that are most relevant for you. Each Tarot reading is unique to you in that moment and time, because it’s tapping into your energy.

The future is in your hands

Tarot works by understanding the present to predict the future. The cards don’t tell you exactly what will happen, no matter what. You always have free will to make choices and take action that will ultimately lead you to your desired outcome.

Instead, the Tarot helps you understand what’s happening now, what path you’re heading on, and what challenges and opportunities you may encounter along the way. If the cards show an outcome that is not what you want, then you can take action now to change your future. It’s that simple.

With such an intuitive tool like Tarot, there is no limit to how you can use the cards. The Tarot is perfect for self-development, making choices, manifesting goals, coaching others, planning a business, writing a book, meditating — you name it. Whenever you need to connect to your inner wisdom to solve an issue or find new opportunities, let the Tarot be your guide.

Daily Love Tarot Card

The Emperor

A hidden aspect of the past is revealed and is something that lets you tear down a wall that keeps you boxed in. What old memory fogs the mind and your emotions today? Let it go because it is to do easy now. The freedom turns into courageously liberated, wise, and realistic energy. If single, it eases a focus on desired outcomes. That allows someone to feel free to express warmth without pressure, and they will.

Your Erotic Card of the Day

The Star

The Star card shows that your sexual energy is burning bright, and the future looks extremely promising. There may be a few obstacles in the way of getting what you want, but you’re very confident in your sexual prowess so you welcome a little healthy competition. You’re determined to pursue a sexual conquest and make them yours, and the Star predicts that you have all the right moves to accomplish your lustful goals. Your ego actually works more in your favor than against your goals today.

Your Rune for Today

Nauthiz

“Not-this” – Literally: “Need-fire” or “Necessity” – Esoteric: Constraint, Friction

Key Concepts: Need, resistance, constraint, conflict, drama, effort, necessity, urgency, hard work, need-fire, life lessons, creative friction, distress, force of growth, the consequence of past action, short term pain for long term gain

Psi: resistance, need, effort

Energy: necessity, coming forth into being, urgency

Mundane: doing what must be done, chores, hard work

Divinations: Resistance (leading to strength), recognition of örlög (ultimate law, primal truth), innovation, need-fire (self-reliance), personal development and life lessons, achievement through effort; or constraint of freedom, distress, toil, drudgery, laxity, warnings, worry, guilt, moral cowardice, unfulfilled or unrecognized needs.

Governs:

Overcoming distress or negative örlög
Acceptance of the unchangeable
Development of magical will, the manipulation of wyrd
Understanding the dynamic force of “resistance” in the process of creating
The generation of creative energy for problem solving
Protection of one’s own needs
Recognition of personal need
Love magic; especially to obtain a lover

Your Weekly Influences for July 31st

Tarot Influence

Queen of Swords

Often mournful from loss or infertility. Quick witted, gracious and kind but firm

Astrological Influence

Taurus Reversed

Taurus reversed represents unwarranted stubborness and impulsiveness.

Element Influence

Fire

Fire denotes the unleashing of raw energy and change. The status quo may be about to crumble, but will be replaced something better. Fire also provides light to those in the dark and warmth for a cold body and spirit.

Your Ancient Symbol Card for Today

The Dove

Throughout history the Dove has symbolized peace and innocence in nearly all cultures. Dove’s soft cooing and gentle nature bring a calmness to any situation. The Dove appears where peace has been attained or there is a need to bring events to a peaceful ending. It denotes a time to let lose of grievances and settle conflicts in a way that benefits all parties equally.

As a daily card, Dove suggests the need to put an end to conflict in your present life. The conflict may be yours or may be that of people close to you. Regardless of the parties involved, you have been called upon to bring the discord to an impartial end.

Your Mah Jong Tile for the Month of August

Bamboo 5
Symbol: Lotus Flower
The Lotus Flower tile represents birth or rebirth. On a spiritual level it may indicate you are about to reach new heights in your understanding of your place in the cosmos. Physically it may suggest a child is coming, or a new project is about to emerge. The Lotus Flower tile also speaks of regeneration, and may indicate a time of recovery from hardship—a new beginning.

Your Karmic Number for Tuesday, August 1

You handle yourself with decorum when faced with adversity. Buddha would consider you equanimous right now, having received this number 11. You may have even been a spiritual leader in a past life. People will turn to you during a catastrophe or for guidance about their hectic lives. The guru role suits you. If you are already a counselor of some kind, rest assured that you are helping people even if you can’t see the results yet. Whatever tools you share are being taken seriously. If you feel some agitation, step back and breathe to regain your composure. In a small way, you are saving the world. No pressure!

The Wisdom of Buddha

He who loves 50 people has 50 woes; he who loves no one has no woes

Earth Sky News for August 1: Moon near star Antares on August 1

By Deborah Byrd

Tonight – August 1, 2017 – the bright star near the moon is Antares in the constellation Scorpius the Scorpion. You’ve got about another month or two to see this uniquely summer star for us in the Northern Hemisphere, during the evening hours. Antares is the brightest star near the moon tonight, while the other nearby bright beauty is the planet Saturn.

If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere, Antares and Saturn are visible in the southern to southwest sky as night begins. If you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, they’re more overhead for you.

The moon has now passed the first quarter phase and now exhibits a curvature to its terminator line – the line between dark and light on the moon. This moon phase is called waxing gibbous. The waxing gibbous moon, Antares and Saturn will drift westward throughout the night, to set after midnight at mid-northern latitudes.

Like all stars, Antares sets some 4 minutes earlier with each passing night, or 2 hours earlier with each passing month. By October, this star will be tough to spot in the southwestern twilight after sunset.

In ancient Chinese thought, the summer season was associated with the direction south, with the element fire, and with the color red. No wonder, then, that this reddish star in the south each summer – beautiful Antares – was considered the Fire Star of the ancient Chinese.

Antares appears as a bright reddish star that rides relatively low in the south throughout our northern summer. We know it as a great ball of gases, a thermonuclear cauldron radiating unimaginable amounts of energy into the blackness and vastness of space.

Yet to us – as to the ancient Chinese – Antares appears so near the southern horizon that we must view it through a great thickness of air. The air through which we view Antares causes this star to twinkle rapidly! On any summer evening, if you see a bright red star low in the south that’s twinkling fiercely … it’s probably Antares.

Bottom line: The bright star near the moon on August 1, 2017 is Antares, brightest star in the constellation Scorpius. This star can be seen near the moon tonight from around the world.

Deborah Byrd

Deborah Byrd created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and EarthSky.org in 1994. Today, she serves as Editor-in-Chief of this website. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named 3505 Byrd in her honor. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. “Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers,” she says.

Published on EarthSky

Lammas Wishing Powder

Lammas – Spell of Courage

Lammas – The First Harvest

Lammas Wish

Lammas – August 1st

Lammas Prayer

Elements for Lammas Celebrations

Lughnasadh – August 1

Good Lammas Morning To All our Brothers & Sisters of the Craft! Wishing You & Yours A Bountiful First Harvest!

This is a “MUST SEE!” We Only Got 12 of these Beauties in and I guarantee you they will go fast…..

For your next Solitary ritual or Coven gathering, how would you like to have a brand new, long, black flowing robe. At the bottom of your robe, gently flowing in the breeze is the trim which is one of a kind, crescent moons, pentacles, and the Nile moon goddess.

If you are like me, you like to look good before the Goddess or whoever your Divine might be. And if you are like me, you have had the robe you’ve got now forever. In fact, you can’t remember how long you have had it. So it’s time for a new one and this one is a beauty(really we got 12 in, I guess you can imagine where that one went, lol!). But when we get special items in like this, I like to share them with you. And I didn’t want this one slipping by you, so without further a’do, here she is….

I should add, there are also matching shirts and skirts to go along with this robe. They have the same beautiful needlework at the bottom as the robe does. There are plenty of the shirts and skirts but like I said a very, very limited quantity on the robes. Also we are now running ads all over the net, I wanted you to have first chance at one of these gorgeous robes.

As usual, they can be found at…..

The WItches Digest No. 13 for July 30 (Lammas Approachs!)

Lugh of the Long Arm

“O Lugh of the Long Arm:
You arch over earth
To kiss the corn,
To call it forth,
To see it born.
Your hillslopes flaunt,
breathe golden bees.
From parched fields
Scant dewfall flees.
Your chest is opened
Your heart exposed
Your blood like bronze
And amber flows.
Sun sears your flesh
Asprawl in thistles
Through your wound
Your life’s breath whistles.
You laid you down
In fragrant thyme,
To bleed the sun’s
Entranced decline.
You wrestled harvest,
Corn to capture –
Now we see at sunfall
Your face of rapture.”

– Lughnasadh Ritual by Llwyn y Ser, The Grove of the Stars

Your Daily Sun & Moon Data for Sunday, July 30

The Sun

Sun Direction: ↑ 81.50° E

Sun Altitude: 19.86°

Sun Distance: 94.365 million mi

Next Equinox: Sep 22, 2017 3:01 pm (Autumnal)

Sunrise Today: 5:58 am↑ 66° East

Sunset Today: 8:03 pm↑ 294° Northwest

The Moon

Moon Direction: ↑ 31.93° NNE

Moon Altitude: -58.61°

Moon Distance: 247900 mi

Next Full Moon: Aug 7, 20171:10 pm

Next New Moon: Aug 21, 20171:30 pm

Next Moonrise: Today1:24 pm

Current Moon Phase:Waxing Crescent

Illumination:51.9%

Lunar Calendar

First Quarter: Jul 30, 2017 at 10:23 am

(Next Phase)

New Moon: Jul 23, 2017 at 4:45 am

(Previous Phase)

Source

Your Astronomy for Sunday, July 30th

The Moon is in Scorpio all day.
The Moon is waxing and in its Waxing Crescent until 11:23 AM, after which it’s in its First Quarter phase.
The First Quarter Moon occurs today at 11:23 AM.
Mercury is in its pre-retrograde shadow (Mercury will retrograde from August 12-September 5).

Moon in Scorpio

Intensity is what the Moon in Scorpio is all about. Whether it’s passion, elation, sorrow, or desire, emotions are felt on a deeply personal level. We are motivated by the desire to get to the bottom of things, and we instinctively read between the lines. Superficiality won’t work for us now. The Moon in Scorpio urges us to uncover our own power, and it’s an excellent time to rid ourselves of old fears and limiting habits. It can be an intimate and passionate time. Avoid manipulative tactics, brooding, and suspicion.

The Moon in Scorpio generally favors the following activities: Taxes, accounting, intimacy issues, psychological examinations, research, self-examination, getting rid of old things.

Sunday’s Conjuring

Sunday – is associated with the Sun

Candle colors – Red, Gold, and Orange

This is a Leo’s power day

Conjuring Work Excellent for Sundays: Power, Health, Success, Personal Finances, Prosperity, Home life, Control, Hotfoot work, Shut your mouth conjure, Sunday is good for all hot work.

—Old Style Conjure Wisdoms, Workings and Remedies
Starr Casas

Sunday, July 30

Traditionally, Sunday is the first day of the week. It is also known as the Lord’s Day from it original association with the Lord, that is, the Sun God, personified as Helios, Apollo, Ogmios, Mithras, and St. Elia. But in the Northern Tradition, the sun is seen as feminine, personified as the goddess known as Phoebe in East Anglia and Saule in eastern Europe. The sun rules the conscious element of the human being, the ego, the real self, and Sunday is the day on which this conscious power is at its most effective.

Deity: Sol

Zodiac Sign: Leo

Planet: Sun

Tree: Birch

Herb: Snakeroot

Stone: Ruby

Animal: Lion

Element: Fire

Color: Gold

Rune: Sigel

Celtic Tree Month of Tinne (Holly) – July 8 – August 4

Runic Half-Month of Thorn (defense) – July 29 – August 12

Goddess of the Month of Kerea – July 11 – August 8

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

The Magickal Day of Sunday

In many traditions of Paganism, days of the week are very important aspects of effective spellcasting. For example, spells to do with abundance or prosperity could be done on Thursday, because it is associated with riches and desire. When casting a spell concerning business or communication, one might prefer to work on a Wednesday due to its associations.

While not all traditions follow this rule, when you’re doing any sort of magical working, always be sure to document the day of the week you’re performing the spell.

You might be surprised later on to see some connections!

Sunday Magical Correspondences

Sunday is associated with the colors yellow and gold, which shouldn’t be surprising – it’s the day of the sun, right? Because of this planetary association, this is a day that’s also connected to solar deities like Helios and Ra. Interestingly, in some Celtic traditions, Brighid’s day is Sunday as well.

When it comes to crystal use, Sunday is related to quartz crystals and diamonds, as well as the yellowish hues of carnelian and amber. For herbs and plants in magical workings, use marigolds, sunflowers or cinnamon.

What kind of magic is best performed on Sunday? Well, it’s a day that generally has a number of associations – agriculture, beauty, hope, victory, self-expression and creativity are all connected to this particular day. Plant or harvest something new (not just material crops, but metaphysical ones as well), create something from nothing, and prepare to win at everything.

Author

Patti Wigington, Paganism/Wicca Expert
Article originally published on & owned by ThoughtCo

The Witches Guide to Sunday

Ruler: Sun

Colors: Gold or yellow

Power Hours: Sunrise and sunset.

Key Words: Love, happiness, health, wealth

It is easy to spot the ruler of this day by its name. Sunday is the day of the sun. Community work, volunteer services, exercise, outdoor sports, buying, selling, speculating, meeting people, anything involving groups, running fairs and raffles, growing crops and taking care of all health matters fall under the influence of the Sun. With all this activity and the brightness of the sun, it’s easy to see why the child that is born on the Sabbath day is bonny and blithe, and good and gay.

Michael is the primary angel of Sunday but each hour of this day also has it’s secondary angel. These angels are Michael (first hour), Anael (second hour), Raphael (third hour), Gabril (fourth hour), Cassiel (fifth hour), Sachiel (sixth hour), Samael (seventh hour), Michael (eighth hour), Anael (ninth hour), Raphael (tenth hour), Gabriel (eleventh hour), and Cassiel twelfth hour). Notice some of the angels do double duty this day.

On Sundays, (unless you are invoking a specific angelic energy) the hour of sunrise will be the most powerful time to work, especially if you want to infuse energy into your work. Sunset is the second best time and is favored when you need to calm down a situation. Check the local newspaper, astrological calendar, or almanac to determine your local sunrise.

Source:

Gypsy Magick

The Witches Honey-Do-List for Sunday

Those ambitious, successful spells and charms will be heightened by working on the day of the week that has the planetary influence of the sun. So light those sunny candles, wear some luminous colors, and break out the gold jewelry! Bake up some cinnamon rolls or low-fat cinnamon muffins for an enchanting family breakfast. Take an orange with you to eat at lunch today. Try using a little magickal aromatherapy and burn some cinnamon-scented incense to encourage success and wealth today. Make the talisman to keep your solar magick with you. Sprinkle some dried marigold petals around your house-or across the threshold-to pull triumph and protection toward you and your family.

Get outside and tip up your face to the sun. Take a walk outside, and soak up some sunshine! Acknowledge the power of Sunna or Helios as they blaze across the sky and bring courage and motivation into your life. Sit outside at sunrise on a Sunday morning and bask in its warm, rosy-golden glow Acknowledge Brigid as the inner, creative spark of imagination and inspiration. She can help these gifts burn brightly within your own soul. Use your imagination and create your own brand of witchery and magick. Here comes the sun, and it’s your turn to shine!

—–Book of Witchery: Spells, Charms & Correspondences for Every Day of the Week

Ellen Dugan

The Witches Almanac for Sunday, July 30

Micman Festival of St. Ann

Waxing Moon

Second Quarter 11: 23 am

Moon Sign: Scorpio

Incense: Marigold

Color: Yellow

Correspondences for Sunday, July 30

Sunday (day of the sun)

Planet: Sun

Colors: Gold, Orange

Crystals: Diamond, Amber, Tigers Eye, Carnelian, Sunstone, Topaz, Gold

Aroma: Cedar, Frankincense, Sun Oil, Lemon Herb: St. Johns Wort

Traditionally the first day of the week and ruled by the Sun, it personified as Helios, Apollo, Lugh, and Beli or Bel. In some traditions, the sun is seen as feminine, personified as Phoebe (East Anglia), and Saule (eastern Europe).

The Sun rules the conscious element of the human mind, the ego, the “real” self.” Sunday is the day on which this power is most effective.

Magical aspects: protection, healing, spirituality, and strength.

Sunday is the perfect day for the magic of Fatherhood. A father wishing to cast a spell for his children might want to try a little prayer on a Sunday. However it is probably wiser to cast on a Monday if the idea is to conceive. Sunday is also the day for social and political furtherment, so try going out to see some friends on a Sunday or just mingle.

This is the proper day of the week to perform spells and rituals involving exorcism, healing, prosperity, individuality, hope, fortune, work, power, promotions, strength, spirituality, swift change, and God rituals.

Sunday is Ruled by the Sun

Sunday corresponds to the sun, our closest star. This day is full of wonder and all sorts of magical potential for success, wealth, and fame. Sundays are for personal achievements of any kind such as working towards a promotion at your job, seeking fame and wealth, or being acknowledged for a job well done. All of these goals fall under the golden influence of the sun. Some suggestions for Sunday enchantments would include:

Sitting outside at sunrise and calling on the goddess Brigid for illumination and inspiration

Wearing gold jewelry or clothing that is gold or sunshine yellow to pull some color magic into your life

Arranging a few sunflowers in a vase and empowering these “flowers of the sun” for fame and ambition

Gathering up the common marigold flower and scattering it’s petals about to encourage prosperity

Baking up a batch of cinnamon rolls for the family and enchanting them for health and success

Snacking on a solar fruit, the orange, and enjoying the magical boost it brings to your life

Home & Hearth Magick for Sunday, July 30th

On Sunday, work for success, healing and blessings.

Planetary Influence: The Sun

Household Symbols: A rooster, a sun, gold jewelry

Colors: Yellow and gold

Kitchen Spices: Cinnamon and orange peels

Source:

Cottage Witchery

Natural Magick for Hearth and Home

Author: Ellen Dugan

The Witches Current Moon Phase for Sunday, July 30th

First Quarter
Illumination: 49%

The Moon today is in a First Quarter phase. This phase occurs roughly 7 days after the New Moon when the earth is one quarter of the way through it’s orbit around the earth. Exactly half the moon will be illuminated and half dark. On the day of the First Quarter phase the moon is high overhead at sunset and is visible until mid-night when it sets in the west. The First Quarter phase is a one day event and in the following days enters a Waxing Gibbous phase becoming more illuminated each day until the Full Moon.

Phase Details for – Sunday, July 30, 2017

Phase: First Quarter
Illumination: 49%
Moon Age: 7.26 days
Moon Angle: 0.50
Moon Distance: 399,478.52 km
Sun Angle: 0.53
Sun Distance: 151,859,307.32 km

Source

This Week’s Astrology: All Over the Map

Your weekly Astrology highlights for July 31 – August 6

Things could get interesting in a few different areas of your life this week! See what the cosmos has in store for you…

Monday, July 31: Venus enters Cancer

Love planet Venus enters tender Cancer on Monday and will remain in this sign until August 25. As a result, matters of the heart are deeply connected to emotional and domestic security. You’ll want to pursue a romance that feeds your soul. Fortunately, it’ll be easy to achieve this while Venus is in Cancer. Emotional nourishment will be available to all.

Thursday, August 3: Uranus Retrograde

Uranus turns retrograde on Thursday, and will remain retrograde until January 2, 2018. This 6-month period allows a resting space for all the crazy, quirky events that might be going on in your life. Now is the time to process them.

Friday, August 4: Jupiter square Pluto

On Friday, Jupiter and Pluto square off. Expansive struggles with those in authority are possible, but on the flip side, it’s just as likely that you will stop fighting your own influence and finally slip into your personal power suit. It’ll fit like a glove.

Your Daily Horoscopes for Sunday, July 30th

Aries

Creatively speaking, you’ve been on top of your game recently, dear Aries. However, today you may be dealing with some temporary blocks to this flow. This may come in the form of a delay, interruption, or block, as Mars and Saturn form a minor challenging aspect. Focusing too much on the process of reaching your goals may only serve to frustrate now. Energy is very much stop-and-go right now, and motivation may falter just for the time being. Doing editing, reviewing, and fixing work makes the most sense. It’s not the best day for feeling that you’re moving forward, at least until tonight when you are less likely to be counting the minutes or problems! There is an easing of pressure, particularly if you focus on the bigger picture.

Taurus

You may need to bypass blocks, challenges or conflicts to pursue your desires today, dear Taurus, or you may decide to wait until a better time altogether! Impatience sets you back right now, and slowing down a tad, in fact, makes the most sense, particularly with family or household pursuits. You may need to alter your plans or goals to keep them viable. Reacting to delays carefully and maturely is your best bet. If you can contain yourself and focus, you’ll solve some problems that help you out for some time to come. Worries about finances, especially money that comes from other sources than your income, may get in the way of your fun. It’s probably best not to take a financial or emotional risk today. By tonight, you’ll pull everything back together.

Gemini

The Moon spends today and tomorrow in your work and health sector, dear Gemini, and you’re emotionally geared to fix problems and sort things out. Nevertheless, a Mars-Saturn aspect today can serve to frustrate, particularly if you’re trying to rush something that requires concentration. Challenges in a relationship can present themselves, and this can involve a current relationship or a past one that has your brain hopping. Examine the emotions that are surfacing now a little more carefully, as they likely have to do with something you’ve buried or swept under the carpet recently. If you frequently find that a person in your life doesn’t budge or compromise enough, aim to work things out when you have the patience and time. Tonight, you’re in great shape for letting things go.

Cancer

Rigidity with schedules may prevent you from enjoying yourself today, dear Cancer. Work needs doing, and you may be facing rules, technical problems, or interruptions and blocks now that throw a wrench in your plans. A partner may not be very compromising, either. It’s not the best day for pushing forward with plans. In fact, spending more time perfecting them will eventually work more in your favor. The day’s challenging energies ease considerably by tonight as you let go and find your center. You see dwelling on lingering anger as a waste of your time, and you’re right! The Moon spends today and tomorrow in your sector of entertainment, creativity, self-expression, and spontaneity, after all, and while you can’t and probably shouldn’t escape your responsibilities, this Moon position can keep your sense of humor from flatlining.

Leo

You may be coming on a little too strong today for your audience today, dear Leo, likely because people are taking themselves a little too seriously right now! The more you push, the stronger their resistance, so it makes sense to back off and act a little detached or aloof. Misunderstandings with a love interest are possible now, or there can be obligations to fill that make you feel less than independent. Others may see you as overly frustrated, animated, or impatient — perhaps even a bit reckless. Draw on patience now. Tonight, you’ll find it easier to live and let live. You’re inclined to enjoy some time out and diversions. In fact, resolutions to frustrations seem to come effortlessly now.

Virgo

The Moon spends today and tomorrow in your busy third house, dear Virgo, and you seek out mental stimulation, connection, and variety. However, with a Mars-Saturn aspect active today, it’s not the best time to further your goals quickly or for spontaneity and warmth in your exchanges. There can be a sense that someone’s limiting you or blocking your progress, and this can be frustrating. However, with a little patience, this can be a good time to wait things out and to put in extra effort to get things right before pushing ahead with plans. Tonight, the mood shifts considerably. You’re ready to let go of anything that winds you up.

Libra

The Moon spends today and tomorrow in your solar second house, dear Libra, and this tends to slow you down enough to enjoy and appreciate what’s currently in your life. While you can benefit from a slower pace, a Mars-Saturn minor challenging aspect can nevertheless serve to frustrate you. It makes it hard to work quickly towards a goal, and can also lead to blocks in communication or transportation, possibly due to technical problems or mechanical breakdowns, but also misunderstandings with others. Treat slowdowns as the chance to catch your breath and to refine your goals rather than waste your energy harping on problems, and you will fare much better today. Tonight, you’re better able to let go of frustrating problems and enjoy fun diversions.

Scorpio

Your emotions are strong, and they might even feel urgent today, dear Scorpio, as the Moon spends the full day in your sign. However, instant gratification is unlikely to come right now with a Mars-Saturn aspect active today blocking things up. Even with your desire to make waves or take action so intense, you may not get very far! You could discover that what you had planned is too expensive or otherwise not feasible. Try your best not to push yourself, projects, or others today and resolve to fix problem areas or work on things that need a little extra attention. The day’s pressures tend to ease tonight, although it may very well be that you care far less about frustrations! Focusing on what’s working in your life instead of what you don’t have is the key to peace and enjoyment now.

Sagittarius

It’s best to take things easy today, dear Sagittarius, with the Moon in the sign just behind yours (Scorpio). As well, a Mars-Saturn challenge can make everything seem quite slow, particularly those things you’re not thrilled about doing. It’s not the best time for interpersonal relations, particularly before evening, and trying to push your case is likely only to make matters worse. You may feel that others are (temporarily) not supporting you or your plans. You may also be feeling off-center and perhaps a little unyielding, too. Take a deep breath and do what you can to keep a positive frame of mind. With patience and concentration, you’ll do well now, even if you’re not likely to charge full speed ahead.

Capricorn

The Moon spends today and tomorrow in your friendship sector, dear Capricorn, and you’re likely to seek out like-minded company or pressure-free social situations. This is a period of the lunar month when you focus on happiness goals. Even so, there may be a hurdle to clear today, likely due to slowdowns or delays. However, with patience and further thought, these can afford you more time to finish up something that needs additional attention. You tend to be more sensitive than usual to the emotional atmosphere around you. You see the less flattering side of relationships just for now, but by evening, your mood improves, and you begin to seek out intangible rewards and experiences.

Aquarius

The Moon spends today and tomorrow at the top of your solar chart, dear Aquarius, and you may feel that all eyes are on you. You can’t seem to get away with much right now! A partner or friend may not be seeing eye-to-eye with you when it comes to long-term goals or career. A Mars-Saturn challenge encourages work, but it can be difficult seeing the end of the road as slowdowns are likely. Attempts to push something too hard or too fast meet with blockages. Your social life may leave something to be desired, or you simply can’t seem to finish what you’re doing to enjoy a more frivolous activity today entirely. You may want something that you can’t have, or your plans might fall through due to obligations to a friend. Don’t let any of this truly get to you. Resolve to carry out your plans on a better day. Tonight brings easier, laissez-faire energy.

Pisces

While you may want to move something forward quickly, dear Pisces, a Mars-Saturn challenge can seem to block or slow you down. This delay or obstacle is likely to do with a rule, superior, or concern about your reputation. Impatience slows you down further, so consider that reviewing, editing, or adjusting make more sense than taking direct and immediate action just for the time being. You may be able to see which actions you take that tend to cause problems, challenges, or hard feelings in general, and taking notes can help prevent future problems. The Moon’s harmony with Neptune, your ruler, in your sign tonight comes in especially handy – it allows you to unwind and let go of tensions.

If You Were Born Today, July 30th….

You are highly creative, spontaneous, humorous, entertaining, and likable. Emotionally impulsive, you need to feel inspired in order to truly perform. You have a definite flair for the dramatic. You might frequently make sacrifices for others, and often willingly do so. You are highly perceptive and insightful, and this draws others to you, particularly as you mature. While your good-heartedness may be taken advantage of by less noble individuals, you tend to bounce back quickly and although you toughen up to some degree with life experience, you keep your youthful, loving, and generous spirit alive throughout life.

Famous people born today: Henry Ford, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Kate Bush, Hilary Swank, Delta Burke, Lisa Kudrow, Christopher Nolan.

Get A Jump On Tomorrow…..

Your Daily Horoscopes for Monday, July 31st

Aries

You’re focused and interested in intensive projects rather than spreading your attention around today, dear Aries. The Moon spends another full day in your intimacy sector, encouraging introspection, problem-solving, and research. Also today, Venus moves into your home and family sector. During this transit that lasts until August 26th, you seek out and (mostly) achieve peace and serenity within the home or with family. It’s a great time for entertaining in the home, hosting, and occasions to remember. Use this cycle to iron out difficulties on the domestic front, boost warmth in close relationships, make yourself more comfortable, and redecorate or beautify your surroundings. It’s a great time to learn more about your needs for security, love, and nurture. While this is not the most openly expressive period for your affections with the rest of the world, it is a strong time for connecting with family.

Taurus

Your social life, close relationships, partnerships, and companionship are in stronger focus today with the Moon in your solar seventh house all day, dear Taurus. Also today, Venus moves into your communications sector for the next three and a half weeks. During this creative cycle, you’re likely to enjoy greater involvement with siblings, neighbors, classmates, and acquaintances. You might take pleasure in running errands or opportunities open up to you as you go about your daily affairs. You also enjoy exploring mental interests and topics as well as learning new things. Love and communications are connected to one another in significant ways now. For some, there can be increased communications with friends and lovers, or you are meeting people through daily routines, transportation, and places of learning. You’re also bringing more charm and warmth to your communications, and you might take on the role of mediator.

Gemini

The Moon spends another day in your work and health sector, dear Gemini, and you’re focused on the details more than the big picture. This is a day for fixing problems and getting your life back on track. Also today, Venus leaves your sign today and enters your resources sector, where she will stay until August 26th. This transit tends to improve or make favorable your finances and resources. You’re likely to enjoy an ease of pressure on financial fronts, or you take greater comfort and pleasure in what you already have. This transit awakens and augments your practical eye and natural sense of balance. Security and comfort are important to you during this period — more one than the other depending on your current circumstances. Love could be a little quieter, but also more stable or status quo. It’s a time for wanting to settle in and enjoy yourself.

Cancer

The Moon spends the day in your sector of creativity and fun, dear Cancer, enlivening your mood. Also today, Venus moves into your sign, ending a several-week cycle in which you were on the fence with your affections or feeling a little underwhelmed or overlooked in your personal life. Venus in Cancer lasts until August 26th and gives a boost to your personal popularity. While this can be a time of some over-indulgence, it may very well be deserved! You’re likely to receive more positive attention during this cycle, and people find you especially attractive or pleasant. This is a time for carrying yourself with more confidence and warmth. Efforts to improve your image or style can be very successful during this cycle, and it’s a better time of the year to socialize, date, mingle, shop, and discover new sources of pleasure and entertainment.

Leo

The Moon spends another day at the bottom of your solar chart, dear Leo, stimulating a need to reconnect with your roots, get comfortable, or stick with familiar places and faces. Also today, Venus enters your privacy sector. During this transit that lasts until August 26th, you’ll do well for yourself taking more time to yourself or for rest, relaxation, solitude, and peace. Watch for a tendency to do too much for others to the point that your own needs go unnoticed. However, underplaying your needs may be useful and appropriate just for now as you reconnect with what feels right. You may be in a supportive role to others. This can either be a quieter time for your love life, a time of endings, or merely an inclination to keep your feelings or relationships private. When it comes to money and love, which can seem a little more complicated than usual, you may be going over the past and taking more time to come to conclusions or decisions.

Virgo

The Moon spends another full day in your communications sector, dear Virgo, and you’re likely to keep yourself busy. Curiosity keeps you mentally engaged, although sometimes rather distracted! Effort does have its payoffs this morning, however. Also today, Venus enters your social sector for a three and a half week stay. This visit is a pleasant one, as it enhances your popularity and appeal. It can be a time of increased social invites or pleasant contact with friends and groups. It can also be a great cycle for strengthening or forming friendships and connections that benefit you both personally and professionally. You may be a little more detached, perhaps just enough to facilitate enjoying yourself more thoroughly in new situations. Camaraderie is of particular importance in your love life and your social life during this cycle that lasts until August 26th.

Libra

The Moon spends another day in your resources sector, dear Libra, and you’re looking to settle in and enjoy yourself. It’s a good day for finding reasons to appreciate your life in fundamental ways, as well as for earthy, grounding activities. Also today, Venus begins its transit of your solar tenth house. With Venus at the top of your solar chart, your finer qualities are getting noticed! For some, your feelings for someone or your relationships or personal life may become a little more public. Your reputation and image improve. Superiors see you in a more favorable light. You’re bringing more charm to your professional or public life, and your creative vision or people skills can be on show. It’s a good time to polish your look, image, and style. Advancing your career now can involve being especially friendly and personable.

Scorpio

The Moon spends another day in your sign, dear Scorpio, and you’re enjoying more visibility, attention, and colorful feelings and experiences. Its harmony with your ruler, Pluto, this morning helps you feel especially connected and purposeful. Also today, Venus moves into your adventure and spirit sector, and into a favorable position to your sign. This transit, lasting until August 26th, is a good one for enjoying more cultural events, learning, and engaging experiences in your life. Friendly relations with in-laws, teachers, lawyers, or publishers can be in focus for some of you. It can be a pleasant and productive period for activities related to sharing, learning, promoting, and imagining. You may be inspired by someone or by an idea or experience during this cycle, and opportunities, particularly social and financial, can emerge from non-routine places and experiences.

Sagittarius

The Moon spends another day in your privacy sector, dear Sagittarius, marking the tail-end of a lunar cycle. This is a time for sorting through recent experiences and deciding what to leave behind you and what to bring forward into the new cycle that begins tomorrow. The Moon enters your sign tomorrow morning. Also today, Venus enters your solar eighth house and will be a guest in this sector until August 26th. It’s a great time for gaining support, if needed, or for smoothing out problems related to debts, ownership matters, and power dynamics. There are stronger themes of passion, attachment, and intensity in your love life or relationship with yourself now. You’ll take particular pleasure in private moments, thoughts, and observations during this cycle, and you tend to evaluate situations and people based on deep hunches and feelings.

Capricorn

The Moon spends the day in your friendship sector once again, dear Capricorn, and you’re looking for comfortable, friendly activities and connections. People are generally supportive of you today — and you of them! Also today, Venus enters your partnership sector — a transit, lasting until August 26th, that typically brings helpful, friendly people into your life or special warmth to existing relationships. It can be ideal for one-to-one relationships, which are particularly trustworthy or peaceful and content at this time. Your rapport with others builds or steadies now. You are more companionable than usual, and you’re also more attentive to others’ needs and wants. You’re going to unusual lengths to understand and enjoy others in your life, which has nice payoffs!

Aquarius

The Moon spends its second full day in your sector of career and reputation, dear Aquarius, and you’re particularly goal-focused and ready to take charge. You’re more aware than usual of your image and performance. Also today, Venus moves into your work and health sector, blessing working relationships and improving your relationship with your job and routines until August 26th. This is a good cycle in which to create more balance and happiness in your daily life and working life. You could be forming friendships or possibly love connections on the job, or you might pretty up your work environment now. Others more thoroughly appreciate your help and service, primarily because you’re sincerely enjoying it more.

Pisces

The Moon spends another full day in your adventure sector, dear Pisces, and lifts your thoughts and feelings to greater heights as you connect with the needs of your spirit. You seek out new ways to enjoy yourself or to experience life more fully. Learning and sharing ideas can be in stronger focus. Also today, Venus moves into your romance and creativity sector — one of the best house transits of Venus. This can be a time of new or increased romance, pleasure, and satisfying games, pastimes, and recreation. This transit lasts until August 26th and is a strong time for vacationing or attending to hobbies and leisure activities. You’re inclined to splurge a little or share your feelings more openly than usual. This is a good period for creative pursuits, dates, and interviews.

Your Daily Tarot Card for July 30

The Tower

Keywords: sudden change, pride, houses and buildings, liberation!

Astrological Correspondence: Mars

The Tower card first and foremost illustrates that neither physical nor emotional structures that we build are permanent and stable; instead, they can be destroyed suddenly, thereby initiating change that we have tried to avoid. The sudden change resembled by the crumbling tower reminds us of letting go of outgrown beliefs and values, of releasing an illusion, an unhealthy relationship, an old way of life. The sudden change frees us to face the unknown, frees us to move forward instead of stagnate, frees us from social conventions and enlightens us on our path so that we reach a new level of understanding about our purpose in life. Not embracing the inevitable change brings out the negative elements that the Tower also depicts: being struck down by one’s own doing, by vanity and the inability to change so that one remains stagnant.

Your Daily Love Tarot Card for July 30

The Emperor

Are you involved in a relationship with a dominating personality? Does this person just keep on taking just as much as you can give? Let the image of a ‘steamroller approaching a bruised peach’ flash through your mind. Do you really want to be either the former or the latter? The Emperor card selected you to urge you to get back in touch with your inner strength and power.

Your Erotic Tarot Card for July 30

Strength

Your sex life gains some serious momentum today with the appearance of the Strength card. You have tremendous inner strength when it comes to getting what you want, and that includes sexual conquests. If you’ve been waiting for the right time to try out some new moves, the Strength card urges you to act now! There may be some obstacles in your way, but you welcome any and all challenges. Anyone playing hard to get right now is like putty in your hands.

Your Daily Rune for July 30 is Eihwaz

Eihwaz

Yew-was” – Literally: “Yew” – Esoteric: Yggdrasil or Kundalini

“The axis or process of spiritual becoming.” Upper and lower worlds meeting in Midgard (earth). Rune of the mysteries of life and death.

Psi: death mysteries, the timeless, kundalini,

Energy: axis of heaven-earth-hel, secrecy, encoding, immortality, the chakra system (hvel)

Mundane: longevity, initiations, trees

Divinations: movement toward Enlightenment, endurance, initiation, protection; or confusion, destruction, dissatisfaction, weakness, death

Governs:
Initiation into the wisdom of the World Tree (Yggdrasil) and hvel (chakras)
Liberation from the fear of death.
Development of spiritual endurance and hard will to gain initiative
Spiritual vision
Communication between levels of reality – the Worlds or Yggdrasil

Your Daily Thoth Card for July 30

The Sun

Only The Universe card of the Crowley Tarot can match the blessings that come with The Sun. While it certainly doesn’t promise a life’s path without some bumps in the road, The Sun indicates all will be well. The Sun is our Cosmic Nurturer. Life flourishes under its radiant beams. It provides the illumination to find Truths and lights one’s path so they do not get lost. To stand in the rays of The Sun is to shine. To absorb its energy promotes growth, exceptional physical and mental health, and good fortune. The Sun is empowering, elevating and fills those who bask in it with confidence and sense of self-worth.

Your Daily Karmic Number for July 30

The 6 appears now to remind you to have faith that you will find and keep true love. It may not be today, unless you are 100 percent comfortable with who you are at this very moment. Yes, it starts with you as an individual in self-love. When Harry met Sally they barely tolerated each other before falling in love. Six says you can skip the drama if you focus on yourself first. You had too many demands in a previous life that left you in a string of unsavory situations. Save time and practice self-love. Then you will meet the one who truly deserves your attention.

The Words of Confucius

You cannot open a book without learning something.

Lughnasadh

The Celtic harvest festival on August 1st takes its name from the Irish god Lugh, one of the chief gods of the Tuatha De Danann, giving us Lughnasadh in Ireland, Lunasdál in Scotland, and Laa Luanys in the Isle of Man. (In Wales, this time is known simply as Gwl Awst, the August Feast.)

Lugh dedicated this festival to his foster-mother, Tailtiu, the last queen of the Fir Bolg, who died from exhaustion after clearing a great forest so that the land could be cultivated. When the men of Ireland gathered at her death-bed, she told them to hold funeral games in her honor. As long as they were held, she prophesied Ireland would not be without song. Tailtiu’s name is from Old Celtic Talantiu, “The Great One of the Earth,” suggesting she may originally have been a personification of the land itself, like so many Irish goddesses. In fact, Lughnasadh has an older name, Brón Trogain, which refers to the painful labor of childbirth. For at this time of year, the earth gives birth to her first fruits so that her children might live.

Tailtiu gives her name to Teltown in County Meath, where the festival was traditionally held in early Ireland. It evolved into a great tribal assembly, attended by the High King, where legal agreements were made, political problems discussed, and huge sporting contests were held on the scale of an early Olympic Games. Artists and entertainers displayed their talents, traders came from far and wide to sell food, farm animals, fine crafts and clothing, and there was much storytelling, music, and high-spirited revelry, according to a medieval eye-witness account:

“Trumpets, harps, hollow-throated horns, pipers, timpanists, unwearied…fiddlers, gleemen, bone-players and bag-pipers, a rude crowd, noisy, profane, roaring and shouting.”

This was also an occasion for handfasting, or trial marriages. Young men and women lined up on either side of a wooden gate in a high wall, in which a hole was carved, large enough for a hand. One by one, girl and boy would grasp a hand in the hole, without being able to see who was on the other side. They were now married, and could live together for year and day to see if it worked out. If not, the couple returned to next year’s gathering and officially separated by standing back to back and walking away from each other.

Throughout the centuries, the grandeur of Teltown dwindled away, but all over Ireland, right up to the middle of this century, country-people have celebrated the harvest at revels, wakes, and fairs – and some still continue today in the liveliest manner. It was usually celebrated on the nearest Sunday to August 1st, so that a whole day could be set aside from work. In later times, the festival of Lughnasadh was christianized as Lammas, from the Anglo-Saxon, hlaf-mas, “Loaf-Mass,” but in rural areas, it was often remembered as “Bilberry Sunday,” for this was the day to climb the nearest “Lughnasadh Hill” and gather the earth’s freely-given gifts of the little black berries, which they might wear as special garlands or gather in baskets to take home for jam.

As of old, people sang and danced jigs and reels to the music of melodeons, fiddles and flutes, and held uproarious sporting contests and races. In some places, a woman-or an effigy of one-was crowned with summer flowers and seated on a throne, with garlands strewn at her feet. Dancers whirled around her, touching her garlands or pulling off a ribbon for good luck. In this way, perhaps, the ancient goddess of the harvest was still remembered with honor.

Lughnasadh Ritual Tools, Symbols, and Decorations

Altar Decorations: Gold or yellow altar cloth; gold altar candles; four ears of corn, each tied with a yellow and orange ribbon; small basket of fruit; gold-colored pillar candle; chalice covered with a yellow cloth; red and white wine; cornbread or ritual cakes.

Symbols: Corn; bread and all baked goods; the pentacle; the hearth, broom, and things connected with the home; baskets filled with corn and fresh vegetables; gift baskets filled with fresh baked goods and tied with gold ribbons; dried corn husks for making corn dollies.

Setting Up Your Lammas (Lughnasadh) Altar

It’s Lammas, or Lughnasadh, the Sabbat where many Pagans choose to celebrate the beginnings of the harvest. This Sabbat is about the cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth — the grain god dies, but will be reborn again in the spring. Depending on your tradition, you may also observe this Sabbat as the day of the Celtic craftsman god, Lugh. Either way, you can try some or even all of these ideas — obviously, someone using a bookshelf as an altar will have less flexibility than someone using a table, but use what calls to you most.

Colors of the Season
It’s the end of summer, and soon the leaves will begin to change. However, the sun is still fiery and hot. Use a combination of summer and fall colors — the yellows and oranges and reds of the sun can also represent the turning leaves to come. Add some browns and greens to celebrate the fertility of the earth and the crops being harvested. Cover your altar with cloths that symbolize the changing of the season from summer to harvest time, and use candles in deep, rich colors — reds, burgundies, or other autumn shades are perfect this time of year.

Symbols of the Harvest
The harvest is here, and that means it’s time to include symbols of the fields on your altar. Sickles and scythes are appropriate, as are baskets. Sheafs of grain, fresh picked fruits and vegetables, a jar of honey, or loaves of bread are perfect for the Lammastide altar.

Honoring the God Lugh
If your celebrations focus more on the god Lugh, observe the Sabbat from an artisan’s point of view.

Place symbols of your craft or skill on the altar — a notebook, your special paints for artists, a pen for writers, other tools of your creativity.

Other Symbols of Lammas (Lughnasadh)
Grapes and wine
Corn dolls
Ears of corn
⦁ Iron, such as tools or weaponry or armor
⦁ Fall flowers, such as cornflowers or poppies
⦁ Straw braids
Onion garlands

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Lammas incense

Ingredients:

2 parts frankincense
2 parts sandalwood
1 part pine resin
1/2 part bay
1/2 part cinnamon
1/2 part coriander
1/2 part meadowsweet
1/2 part oregano
1/2 part rosemary
A few drops rose oil

Slightly less oak moss oil

Very little patchouli oil (start with one drop)

Mix well. Burn during Lughnasadh/Lammas rituals.

Lammas Ritual Potpourri

Ingredients:

20 drops clove bud oil
25 drops sandalwood oil
1 cup oak moss
2 cups dried pink rosebuds
2 cups dried red peony petals
1 cup dried amaranth flowers
1 cup dried heather flowers

Mix the clove bud and sandalwood oils with the oak moss and then add the remaining ingredients. Stir the potpourri well and store in a tightly covered ceramic or glass container. Simmer during Lughnasadh/Lammas rituals

Lughnasadh Philtre

Ingredients:

Yarrow
Rose
Poppy seeds
mushrooms
Barley
Basil
Raspberry leaf
Strawberry leaf
Mugwort
Heliotrope
Comfrey
3 drops Macha oil
3 drops Cerridwen Oil
3 drops Lugh Oil

Lammas Soap

⦁ 1 cup grated unscented soap
⦁ 1/4 cup hot water
⦁ 1 tbsp. apricot oil
⦁ 1 tbsp. sunflower petals
⦁ 1/2 tbsp. blackberry leaves
⦁ 6 drops rosemary oil
⦁ 3 drops sandalwood oil

Place grated soap in a heat-proof non-metallic container and add the hot water and apricot oil. Leave until it is cool enough to handle, and then mix together with your hands. If the soap is floating on the water, add more soap. Leave to sit for 10 minutes, mixing occasionally, until the soap is soft and mushy. Once the soap, water, and oil are blended completely, add the dry ingredients. Once the mixture is cool, then add the essential oils (essential oils evaporate quickly in heat). Enough essential oils should be added to overcome the original scent of the soap. Blend thoroughly and then divide the soap mixture into four to six pieces. Squeeze the soaps, removing as much excess water as possible into the shape you desire, and tie in a cheesecloth. Hang in a warm, dry place until the soap is completely hard and dry.

Recipe adapted from Kate West’s The Real Witches’ Kitchen Sabbat Soap recipe.

Deities of the Fields

When Lammastide rolls around, the fields are full and fertile. Crops are abundant, and the late summer harvest is ripe for the picking. This is the time when the first grains are threshed, apples are plump in the trees, and gardens are overflowing with summer bounty. In nearly every ancient culture, this was a time of celebration of the agricultural significance of the season. Because of this, it was also a time when many gods and goddesses were honored.

These are some of the many deities who are connected with this earliest harvest holiday.

Adonis (Assyrian): Adonis is a complicated god who touched many cultures. Although he’s often portrayed as Greek, his origins are in early Assyrian religion. Adonis was a god of the dying summer vegetation. In many stories, he dies and is later reborn, much like Attis and Tammuz.

Attis (Phrygean): This lover of ⦁ Cybele went mad and castrated himself, but still managed to get turned into a pine tree at the moment of his death. In some stories, Attis was in love with a Naiad, and jealous Cybele killed a tree (and subsequently the Naiad who dwelled within it), causing Attis to castrate himself in despair. Regardless, his stories often deal with the theme of rebirth and regeneration.

Ceres (Roman): Ever wonder why crunched-up grain is called cereal? It’s named for Ceres, the Roman goddess of the harvest and grain. Not only that, she was the one who taught lowly mankind how to preserve and prepare corn and grain once it was ready for threshing. In many areas, she was a mother-type goddess who was responsible for agricultural fertility.

Dagon (Semitic): Worshipped by an early Semitic tribe called the Amorites, Dagon was a god of fertility and agriculture. He’s also mentioned as a father-deity type in early Sumerian texts and sometimes appears as a fish god. Dagon is credited with giving the Amorites the knowledge to build the plough.

Demeter (Greek): The Greek equivalent of Ceres, Demeter is often linked to the changing of the seasons. She is often connected to the image of the Dark Mother in late fall and early winter. When her daughter Persephone was abducted by Hades, Demeter’s grief caused the earth to die for six months, until Persephone’s return.

Lugh (Celtic): Lugh was known as a god of both skill and the distribution of talent. He is sometimes associated with midsummer because of his role as a harvest god, and during ⦁ the summer solstice the crops are flourishing, waiting to be plucked from the ground at Lughnasadh.

Mercury (Roman): Fleet of foot, Mercury was a messenger of the gods. In particular, he was a god of commerce and is associated with the grain trade. In late summer and early fall, he ran from place to place to let everyone know it was time to bring in the harvest. In Gaul, he was considered a god not only of agricultural abundance but also of commercial success.

Neper (Egyptian): This androgynous grain deity became popular in Egypt during times of starvation. He later was seen as an aspect of ⦁ Osiris, and part of the cycle of life, death and rebirth.

Parvati (Hindu): Parvati was a consort of the god Shiva, and although she does not appear in Vedic literature, she is celebrated today as a goddess of the harvest and protector of women in the annual Gauri Festival.

Pomona (Roman): This apple goddess is the keeper of orchards and fruit trees. Unlike many other agricultural deities, Pomona is not associated with the harvest itself, but with the flourishing of fruit trees. She is usually portrayed bearing a cornucopia or a tray of blossoming fruit.

Tammuz (Sumerian): This Sumerian god of vegetation and crops is often associated with the cycle of life, death and rebirth.

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Lammas Customs and Traditions

In many cultures, there are different legends and lore surrounding Lammas (Lughnasadh). Here are a few of the stories about this magical harvest celebration from around the world.

⦁ In Israel, the festival of Shavout commemorates the beginning of the harvest, as well as honoring the date that Moses received the Torah on Mt. Sinai. The final sheaf of wheat is brought to the rabbi for a blessing, synagogues and homes are decorated with flower, and a great feast is prepared for all to enjoy.

⦁ The festival of Onam is celebrated in India, and people dress up in their finest clothes and give food to the poor. Onam is celebrated in honor of King Mahabali, who was a ruler of Kerala. In one story, the god Vishnu approached Mahabali dressed as a beggar, and asked for land, which Mahabali gave him. Mahabli ended up buried under the earth by Vishnu, but was allowed to return once a year, symbolizing the planting of the seed and the subsequent harvest.

Thor’s wife, Sif, had beautiful golden hair, until Loki the prankster cut it off. Thor was so upset he wanted to kill Loki, but some dwarves spun new hair for Sif, which grew magically as soon as it touched her head. The hair of Sif is associated with the harvest, and the golden grain that grows every year.

⦁ In the Shetland Islands, farmers believed that grain harvesting should only take place during a waning moon. They also believed this about the fall potato crop, and the cutting of peat.

⦁ At Lughnasadh, calves are weaned, and the first fruits are ripe, such as apples and grapes. In some Irish counties, it was believed farmers had to wait until Lughnasadh to start picking these fruits, or bad luck would befall the community.

⦁ In some countries, Lammas is a time for ⦁ warrior games and mock battles. This may hearken back to the days when a harvest festival was held, and people would come from miles around to get together. What better way for young men to show off their strength and impress the girls than by whacking away at all the competition? Games and contests are also held in ⦁ honor of Lugh, the mighty Celtic craftsman god, in which artisans offer up their finest work.

⦁ It’s become a custom to give people the gift of a pair of gloves at Lammastide. In part, it’s because winter is just around the corner, but it’s also related to an old tradition in which landowners gave their tenants a pair of gloves after the harvest. The glove is a symbol of authority and benevolence.

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The Legend of John Barleycorn

John Barleycorn is a character who symbolizes not only the harvest, but the products made from it as well.

In English folklore, John Barleycorn is a character who represents the crop of barley harvested each autumn. Equally as important, he symbolizes the wonderful drinks which can be made from barley — beer and whiskey — and their effects. In the traditional folksong, John Barleycorn, the character of John Barleycorn endures all kinds of indignities, most of which correspond to the cyclic nature of planting, growing, harvesting, and then death.

Although written versions of the song date back to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, there is evidence that it was sung for years before that. There are a number of different versions, but the most well-known one is the Robert Burns version, in which John Barleycorn is portrayed as an almost Christ-like figure, suffering greatly before finally dying so that others may live.

In The Golden Bough, Sir James Frazer cites John Barleycorn as proof that there was once a Pagan cult in England that worshipped a god of vegetation, who was sacrificed in order to bring fertility to the fields. This ties into the related story of the Wicker Man, who is burned in effigy. Ultimately, the character of John Barleycorn is a metaphor for the spirit of grain, grown healthy and hale during the summer, chopped down and slaughtered in his prime, and then processed into beer and whiskey so he can live once more.

The lyrics to the Robert Burns version of the song are as follows:

There was three kings into the east,
three kings both great and high,
and they hae sworn a solemn oath
John Barleycorn must die.

They took a plough and plough’d him down,
put clods upon his head,
and they hae sworn a solemn oath
John Barleycorn was dead.

But the cheerful Spring came kindly on’
and show’rs began to fall.
John Barleycorn got up again,
and sore surprised them all.

The sultry suns of Summer came,
and he grew thick and strong;
his head well arm’d wi’ pointed spears,
that no one should him wrong.

The sober Autumn enter’d mild,
when he grew wan and pale;
his bendin’ joints and drooping head
show’d he began to fail.

His colour sicken’d more and more,
and he faded into age;
and then his enemies began
to show their deadly rage.

They took a weapon, long and sharp,
and cut him by the knee;
they ty’d him fast upon a cart,
like a rogue for forgerie.

They laid him down upon his back,
and cudgell’d him full sore.
they hung him up before the storm,
and turn’d him o’er and o’er.

They filled up a darksome pit
with water to the brim,
they heav’d in John Barleycorn.
There, let him sink or swim!

They laid him upon the floor,
to work him farther woe;
and still, as signs of life appear’d,
they toss’d him to and fro.

They wasted o’er a scorching flame
the marrow of his bones;
but a miller us’d him worst of all,
for he crush’d him between two stones.

And they hae taen his very hero blood
and drank it round and round;
and still the more and more they drank,
their joy did more abound.

John Barleycorn was a hero bold,
of noble enterprise;
for if you do but taste his blood,
’twill make your courage rise.

‘Twill make a man forget his woe;
’twill heighten all his joy;
’twill make the widow’s heart to sing,
tho the tear were in her eye.

Then let us toast John Barleycorn,
each man a glass in hand;
and may his great posterity
ne’er fail in old Scotland!

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Ritual Honoring Lugh of the Many Skills

Lugh was known to the Celts as a god of craftsmanship and skill — in fact, he was known as the Many-Skilled God, because he was good at so many different things. In one legend, Lugh arrives at Tara, and is denied entrance. He enumerates all the great things he can do, and each time the guard says, “Sorry, we’ve already got someone here who can do that.” Finally Lugh asks, “Ah, but do you have anyone here who can do them ALL?”

Take the opportunity this day to celebrate your own skills and abilities, and make an offering to Lugh to honor him, the god of craftsmanship.
Before you begin, take a personal inventory. What are your strong points? Everyone has a talent — some have many, some have one that they’re really good at. Are you a poet or writer? Do you sing? How about needlecraft, woodworking, or beading? Can you tap dance? Do you cook? How about painting? Think about all the things you can do — and all of the things you’d like to learn to do, and the things you’d like to get better at. Once you sit down and think about it, you might be surprised to realize how accomplished you really are.

Decorate your altar with items related to your skill or talent. If your skill relates to something tangible, like sewing or jewelry-making, put some of your craft supplies on the altar. If it’s an ability to DO, rather than MAKE, such as dancing or singing, put some symbol of your ability on your altar.

Do you have a favorite outfit you wear when you dance? A particular song lyric that you know you’re fabulous with? Add as many items as you like to your altar.

You’ll need a candle to symbolize Lugh, the god. Any harvest color is good, because he came up with the idea of a grain festival to honor his foster mother, Tailtiu.

Place the candle on your altar in the center. Feel free to add some stalks of grain if you like — you can combine this rite with one honoring the harvest, if you choose.

Light the candle, and take a moment to think about all the things you are good at. What are they? Are you proud of your accomplishments? Now’s your chance to boast a little, and take some pride in what you’ve learned to do. Announce your own talents in the following incantation. Say:

Mighty Lugh, the many-skilled god,
he who is a patron of the arts,
a master of trades, and a silver-tongued bard.
Today I honor you, for I am skilled as well.
I am deft with a needle,
strong of voice,
and paint beauty with my brush strokes.

**Obviously, you would insert your pride in your own skills here.

Now, consider what you wish to improve upon. Is your tennis-playing out of whack? Do you feel inadequate at bungee jumping, yodeling, or drawing? Now’s the time to ask Lugh for his blessing. Say:

Lugh, many-skilled one,
I ask you to shine upon me.
Share your gifts with me,
and make me strong in skill.

At this time, you should make an offering of some sort. The ancients made offerings in exchange for the blessings of their gods — quite simply, petitioning a god was a reciprocal act, a system of exchange.

Your offering can a tangible one: grain, fruit, wine, or even a sample of your skillwork — imagine dedicating a song or painting to Lugh. It can also be an offering of time or loyalty. Whatever it is, it should come from the heart.
Say:

I thank you, mighty Lugh, for hearing my words tonight.
I thank you for blessing me with the skills I have.
I make this offering of bread and wine* to you
as a small token of honor.

Take a few more moments and reflect on your own abilities. Do you have faith in your skills, or do you deflect compliments from others? Are you insecure about your abilities, or do you feel a surge of pride when you sew/dance/sing/hulahoop? Meditate on your offering to Lugh for a few moments, and when you are ready, end the ritual.

If you are performing this rite as part of a group, family or coven setting, go around in a circle and have each person take their turn to express their pride in their work, and to make their offerings to Lugh.

Author

“Remember For All Your Magickal Needs, think Magickal Necessities!”

Published on ThoughtCo

Lammas Gratitude and Bread Blessing Ritual

As anyone who practices gratitude on a regular basis will tell you, it really pays to express appreciation for the blessings in your life. This is because of the Law of Attraction—the more you appreciate, the more you attract new things and circumstances to appreciate!

But it’s also good to express gratitude simply for its own sake. Any Sabbat is an excellent occasion to do so, but it’s especially appropriate at Lammas, the season of the first fruits.

This ritual provides a simple, elegant structure for thanking the God and Goddess, Nature, or whatever your term may be for the powers that govern the Universe. If seven candles are too much to manage for whatever reason, you can certainly use fewer, but it’s nice to get a little decadent with this if you can.

You will need:

7 gold, yellow and orange candles (any size and in any combination)
Handful of fresh sunflower and/or calendula petals
Loaf of fresh-baked bread
Pen (or pencil) and writing paper

Instructions:

Arrange the candles and sprinkle the petals among them in a manner that pleases you.

Place the bread in front of the candles and light one of them.

Now, make a list of at least 10 blessings you’ve experienced over the past few months. These can be hugely significant or “little things.” Usually, it will be a combination of both. You will likely find that more and more things occur to you as you write (again, the Law of Attraction at work).

When you’ve got a good list together, light the rest of the candles and then read the list aloud, starting with “Thank you for…” before each item.
Now, hold the bread up toward the sky and say the following (or similar) words:

“God and Goddess, I thank you for this bread, which represents all the blessings I have listed here and more. May all on Earth be nourished by the bounty of Nature. So let it be.”

Eat some of the bread, and be sure to use the rest of it over the coming days.

Source

Wicca Wheel of the Year Magic: A Beginner’s Guide to the Sabbats, with History, Symbolism, Celebration Ideas, and Dedicated Sabbat Spells
Lisa Chamberlain

We Took the day off to get caught up on a few things, but don’t mess out on our Candle Sale that ends Aug. 1

Oops! She Did It Again! Our Sales Rep ordered this new and wonderful line of candles to just hit the market, Lailokens Awen purpose candles. These are gorgeous candles and as stated they do serve a purpose, everything from healing to prosperity. The only problem, she ordered too many! From now until August 1, buy one candle at regular price, get another one free. What a deal? New, beautiful, lasts for hours and most of all will meet any of your magickal needs for rituals or spells. Check’em out!

Available Only At…..

A little more about these magickal candles…..

Lailokens Awen ritual candles

Using only pure, Canadian Beeswax, and the best in organic essential oils, each Lailokens Awen Spell Candle is painstakingly crafted by hand, using Hermetic principals and the appropriate astrological influences. Because they are hand-rolled creations, no two candles are exactly alike, giving your altar the perfect organic look, while giving your spells a powerful boost of energy. Approximate burn time is 4 hours, Made in Canada.

Our deal to you…..

This is not really a monthly promo, it is Mystie (my assistant) feel in love with these spell candles and we now have spell candles everywhere you look. So we are offering you a fantastic deal on this top of the line candles. I don’t know if you are familiar with the Lailokens Awen Spell Candles are not but they are the best on the market. They are hard to find, have been concentrated and blessed for any purpose you might need them for. As a valued customer of Magickal Necessities, we are offering a special deal just for you….buy one at the regular price and get the second free. Yes, you heard right, the second candle is free. We learned from our incense give-away and due to that fact, there are three candles that you can chose from for your free one….

(1)Clearing Candle

(2)Purification Candle

(3)Meditation Candle

We are limiting this offer, one to a customer and each of these candles will be marked “free.” You won’t have any problem checking out. We do hope you take advantage of these terrific candles, we just got lucky and was able to provide them for you.

Again, this is our way of saying “thank you for being a valued customer and we look forward to meeting all your magickal needs.

Save

The Witches Digest No.11 for July 28th (Plus Lammas Primer No. 2)

The Witches Digest No.11

Friday, July 28th, 2017

(Plus Lammas Primer No. 2)

Lughnasadh

Waning days
Waving grain
The summer months begin to fade
The horned one walks to the shades
Day of first fruits
You reap what you sow
Is your grain all bland
Or with flavor, you know
Nines months we have nurtured
And cared for our goals
Now we are birthing
Like mother and foal
The seeds we have planted
Watered and helped grow
We now begin harvesting
The seeds we have sown
But the growing is not over
More cycles to pass
So weed your fields
Err it be your ass
Tis a time of great merriment
Games to be played
To honored the ancients
And the wisdom they say
Hail to Fair Tailltiu
For whom the games are named
That tests the skill and knowledge of both me and you

—-Rev. Raven Spirit, Author
Published On Witchery

Your Daily Sun & Moon Data for Friday, July 28th

The Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 92.75° E
Sun Altitude: 35.97°
Sun Distance: 94.387 million mi
Next Equinox: Sep 22, 2017 3:01 pm (Autumnal)
Sunrise Today: 5:56 am↑ 65° East
Sunset Today: 8:04 pm↑ 294° Northwest
Length of Daylight: 14 hours, 8 minutes

The Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 69.68° ENE
Moon Altitude: -27.31°
Moon Distance: 242205 mi
Next Full Moon: Aug 7, 20171:10 pm
Next New Moon: Aug 21, 20171:30 pm
Next Moonrise: Today11:29 am
Moon Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 30.2%

Lunar Calendar
Moon Phase Tonight: Waxing Crescent
First Quarter: Jul 30, 2017 at 10:23 am
(Next Phase)
New Moon: Jul 23, 2017 at 4:45 am
(Previous Phase)

Source

“Remember For All Your Magickal Needs, think Magickal Necessities!”

Astronomy for Friday, July 28th

The Moon is in Libra.
The Moon is waxing and in its Waxing Crescent.
The New Moon occurred on the 23rd in the sign of Leo, and a First Quarter Moon will occur on July 3oth.
Mercury is in its pre-retrograde shadow (Mercury will retrograde from August 12-September 5).

Moon in Libra

Creating order is the focus, not necessarily through tidying or organizing as was the case while the Moon was in Virgo, but rather through pleasing interactions with others and aesthetics in our environment. We tend to solve problems through diplomacy, and we are more able to put aside our own emotions in order to achieve the peace we crave. The tendency now is to avoid direct confrontations. Decisions do not come easily. Seeing both sides to any given situation is the main reason for hesitation. Fear of losing others’ approval is another.

The Moon in Libra generally favors the following activities: Relationship and partnership issues, activities involving teamwork and cooperation, activities that involve self-examination, activities related to beauty.

The Sky This Week for July 28 to 30

Constellations, a crescent Moon, and other cool things to look for in the sky this week.
By Richard Talcott

Friday, July 28

The waxing crescent Moon appears about one-third illuminated this evening, when it lies just 3° above brilliant Jupiter. The two lie about 25° high in the southwest an hour after sundown and look spectacular from then until they set after 11 p.m. local daylight time. Although the naked eye and binoculars show this conjunction best, a telescope delivers great views of magnitude –1.9 Jupiter all week. The giant planet’s disk spans 35″ and shows a wealth of detail in its massive atmosphere.

Saturday, July 29

Mercury pops out of the twilight glow this evening as the sky begins to darken. The innermost planet lies 27° east of the Sun tonight, its greatest elongation for this evening apparition (the configuration officially occurs at 1 a.m. EDT on the 30th). Look for it 30 minutes after sunset, when it lies some 8° above the western horizon. The innermost planet should be fairly easy to spot because it shines brightly, at magnitude 0.3. (Use binoculars if you can’t see it with naked eyes.) Through a telescope, Mercury appears 8″ across and slightly less than half-lit.

The Southern Delta Aquarid meteor shower reaches its peak overnight, but meteor rates remain essentially the same from July 27 to August 1. And with the nearly First Quarter Moon setting around midnight local daylight time, early morning viewing conditions should be ideal. The meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Aquarius, which rises in late evening and appears highest in the hours before dawn. At its best, the shower produces 20 to 25 meteors per hour under a dark sky, though the highest rates occur at tropical locations and in the Southern Hemisphere.

Sunday, July 30

First Quarter Moon arrives at 11:23 a.m. EDT. Our satellite won’t rise until around 1:30 p.m. local daylight time, however, so observers in the Americas won’t see it precisely half-lit. As darkness falls this evening, the Moon appears about 55 percent illuminated and resides among the background stars of Libra the Scales.

Venus’ rapid eastward motion relative to the background stars carries it from Taurus the Bull into Orion the Hunter this morning. The planet will reside in this non-zodiacal constellation for only two days, however, and will cross into Gemini the Twins on August 1.

Source

The Astronomy Magazine

Today is Friday, July 28th

Friday is the day of Venus. It takes it name from Frigg, the Goddess of love and transformation. She rules the spiritual side of a person that manifests in the physical. Because of this, Friday is often thought of as dangerously unpredictable. This is expressed in an old East Anglian adage:

Friday’s day will have its trick
The fairest or foulest day of the week.

Deity: Frigg

Zodiac Sign: Taurus/Libra

Planet: Venus

Tree: Apple

Herb: Vervain

Stone: Sapphire/Chrsolite

Animal: Bull/Serpent

Element: Earth

Color: Yellow/Violet

Number: 7

Rune: Peorth(P)

Celtic Tree Month of Tinne(Holly) – July 8 – August 4

Runic Half-Month of Ur (primal strength) – July 14 – July 28

Goddess of the Month of Kerea – July 11 – August 8

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

The Pagan Book of Days for Friday, July 28th

The Irish sacrificial god, Domhnach Chrom Dubh, is connected with the festival of Lammas as is John Barleycorn, personification of grain, who is killed by being cut at this time.

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

The Goddess Book of Days for July 28th

St. Christopher’s Day in the Church calendar, derived from the Scandinavian God Thor. He is also Zeus, Jupiter, Damballah, Obatala, Ra, Quetzalcoatl, Chango, Woden, Tlaloc, Christ, and Jehovah.

Reference

The Goddess Book of Days
Diane Stein

Today is July 28th, We Celebrate This Day….

Sandcastle Days (California)

OLD WOMAN OF THE SEA

Themes: Water; Recreation; Rest; Art

Symbols: Sand; Saltwater; Sea Creatures

About the Old Woman of the Sea:
Among the Native Americans of California, this simple designation says it all. This goddess is a primordial being whose essence and power is linked with the ocean and all that dwells within. Old Woman of the Sea washes into our lives today with waves of refreshment and relaxation. She is also a powerful helpmate for all water-related magic.

To Do Today: Sandcastle-building competitions began in Imperial Beach, California, in 1981. Many of the artistically crafted sculptures feature sea creatures and other water themes. Alongside the festival, all manner of community activities take place, including children’s competitions, feasting, and live music. So, stop by a gardening store and get yourself a little sand! Mix up some saltwater to mold and shape it. As you do, listen to some watery music, and focus on the Old Woman of the Sea. Try to capture her image in the sand, and as you do, you will capture her magical power in your heart.

If you live anywhere near a beach, today’s a perfect time to practice sand and water magic. Write a symbol in the sand describing what you hope to achieve, then let the tide carry it to the Old Woman for an answer. Or, step into the surf and let the goddess draw away your tension and anxiety into her watery depths.

Reference

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

On Friday, July 28th, We Honor the God Lugh

“Lug or Lugh (modern Irish Lú) is an Irish deity represented in mythological texts as a hero and High King of the distant past. He is known by the epithets Lámhfhada (meaning “long arm” or “long hand”, or “left hand”), for his skill with a spear or sling, Ildánach (“skilled in many arts”), Samhildánach (“Equally skilled in many arts”), Lonnbeimnech (“fierce striker” or perhaps “sword-shouter”) and Macnia (“boy hero”), and by the matronymic mac Ethlenn or mac Ethnenn (“son of Ethliu or Ethniu”). He is a reflex of the pan-Celtic god Lugus, and his Welsh counterpart is Lleu Llaw Gyffes, “The Bright One with the Strong Hand”. As a young man Lugh travels to Tara to join the court of king Nuada of the Tuatha Dé Danann. The doorkeeper will not let him in unless he has a skill with which to serve the king. He offers his services as a wright, a smith, a champion, a swordsman, a harpist, a hero, a poet and historian, a sorcerer, and a craftsman, but each time is rejected as the Tuatha Dé Danann already have someone with that skill. But when Lugh asks if they have anyone with all those skills simultaneously, the doorkeeper has to admit defeat, and Lugh joins the court and is appointed Chief Ollam of Ireland. He wins a flagstone-throwing contest against Ogma, the champion, and entertains the court with his harp. The Tuatha Dé are at that time oppressed by the Fomorians, and Lugh is amazed how meekly they accept this. Nuada wonders if this young man could lead them to freedom. Lugh is given command over the Tuatha Dé, and he begins making preparations for war. Lugh’s sling rod was the rainbow and the Milky Way which was called “Lugh’s Chain”. He also had a magic spear (named Areadbhar), which, unlike the rod-sling, he had no need to wield since it was alive and thirsted so for blood that only by steeping its head in a sleeping-draught of pounded fresh poppy seeds could it be kept at rest. When battle was near, it was drawn out; then it roared and struggled against its thongs, fire flashed from it, and it tore through the ranks of the enemy once slipped from the leash, never tired of slaying. Lugh is also assisted by a magic hound.”
– Lugh – Wikipedia

Friday’s Magick

Magickal Intent:
Lust
Romance
Happiness
Travel
Friends
Beauty
Sexuality
Harmony
Growth

Planet: Venus

Colors: Pink, Aqua, Seafoam

Crystals: Coral, Emerald, Rose Quartz

The Magickal Day of Friday

Friday falls at the end of the work week for many of us, and that means we get a chance to relax for a little bit! Mark your Fridays with colors like pink and aqua, and metals such as copper. This is a day ruled by the planet Venus, so it should be no surprise that Venus and Aphrodite – goddesses of love and beauty – are associated with Fridays. This is a day named for the Norse goddess Freyja, so be sure to take a moment to honor her as well.

Gemstones associated with Friday include coral, emerald and rose quartz, and plants like strawberries, apple blossoms and feverfew are also related. This is a good day to do spellwork associated with family life and fertility, sexuality, harmony, friendship, growth. Take advantage of Friday’s correspondences and plant a seed, make something grow, and enjoy your blessings

*Note: There are a lot of disputes as to the origins of the word Friday, because there is still a great deal of discussion as to whether it was named for Freyja or Frigga, and whether they were the same deity or two separate ones. Some scholars believe that while they may have eventually become two distinctly different goddesses, they could have had their origins in a single, common Proto-Germanic deity.

Author

Patti Wigington, Paganism/Wicca Expert
Article published on & owned by ThoughtCo.com

The Witches Guide to Friday

Ruler: Freya, Venus

Colors: Emerald green or pink

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

Key Words: Love, money, health

It is easy to spot the ruler of this day by its name. In the word Friday, we see the roots of the name of the Norse goddess Freya, a goddess of love and fertility, and the most beautiful and propitious of the goddesses thus the verse “Friday’s child is loving and giving.”

In Spanish this day of the week is called Viernes and is derived from the goddess Venus. Matters of love, human interaction, the fluidity of communication, sewing and the creation of artistic garments, household improvement, shopping, and party planning all fall under the aspects of Friday and its ruling planet, Venus.

Friday’s angels are Ariel/Uriel, Rachiel, and Sachiel. Rachiel also concerns himself with human sexuality and is a presiding spirit of the planet Venus.

On Fridays, the hour of sunrise and every eight hours after that are also ruled by Venus, and that makes these times of the day doubly blessed. These four hours are the strongest four hours for conducting ritual.

Check the local newspaper, astrological calendar, or almanac to determine your local sunrise.

Source

Gypsy Magic

Friday’s Witchery

Love magick is a perennial popular topic. However, there is more to this topic than meets the eye. There are many enchanting layers here for us to explore on this day of the week. What about creating a loving home, or producing a loving and nurturing family? What about keeping your intimate relationships vital and on track? How about promoting happy, healthy, and enduring friendships? See, there is more to be considered than just the “You shall be mine…” type of fictional love spell.

Don’t forget that many of the deities associated with Fridays are also parents. So, yes, while this is the day to work on romance, sex, and love spells, there is additional magick to be considered here, which makes Fridays a more well-rounded and bigger opportunity for witchery than many folks ever truly realize. The truest, strongest magick always comes from the heart.

Source

Book of Witchery – Spells, Charms & Correspondences For Every Day of the Week
Ellen Dugan

The Witches Almanac for Friday, July 28th

Independence Day (Peruvian)

Waxing Moon

Moon phase: First Quarter

Moon Sign: Libra

Incense: Orchid

Color: Pink

FRIDAY CORRESPONDENCES

Venus/Water/East/West/South/Dawn/Female/Libra/Taurus

Magickal Intentions: Love, Romance, Marriage, Sexual Matters, Physical Beauty, Friendship and Partnerships, Strangers, Heart

Color: aqua, blue, light blue, brown, green, pale green, magenta, peach, pink, rose, white, all pastels

Number: 5, 6

Metal: copper

Charm: green or white garments, scepter

Stone: alexandrite, amethyst, coral, diamond, emerald, jade, jet, black moonstone, peridot, smoky quartz, tiger’s-eye, pink tourmaline

Animal: camel, dove, elephant, goat, horse, pigeon, sparrow

Plant: apple, birch, cherry, clematis, clove, coriander, heather, hemlock, hibiscus, ivy, lotus, moss, myrtle, oats, pepperwort, peppermint, pinecone, quince, raspberry, rose, pink rose, red rose, rose hips, saffron, sage, savin, stephanotis, strawberry, thyme, vanilla, verbena, violet, water lily, yarrow, and all flowers

Incense: ambergris, camphor, mace, musk, myrrh, rose, saffron, sage, sandalwood, sweetgrass, vanilla, violet, all floral scents

Goddess: Aphrodite, Asherah, Baalith, Brigid, Erzulie, Freya (Passionate Queen), Frigg, Gefion, Harbor (Beautiful One), Hestia, Inanna, Ishtar (Lady of Passion and Desire), Lakshmi, Lilith, Mokosh, Nehalennia, Nerthus, Ostara, Pombagira, Sarasvati, Shakti, Shekinah, Sirtur, Al Uzza, Venus (Queen of Pleasure), Vesta

God: Allah, Bacchus, Bes, Cupid, the Dagda, Dionysus, El, Eros (God of Love), Freyr, Frit Ailek, Shukra

Evocation: Agrat Bat Mahalat, Anael, Hagiel, Mokosba, Rasbid, Sachiel, Uriel, Vela

Courtesy of Moonlight Musings

Lammas History: Welcoming the Harvest

The Beginning of the Harvest:
At Lammas, also called Lughnasadh, the hot days of August are upon us, much of the earth is dry and parched, but we still know that the bright reds and yellows of the harvest season are just around the corner. Apples are beginning to ripen in the trees, our summer vegetables have been picked, corn is tall and green, waiting for us to come gather the bounty of the crop fields.

Now is the time to begin reaping what we have sown, and gathering up the first harvests of grain, wheat, oats, and more.

This holiday can be celebrated either as a way to honor the god Lugh, or as a celebration of the harvest.

Celebrating Grain in Ancient Cultures:
Grain has held a place of importance in civilization back nearly to the beginning of time. Grain became associated with the cycle of death and rebirth. The Sumerian god Tammuz was slain and his lover Ishtar grieved so heartily that nature stopped producing. Ishtar mourned Tammuz, and followed him to the Underworld to bring him back, similar to the story of Demeter and Persephone.

In Greek legend, the grain god was Adonis. Two goddesses, Aphrodite and Persephone, battled for his love. To end the fighting, Zeus ordered Adonis to spend six months with Persephone in the Underworld, and the rest with Aphrodite.

A Feast of Bread:
In early Ireland, it was a bad idea to harvest your grain any time before Lammas — it meant that the previous year’s harvest had run out early, and that was a serious failing in agricultural communities.

However, on August 1, the first sheaves of grain were cut by the farmer, and by nightfall his wife had made the first loaves of bread of the season.
The word Lammas derives from the Old English phrase hlaf-maesse, which translates to loaf mass. In early Christian times, the first loaves of the season were blessed by the Church.

Honoring Lugh, the Skillful God:
In some Wiccan and modern Pagan traditions, Lammas is also a day of honoring Lugh, the Celtic craftsman god. He is a god of many skills, and was honored in various aspects by societies both in the British Isles and in Europe. Lughnasadh (pronounced Loo-NAS-ah) is still celebrated in many parts of the world today. Lugh’s influence appears in the names of several European towns.

Honoring the Past:
In our modern world, it’s often easy to forget the trials and tribulations our ancestors had to endure. For us, if we need a loaf of bread, we simply drive over to the local grocery store and buy a few bags of prepackaged bread. If we run out, it’s no big deal, we just go and get more. When our ancestors lived, hundreds and thousands of years ago, the harvesting and processing of grain was crucial. If crops were left in the fields too long, or the bread not baked in time, families could starve. Taking care of one’s crops meant the difference between life and death.

By celebrating Lammas as a harvest holiday, we honor our ancestors and the hard work they must have had to do in order to survive. This is a good time to give thanks for the abundance we have in our lives, and to be grateful for the food on our tables.
Lammas is a time of transformation, of rebirth and new beginnings.

Symbols of the Season
The Wheel of the Year has turned once more, and you may feel like decorating your house accordingly. While you probably can’t find too many items marked as “Lammas decor” in your local discount store, there are a number of items you can use as decoration for this harvest holiday.

⦁ Sickles and scythes, as well as other symbols of harvesting
⦁ Grapes and vines
⦁ Dried grains — sheafs of wheat, bowls of oats, etc.
⦁ Corn dolls — you can make these easily using dried husks
⦁ Early fall vegetables, such as squashes and pumpkins
⦁ Late summer fruits, like apples, plums and peaches

Crafts, Song and Celebration
Because of its association with Lugh, the skilled god, Lammas (Lughnasadh) is also a time to celebrate talents and craftsmanship.
It’s a traditional time of year for craft festivals, and for skilled artisans to peddle their wares. In medieval Europe, guilds would arrange for their members to set up booths around a village green, festooned with bright ribbons and fall colors. Perhaps this is why so many modern Renaissance Festivals begin around this time of year!

Lugh is also known in some traditions as the patron of bards and magicians. Now is a great time of year to work on honing your own talents. Learn a new craft, or get better at an old one. Put on a play, write a story or poem, take up a musical instrument, or sing a song. Whatever you choose to do, this is the right season for rebirth and renewal, so set August 1 as the day to share your new skill with your friends and family.

Source

Patti Wigington, Author
Published on ThoughtCo

Legends and Lore of Lammas (Lughnasadh)

In many cultures, there are different legends and lore surrounding Lammas (Lughnasadh). Here are a few of the stories about this magical harvest celebration from around the world.

⦁ In Israel, the festival of ⦁ Shavout commemorates the beginning of the harvest, as well as honoring the date that Moses received the Torah on Mt. Sinai. The final sheaf of wheat is brought to the rabbi for a blessing, synagogues and homes are decorated with flower, and a great feast is prepared for all to enjoy.

⦁ The festival of ⦁ Onam is celebrated in India, and people dress up in their finest clothes and give food to the poor. Onam is celebrated in honor of King Mahabali, who was a ruler of Kerala. In one story, the god Vishnu approached Mahabali dressed as a beggar, and asked for land, which Mahabali gave him. Mahabli ended up buried under the earth by Vishnu, but was allowed to return once a year, symbolizing the planting of the seed and the subsequent harvest.

Thor’s wife, Sif, had beautiful golden hair, until ⦁ Loki the prankster cut it off. Thor was so upset he wanted to kill Loki, but some dwarves spun new hair for Sif, which grew magically as soon as it touched her head. The hair of Sif is associated with the harvest, and the golden grain that grows every year.

⦁ In the Shetland Islands, farmers believed that grain harvesting should only take place during a waning moon. They also believed this about the fall potato crop, and the cutting of peat.

Source

Patti Wigington, Author
Published on ThoughtCo

Protection Magic for Lammas

In many magical traditions, workings can be done to ensure protection of home, property, and people. There are a number of simple ways you can do protection workings.

⦁ Make an ⦁ Onion Braid protection charm to hang in your home to protect those who live there.

⦁ Use ⦁ crystals or stones with magical properties, such as Hematite to create a barrier around your home. Put a piece of Hematite at each outside corner of the house.

⦁ Make a ⦁ magical poppet to protect yourself or a loved on.

⦁ Brew up some ⦁ Protection Oil, and anoint yourself with it. This will keep you safe from psychic or ⦁ magical attacks.

⦁ Plant herbs with ⦁ protective properties, such as violet, thistle, honeysuckle, or fennel around your home. When they bloom, harvest them and hang them up to dry. Use the dried herbs in protective sachets or incense.

⦁ Hang an iron horseshoe, open end facing down, to keep evil spirits out of your home. A horseshoe found along the side of a road was particularly powerful, and was known to provide protection against disease. In some areas, the horseshoe is displayed with the open side at the top, to contain good fortune.

⦁ Make a ⦁ batch of Black Salt to sprinkle around your property for protection.

⦁ In western Scotland, it was once popular to make a small cross of rowan twigs and bind them together with red string. Hanging this in the window or over a door will keep negative influences from crossing the threshold.

⦁ If you’re suffering from bad dreams, consider making an ⦁ Herbal Dream Pillow to protect you in your sleep.

Source

Patti Wigington, Author
Published on ThoughtCo

Brew Up Some Vervain Water for Lammas

Vervain was known in many legends as one of the herbs sacred to the Druids. Although it is often associated with the Summer Solstice, the vervain plant is highly potent in late summer, around the time of Lammas.

In Hoodoo and other folk magic traditions, vervain is used to make Van-Van oil – this is simply a blend of vervain and a base oil, simmered and strained. This oil is used to provide magical protection, and clear away evil energies.

In many forms of folklore, vervain is associated with workings that decrease lust – however, the scent of vervain is a well-known aphrodisiac.
In addition to matters of the libido, however, vervain is commonly incorporated as a cleansing herb. You can brew up a batch of vervain water to cleanse your magical tools, asperge around a sacred space, or purify your altar for ritual.

You’ll need:
⦁ 1 / 2 C fresh vervain leaves
⦁ 2 C. boiling water

After your water has come to a boil, pour it over the vervain leaves in a pitcher or bowl. Allow the leaves to steep for half an hour, and then strain. Use a funnel to pour it into a jar. Use the water for cleansing and purification

Source

Patti Wigington, Author
Published on ThoughtCo

Warrior Meditation for Lughnasadh

At Lammas, the harvest is kicking in. This is a time of year when the masculine energy of the earth is in full swing. For starters, it’s the season of the spirit of grain, and a time to honor Lugh, the craftsman god. Lugh was not only a craftsman, but a gifted smith and swordsman. The season from late summer to the middle of fall is often a season of heightened energy for those who identify with the warrior soul.

Who Is the Warrior?
The warrior in today’s society is someone who understands the idea of right action. He or she follows a code of honor, and abides by that code even when it may be inconvenient or unpopular. The warrior recognizes that the forces of creation and destruction must be balanced. The warrior is empowered because he or she knows his own circumstances, limitations and goals. Perhaps most importantly, the warrior is someone who has made past mistakes, owned up to them, and learned not to repeat them.

A note on women and the concept of warrior: the notion of a warrior soul is not exclusive to men. Many women have powerful warrior spirits. Think of the warrior soul as an archetype of personal empowerment. Indeed, throughout history, many women have been known as mighty warriors. If it helps you get in touch with your inner warrior, envision some of them as you work. Picture Boadicaea of the Iceni, conquering the Roman army, or Penthesilea battling her lover, Achilles.

If you lean towards more current history, consider France’s Jeanne d’Arc, or Grainne’ ni Mhaille, the Irish pirate. For those who connect best with pop culture, even television’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly’s Zoe, or Xena make perfectly good warrior woman archetypes.

Setting the Mood
You may wish to prepare your mind and body prior to starting the meditation.

Some people like to take a ritual bath as a method of cleansing the body, and clearing the mind. If you wish, you can anoint yourself with Blessing Oil or another oil of your choice before beginning. Since you’re performing a warrior meditation, why not try adding a bit of war paint to your face amd body?

Before getting started, make sure you can work undisturbed somewhere for about an hour. Turn off the cell phone, get off the Internet, and send the kids off to play with friends for a while. Perform this meditation outside if at all possible. Set up a small altar that you can sit in front of. Since you’re working outside, consider using a flat stone or a tree stump as a natural altar. On it, place symbols of the warrior spirit: a knife, a drum, an arrow, a shield — anything that helps you connect with your inner warrior. If you have ancestors or loved ones that represent the warrior archetype to you, feel free to include photographs or other heirlooms. Finally, add a purple candle – purple is the color of royalty and power, and of honor.

Although this meditation is designed to be performed solo, it can easily be adapted into a group practice, or turned into a full-fledged ritual.

Welcoming Your Inner Warrior
Sit before your altar, and light the purple candle.

Focus on the flame, and visualize the fiery passion of the warrior soul. Think about the things you’ve done in your life, incidents in which you should have taken one path, but instead chose another. Consider mistakes you’ve made, and how they’ve affected not only you, but other people. Think about the consequences of these actions. Did you learn anything from these events?

Take this knowledge of past action, and move it into the present. As a warrior, you have followed a particular path to get to the present, one with many roadblocks, twists, and obstacles in the way. How has this helped to shape the person you are now? Think about the person you have become, and how you have grown during the different experiences you’ve had.

Now, think about the person you wish to be, and how the past and present will influence the future.

Understand that for you to follow a principle of right action, there may be times when you make decisions that are unpopular. Are you willing to stand up for your convictions? Are you willing to live in a manner that will earn you the respect and honor of others? To do this, you must first and foremost honor and respect yourself. One way to live rightly and with honor is to make a pledge, both to yourself and to the gods of your tradition.

As you focus on the burning flames, say:

I am a warrior.
I am one who lives with honor and pride,
in my deeds, words, and actions.
I am a warrior,
and I pay tribute to myself, my family, and my gods,
by living rightly.
Honor is found not in the sword and the first,
but in wisdom, and courage, and strength.
I will make the changes I need to make,
that I may live in an honorable way
and follow the code of the warrior.
I am a warrior,
and I have control over my mind, my thoughts, and my sword.
I pledge to hold truth in my heart,
to hold strength in my hands,
to be honest in my words,
and to stand on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves.
This is the way of the warrior,
and I shall live with honor.

While you do this, envision the warrior archetypes that you wish to emulate. Who are some warriors you look up to and hold in high regard? Think about them, and draw their energy into you. When you are ready to end the ritual, put the candle out.

Source

Patti Wigington, Author
Published on ThoughtCo

To Burn in Sacrifice: A Lammas Ritual

by Melanie Fire Salamander

The sun rises hot in the sky, dries the long grass yellow. Summer has settled in, and from crops in the fields and wild things in the forest the sun presses the first fruits of the coming harvest. It’s a classic time for ritual. Around the world, farming cultures have traditionally offered up the first harvest gleanings to their deities to ask that the remaining harvest be full and sweet. So too, symbolically, do we, many of whom have come away from our agrarian roots but still feel the pull of the seasons and the older gods.

My coven and I presented the following ritual for Lammas, or Lughnasadh, following one traditional theme of the Sabbat, sacrifice. In many pre-Christian European cultures, Lammas was the time when farmers, probably first using a human representative, later an effigy, sacrificed the Corn King, symbolizing ever-reborn vegetable life. Traces of this tradition can be found throughout the British Isles and the Continent. In the ritual I describe following, participants identify themselves with the dying and rising God by first sacrificing to the fire straw dolls, symbolizing the selves to be left behind so that new selves can be reborn. The ritualists then consider the harvest they have gleaned and continue to glean from the past spring and summer and give thanks. Raising energy to symbolize that harvest and the giving Goddess and God, ritualists put the energy into ritual bread and eat it, taking in the harvest more fully.

Preparation the week before

A week to ten days beforehand, the high priestess or priest begins ritual preparation by making Lammas incense. The recipe for the incense I used is as follows:

2 parts frankincense

2 parts sandalwood

1 part pine resin

1/2 part bay

1/2 part cinnamon

1/2 part coriander

1/2 part meadowsweet

1/2 part oregano

1/2 part rosemary

A few drops rose oil

Slightly less oak moss oil

Very little patchouli oil (start with one drop)

On the day before or the day of the ritual, the high priestess or priest bakes Lammas bread. To do so, you can follow any simple bread recipe to produce a loaf to your liking. We shaped ours into the form of a small man for the sake of the sacrifice symbolism, but that’s a personal call. While baking the bread, the ritualist should concentrate on the harvest, the Good Goddess and God and thankfulness. When the bread is finished and cooled, consecrate the bread. I raised energy and consecrated the bread with a pentacle of blessed olive oil, but you can use whatever form of consecration you prefer.

During the week before the ritual, participants should collect or make flammable decorations to symbolize attributes or events they’d like to either leave behind or offer as sacrifice. The ritual as structured leaves it up to individual participants to decide whether they want to let go of negative things or truly make sacrifice, giving up something so as to receive blessings from the deities. You can amend the ritual to focus on either approach.

During the week before the ritual, the high priest and priestess and any helpers should also collect the following:

· Wood, matches and fire starter materials to build a fire

· Straw, enough for all participants to make dolls from

· Multiple colors of yarn and embroidery thread

· Scissors

· Flammable ornament makings, such as colored sisal, dried flowers, flammable cloth, colored paper and markers

Bring enough materials that any ritualist who hasn’t been inspired previously can whip up a few symbolic decorations on the spot.
Preparation on the day of the ritual

On the ritual day, an hour or two before the rite itself, the high priest, priestess and helpers build a fire, and the high priest and priestess consecrate the built pile of wood and tinder to the ritual purpose, without actually lighting it. Likewise, ritualists set up their usual altar near the firepit (not too close!). On the altar or a side table nearby, helpers place the ritual wine and juice and the various ritual materials.

In my coven, we celebrate every Sabbat with a potluck feast. A feast is particularly appropriate after this ritual, which ends with the intake of our year’s harvest. I’d suggest traditional harvest foods (think Thanksgiving), but really hot weather might call for salads and ice cream. Before the ritual, everyone should make or set up their potluck dishes so that the ritual can segue smoothly into feasting and merriment.

Just before the ritual begins, the high priest and priestess should explain the ritual to everyone, start the Lammas incense on the altar burning and light the fire.

The ritual itself

The high priestess or priest begins the rite by leading everyone in a grounding exercise.

After grounding, the high priest, priestess and coven members cast the circle and invoke elements or directions in their usual way. The Goddess and God should be invoked with their harvest attributes; you can choose a particular pair of harvest deities or just call general female and male deity energy in harvest form.

Creating and burning dolls for sacrifice

The high priestess or priest then explains the technique for making straw dolls. To make such a doll, you take a hank of straw, bend it in half and tie a loop of string around the bent end. That creates the head. You then tie off some straw on one side for one arm and some on the other side for the other arm. Leaving some straw for the torso, tie a belt around the waist. Next, tie off one leg and then the other, and you’re done with your basic straw person. You can tie on or otherwise create genitals if gender is important in your sacrifice.

When the doll bodies are done, ritualists decorate them, incorporating the materials they brought and also things provided. Everything that goes on the dolls must be flammable and ideally should burn with a sweet scent. As the ritualists create their dolls, they concentrate on imbuing the dolls with the qualities of self that they bring to sacrifice, that their new selves be reborn. The high priest and priestess should keep an eye out and when doll-making is nearly complete ask the slower workers to finish.

When everyone’s done decorating dolls, it’s time to call the energies to sacrifice into the dolls. Before doing so, the high priestess or priest can describe how through this ritual we identify ourselves with the dying and rising God of Grain and Vegetation: Lugh, Tammuz, Dumuzi, Adonis, et al. To raise energy, the group performs a circle dance widdershins around the altar and chants the well-known couplet:

Horned one, lover’s son, leaper in the corn

Deep in the Mother, die and be reborn

This verse is not entirely vegetation-god oriented, but it’s a sweet chant most pagans know and definitely brings up dying and rising god energy. You can of course create your own chant instead.

Using this chant, raise energy and project it into the dolls.

When the dolls are imbued with energy, it’s time for sacrifice. Each participant, going widdershins around the circle, walks to the fire and feeds his or her doll to the flames. Ritualists can say a few words or work in silence as their dolls flare up.

While the dolls burn, people can also sacrifice to the fire by jumping it, as at other fire festivals. If you choose to do so, you can call out your sacrifice as you leap, or leap in silence. It’s probably best to limit ritualists to one jump each, lest the momentum of the ritual be dissipated. Once all are done jumping, the group grounds any remaining sacrifice energy and moves to the second part of the ritual.
Taking in the harvest as bread

At this point, the high priestess or priest asks ritualists to recall their spring and summer, particularly any ritual requests made six months ago at Imbolc, and to consider the things they are beginning to harvest.

Having considered their harvest, each group member going deosil around the circle gives thanks, spoken or wordless, for that incipient harvest. After thanks are given, the group raises energy of thanks and hopes for harvest by performing a circle dance deosil around the altar. For this second dance, the group can either create a thanksgiving chant, continue to call out their personal thanks or simply intone:

Thank you for the coming harvest, blesséd Lady and Lord.

Sometimes simple chants are best.

With the chant or calls of thanks, the group sends the raised energy into the ritual bread. The bread consecrated, the high priest and priestess break the loaf, take a piece each and pass the remainder deosil around the circle. Each ritual participant breaks off a chunk and eats it, taking the harvest within. The group follows the bread with ritual wine and juice.

When bread, wine and juice are finished, the group releases the elements or directions and deities in their usual way and takes down the circle.

This Lammas ritual is simple but contains, I think, some techniques to get energy moving. For me, sacrifice by fire and the intaking of bread — grain transformed by fire — create a satisfying cycle that resonates with the harvest beginning in this season.

Celebrating Legends, Folklore & Spirituality 365 Days A Year for July 27 & 28

July 27th and 28th

Hopi Kachina Danc

Celebrated annually, the Hopi Kachina Dances commemorate the Kachina-supernatural beings that help insure the survival of the tribe. The Kachina are believed to be ancient spirits that guide and protect the Hopi people. It is believed that the dances and accompanying religious ceremonies are what bring the rain that will heal the entire community. The ceremonies usually begin at sunrise and end at sunset, when it is believed the Kachina return to the realm of the spirit.

“Now is the time of the First Harvest,
when bounties of nature give of themselves
so that we may survive.
O God of the ripening fields, Lord of the Grain,
grant me the understanding of sacrifice as you
prepare to deliver yourself under the sickle of the
goddess and journey to the lands of eternal summer.
O Goddess of the Dark Moon,
teach me the secrets of rebirth
as the Sun loses its strength and the nights grow cold.

I partake of the first harvest, mixing its energies
with mine that I may continue my quest for the starry
wisdom of perfection.
O Lady of the Moon and Lord of the Sun,
gracious ones before Whom the stars halt their courses,
I offer my thanks for the continuing fertility of the Earth.
May the nodding grain loose its seeds to be buried in
the Mothers breast, ensuring rebirth in the warmth
of the coming Spring.”

– Scott Cunningham, Lammas Ritual

The Current Moon Phase for Friday, July 28th

Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 29%

The Moon today is in a Waxing Crescent Phase. A Waxing Crescent is the first Phase after the New Moon and is a great time to see the features of the moon’s surface. During this phase the Moon can be seen in the wester sky after the sun dips below the horizon at sunset. The moon is close to the sun in the sky and mostly dark except for the right edge of the moon which becomes brighter as the days get closer to the next phase which is a First Quarter with a 50% illumination.

Phase Details for – Friday, July 28, 2017

Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 29%
Moon Age: 5.38 days
Moon Angle: 0.51
Moon Distance: 391,498.56 km
Sun Angle: 0.53
Sun Distance: 151,894,244.75 km

Source

The Moon Giant

Love Secrets in Your DNA Akashic Records

a message from Selacia

To view more of Selacia’s insight, visit her website, Selacia and the Council of Twelve

The power of love to bring people together and create a lasting bond is without question one of the most amazing magnetic forces at work in relationships. Have you ever wondered how you could have been attracted to someone or stayed with someone when he or she didn’t fit your idea of the perfect match? Likewise, have you wondered why you are still single or why the person supposedly perfect for you left with no explanation? Continue reading to understand some of the “why” of such things, learning how specific answers can be found in your DNA akashic records.

Why Love Often Doesn’t Make Sense

For starters, know that love quite often doesn’t make sense when your reference point is the conventional world and society norms. Love can seem illogical and unmanageable from that reference point. Love can’t be negotiated, after all. It can’t be put in a box or manipulated.

Love is a living energy that one can only fully appreciate from a holistic big-picture point of view. This larger view includes subtle forces that bring two people together. These forces are quantum, vast, and interconnected on a soul level.

Personal Love-Life History in DNA

Did you know that your entire personal love-life history is actually recorded in your DNA akashic records? Yes, it’s there in the field around your DNA, which can be read like a map by a trained DNA intuitive healer.

When you have a specific relationship issue, or simply a block to finding love, there is usually a very good reason. Investigating this in the DNA akashic records, the cause could have started with an early life experience, or it could go way beyond that.

Most often, there’s a combination of factors at play. It could be an early life wound supplemented by ancestral patterns you house within your DNA. You may never have met the ancestors involved, but their experiences with love could impact you all the same. Likewise, your current issue could be rooted in your past lives – an experience that soured you, a vow you took, or a betrayal that destroyed your trust.

Sometimes your current issue involves the same person you were with before in another lifetime. There are countless other scenarios, too.

Secrets to Love Happiness

Difficulties with love rarely begin this life. Most come from the soul’s numerous experiences in relationship with others. A person who was your father one lifetime could be your husband the next. Roles will sometimes change for the soul to have different experiences, each time learning more about how to love.

Sometimes people make a soul agreement to come together again at a specific time. Not all of these involve romantic partnership. It could be more of a friendship or business partnership. Either way, when the two meet again, there is a strong bond and perhaps instant recognition on an intuitive telepathic level.

When people are connected on these more subtle levels, it can feel mysterious. One or both people often feel that there’s some larger bond at work in the background.

Quite often when people contact me for private sessions, there’s some kind of relationship bond involved. It’s normal to want to understand the connection and the soul-level roots of the relationship.

Demystifying these things can go a long way towards a happier relationship. Example: before getting married or going into business together, one or both partners often want a kind of advance check-in about potential harmony and problems. A lot can be seen about such things in the DNA akashic records. Foresight can make all the difference in creating a happy and lasting partnership.

2017 Relationship Challenges

Relationships of all kinds are having unique challenges during 2017. These are stressful and uncertain times. Tensions are amplified beyond the norm, and even relatively stable relationships can get shaky.

Planetary energies are contributing to the chaos people feel within as they attempt to adapt to the constantly-changing canvas of events. All kinds of very old issues can rise to the surface within people. This can make for quite volatile relationships.

Remember, though, that you and everyone you meet has love at their core. That love is your true nature. It is the energy that fuels you to go on when you get discouraged and nothing makes sense. It is the healing force that brings you back together with your loved one after a misunderstanding.

Walk gently with yourself and others. Allow for mistakes. Allow for the larger picture of interpersonal interactions and relationship bonds. Invite a knowing of hidden puzzle pieces that help explain issues as they arise.

Keep in mind that forces and life events outside your awareness – including from ancestors or past lives – could be impacting your present. Investigate those for DNA healing of root issues preventing harmony.

Each day as you walk your path as a divine changemaker, remember that you are here now on purpose. At a soul level, you chose to be alive now at this pivotal juncture of humanity. You are not a victim. You are at cause, alive to master living in a conscious heart-centered way.

You are here to remember the love that you are and how to express it in all types of situations. When that love is your fuel, your reason for doing and being, you cannot make a mistake or lose your way.

This Weekend’s Love Horoscope: You Didn’t See This Coming

Your love horoscope for the weekend of July 28-30, 2017

This weekend’s romantic vibe will have a pleasant surprise attached to it. Early Sunday morning, Venus and Uranus will be at a supportive angle. This will support an unexpected but positive new direction in your love life. If single, you could meet someone out of the blue. If you’re in a relationship, you and your sweetheart might make unusual plans together in an effort to spice things up. You won’t regret it.

This Weekend’s Romantic Rating*

* Heart ratings are based on the lunar cycle. They range from low to full, with low indicating a rocky weekend for romance and full indicating plenty of passionate potential.

Your Daily Horoscopes for Frday, July 28

Aries

Problem-solving is favored much of the day as you can truly get to the heart of a matter right now, dear Aries. However, there is a tendency to take something too far, and this can interfere with productivity. There’s value to dedication, but compulsion doesn’t do you any good, so draw the line. There can be a real tug of war happening between your desire to create, entertain, and have fun and your desire (or need) to excel at your work and responsibilities. There can be snappiness and irritability as a result, and a sense that the ball is not exactly in your court. You may need to enlist a helper or perhaps simply someone who you can vent with or lean on.

Taurus

There can be some misunderstandings today, dear Taurus, as you’re not particularly trusting of what’s on the surface of things. Reading too much into a situation can get the best of your mood today. However, it’s a good time for probing a matter further, investigation, research, and intensive study. Even so, these things may take up a lot of time, steering you away from your priorities! Avoid anything that seems ripe for turning into a power or control game in your interactions, as there are no winners now. The need for familiarity and comfort can be at odds with your desire to get away from it all today, but it may be better to choose one or the other than to stay in a state of limbo.

Gemini

Suspicion is something you are likely to battle within yourself today, dear Gemini. Avoid major decision making until your mind clears. Research and analysis are favored, however, as long as you don’t become so absorbed in it that you forget what you should be doing. As well, you can be attracted to all the wrong situations now, so watch for this tendency. On some level, you can be torn between a desire to keep things light or easy and a compulsion to know all. You can be productive with a home or family matter or project, however, and as long as you don’t fret too much over problem areas, you’ll do just fine now.

Cancer

You can’t help but see all the flaws today, dear Cancer, and your mind may go to negative places too quickly now. You could also feel that others are pressuring or pushing you, and these vibes don’t mesh well with your rather insular mood today. Vie for mutual trust in your relationships and refuse to accept anything less! Avoid absorbing the the thick tension around you and sidestep power games or manipulation. You need some peace of mind with the Moon transiting your home sector all day, so aim to take care of these needs rather than focus on something that may only serve to drag you down.

Leo

Watch for taking your sense of duty to extremes today, dear Leo, as you may be accumulating too much stress by taking on too many things or going too hard on a particular pursuit or project. Pushing yourself can take its toll on your health and general outlook. Perhaps ironically, many Leos are pushing their desire to get healthier too hard these days! For others, it’s about staying on top of work. Ambition is great, but if worry about your daily routines interferes with the rest of your life, then you need to make a change! Today, also watch for regular conversations that turn into power plays. Money-making or business projects can fare well now with extra dedication, but interactions can very easily become tricky.

Virgo

Your mental radar is working hard today, dear Virgo, and perhaps too furiously at times! Watch for stirring up controversy. You might enter a conversation thinking you have everything under control, but if it doesn’t go a certain way, things can get out of hand. Interactions may be intense as a result. Worries and fears tend to dominate your thinking and may drive your communications if you’re not careful. You might have a memory that puts a new and possibly negative spin on an old matter, but consider that your perceptions may be skewed the wrong way. You aren’t likely to come across at your best right now, so if you can, save important conversations and presentations for a more confident, positive time. Pour extra energy into researching information you truly need, or that furthers your cause and helps you to see the positive.

Libra

There is a tendency for worries, fears, and concerns to hang around today, dear Libra, affecting your thoughts and communications. Conversations and interactions can be on the tricky side as a result, particularly if you are feeling guilty or insecure about something. Try to avoid setting yourself up for answers that you don’t need to hear right now. People can be resistant to learning or may want to direct the conversations, which can be annoying. While part of you wants to oversee what’s going on around the home or with loved ones, another part would prefer to escape with friends or enjoy something lighter and more positive or forward-looking. Do your best to avoid dwelling on matters that you can’t change, and focus instead on possibilities for the future.

Scorpio

The Moon spends the day in your privacy sector, dear Scorpio, and you need to take a break. Even so, it’s a strong day for work and problem solving that doesn’t require high levels of emotions. Social exchanges and interactions can quickly become tricky, however. Conversations may go in a direction you hadn’t anticipated. You may be reading a situation or person negatively, which is more about fear or insecurity than reality. Compulsive thinking can get you down, so refuse to be a part of it! In fact, it can steer you far away from your priorities, and you can end up feeling behind. Overthinking or over-analyzing doesn’t serve you well right now. Be kind to yourself and seek out ways to find extra replenishment and rest instead.

Sagittarius

Pressure to speak up about a matter may figure strongly now, dear Sagittarius, but this is unlikely to be a good time to do so. If you must do so, gauge your audience as much as possible and try to focus on the positive because with today’s energies, there is a tendency to see the worst of a situation. As well, with Mercury at the top of your chart until August 31st, your words aren’t easily forgotten! It’s certainly not the best time to divulge sensitive information. People can be defensive now. Seek out ways to relax, detox, and loosen up. Getting yourself all wound up about possibilities won’t do you much good. However, the day is strong for doing research and investigating a topic more deeply, as long as emotions aren’t involved!

Capricorn

Differences of opinion may seem to mean more to you than what’s on the surface today, dear Capricorn, as you may be reading a lot into them or you could be taking something very personally. If you’re worried about someone’s feelings for you or whether you have the same power over a person as you once did, this may affect your behavior today. Consider, however, that oversensitivity can lead you on the wrong path and that perceptions may be skewed to the negative due to fears of losing relevance. Today can be excellent for delving into topics that don’t trigger deep emotions, however. The technical side of life can be far easier to take now. This is not to say that you should ignore the emotional side of life — in fact, it’s a great time to learn more about yourself — but it may be appropriate to back off from a heated situation to gain a better perspective.

Aquarius

Conversations can be on the delicate side today, dear Aquarius, so do your best to be objective and avoid getting pulled into mind games. If you’re not feeling up to par on an emotional or social level, keeping some distance makes sense, but it would be wise to do so without alienating people you care about. This isn’t a time to push others away, but rather to pull yourself back a little so that you can collect yourself. Watch also for a tendency to fall back into old habits and patterns with a partner or special friend. This may happen so naturally that it’s hard even to see, but consider that your past may be interfering with the present.

Pisces

Your mental radar is working at full speed today, dear Pisces, but you may be reading far too much into a situation than is necessary–or healthy. Probing a topic further can be useful, but if it sucks up too much of your time or drains you emotionally, then it’s a compulsion, and it’s not any good for you. Make concessions and compromises for the people you love, but watch for a tendency to go too far with this — so far that you’re no longer happy. Alternatively, a friend or partner may be suspicious or jealous, and this can lead to mind games or standoffs. Don’t avoid topics that need addressing altogether, but some things may be best deferring to a warmer, more accepting atmosphere.

If You Were Born Today, July 28

Your manner is unmistakably warm, and you are an emotional, leading, and magnetic person. Creative fields work well for you. You are talented at bringing harmony to the world around you. While for the most part adaptable, you are also determined and quite organized. With loved ones, you might sometimes seem a little controlling, as you often feel you know what’s best for them. However, it’s not about needing to rule the roost. Rather, true care is behind it. You have a very strong sense of responsibility, which can at times lead you to worry a little too much.

Famous people born today: Beatrix Potter, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Jim Davis, Sally Struthers, Elizabeth Berkley, Lori Loughlin.

Get A Jump On Tomorrow….

Your Daily Horoscopes for Saturday, July 29

Aries

You can feel restricted from enjoying yourself or bogged down with responsibility in the first half of the day, dear Aries. This likely has to do with feeling censored. However, you grow lighter and freer as the day advances, even with the Moon moving into your dark, deep solar eighth house this evening. This is due to a Venus-Uranus sextile that encourages fun self-expression and experimentation. You have a way with words these days, but this is more about expressing yourself in open, refreshing, and honest (and perhaps surprising) ways rather than turning on the charm. Updates and upgrades to your tech or even to your image and appearance can be in the offing. You might be a little more courageous with your style or look. People are attracted to your wit and also your independence and originality today.

Taurus

You want to feel comfortable and enjoy simple activities in the first half of the day, dear Taurus, but you’re likely to feel weighed down by tensions or restrictions related to an intimate relationship or financial obligations. You may not be able to get out of certain duties, but as the day advances, inventive solutions or compromises can be discovered. Your sign is known for being possessive, but today your intuition is incredible for what you need to let go of so that you can make room for the good stuff — or make room, period! This can apply to both material and emotional planes. You might uncover hidden or unexpected sources of money, resources, and ideas. You could also find a surprising ally or enjoy an impressive turnaround in a relationship. You need some space and freedom to think freely right now.

Gemini

As much as you’d prefer to keep things light and positive, dear Gemini, someone may be reminding you of your responsibilities or raining on your parade in the first half of the day. Feeling censored is no fun, but as the day advances, you’ll feel freer to “do you.” Positive, and possibly even adoring, attention is likely to come your way later today, and it can be a breath of fresh air and perhaps make its way to you from a surprising source. Venus in your sign is subtly but pleasantly accented by a supportive Uranus aspect, and your appeal increases. You do particularly well in social situations, mingling, and networking. Even if a partnership weighs heavily on your mind now, friends can be enjoyable diversions.

Cancer

You may feel overworked, or you can have a hard time seeing the rewards for your efforts in the first half of the day, dear Cancer. Generally speaking these days, you’re in the frame of mind for wanting to relish in the rewards of your work or to enjoy more comfort. However, duties are likely to call you this morning, interrupting these pleasures. While you may not be able to escape certain obligations, as the day advances, you’re in great shape for enjoying more freedoms. Beauty may be found in unexpected places now, and although you’ve been keeping more to yourself than usual, you’re willing to share some of yourself with those who will listen. You need emotional space, but you’re not against enjoying company. You find beauty in the layers, particularly the hidden or subtle ones, of your life, interactions, and emotions. Freeing yourself from worries about long-term goals can make for a happier day.

Leo

You may feel tied down to a project, relationship, or your children in the first half of the day, dear Leo, and this encroaches upon your sense of freedom and independence. It may be difficult to escape certain responsibilities, but as the day advances, you’re likely to find great pleasure in learning, sharing, and connecting with friends. It’s a good time for reaching out to others, sharing what you’ve learned, mingling, conversing, and otherwise boosting friendships. New ideas and even some inspiration can result. Love and passion are also favored for you today with Venus in a harmonious relationship with your partnership ruler, Uranus. This is a time for feeling freer and happier as your knowledge of the world around you grows.

Virgo

Your desire for free form, quiet, undemanding activities is high, dear Virgo, but family or household obligations may keep you from enjoying these things in the first half of the day. You may not be able to escape your duties, but as the day advances, you feel freer to create and enjoy yourself. With Venus at the top of your chart these days, you’re making it very easy for others to respect you. Authority figures, including bosses and parents, are likely to see you in a good light. Someone could support, sponsor, or otherwise endorse you today as Venus connects well with Uranus in your sector of support and others’ resources. This is a time for flirting with new ideas, concepts, and activities. Freeing yourself from self-limiting ideas of what you can or cannot do is what Uranus in this sector of your chart is about, and right now, this process helps you present the best version of yourself to others.

Libra

You can feel a strong desire to experiment with new things today, dear Libra, but in the first half of the day, you feel tied down by current commitments and work in progress. A serious conversation may be part of this story. As the day advances, you feel considerably freer to express yourself in new ways. It’s a wonderful time for a boost in a relationship. Keeping things fresh and exciting helps any relationships that have become predictable. People are drawn to your liveliness, charm, ideas, and wit today. Sharing ideas, philosophies, and beliefs can be mind-expanding and pleasant. Doing something offbeat or outside of the usual routine can be integral now. However, you don’t have to go anywhere to try on a new approach to relating, which can be freeing and just what you need to enliven your connections.

Scorpio

You may feel restricted from pursuing your plans due to limited resources today, dear Scorpio, although as the day advances, you feel lighter and freer, particularly on an emotional level. You can experience a pleasant degree of detachment later today, and this is a welcome detour from the usual! It allows you just enough comfort and emotional distance from matters to enjoy yourself fully. Complicated issues seem far less complex or confusing now. There can be a pleasant relationship or work-related surprise that throws you off guard in a most pleasant way. Attractions can be unexpected or inspiring. Loosening up your schedule helps you relax and have fun.

Sagittarius

You may feel particularly interested in exploring new things or places today, dear Sagittarius, but you might also feel limited by responsibilities this morning. While you’re conflicted, as the day advances, lighter energy is with you for enjoying more freedoms. You no longer take yourself as seriously, and you’re ready to try out something new. The key is emotional detachment, and it becomes easier as the day moves ahead. Relationships seem to be the key to personal enjoyment now, and allowing someone else to shine as you listen or support them can be the ticket. Relationships that need boosting or a breath of new life can be enhanced. Stale ways of relating don’t serve a useful purpose anymore, so put them behind you!

Capricorn

In the first half of the day, you may feel limited or restricted from expressing yourself naturally, dear Capricorn. You could feel that others aren’t truly understanding you now as the Sun and Saturn form a minor challenging aspect. However, the second half of the day seems far less confining and judgmental, and you’re ready to embrace change if it promises growth and improvement, particularly in your relationships. You’re in the mood to experiment with routines, living arrangements, methods, and approaches to relating. More and more these days, you’re finding reasons to let go of traditions and habits that no longer serve you good purpose. This is a time for updating, upgrading, and otherwise adapting your personal, work, or domestic life to keep things fresh.

Aquarius

Relationships may be challenged by a sense of obligation or limitation in the first half of the day, dear Aquarius, when you feel that you can’t express yourself without judgment. However, as the day advances, you hardly care! In fact, you’re ready to rise above small problems and embrace change, progress, and innovation. A Venus-Uranus transit turns your thinking to what needs an update, upgrade, or other forms of advancement so that you enjoy life more thoroughly. Love is fun, verbal, and communicative today. In fact, you might connect with someone special through shared interests, online, or on the phone. Even games can open up doors for you in relationships as you share your sense of fun and humor with others. You may be making a break from the past today, particularly regarding leaving old, unsatisfying ways of communicating behind.

Pisces

You are especially interested in working on small jobs and duties today, dear Pisces, as you’re taking more pride in staying on top of these things. However, you could feel pressure or judgment about performance or long-term goals and larger responsibilities this morning, which kills the fun. You may need to find a balance between the smaller things you enjoy doing and the bigger priorities in your life. Even so, as the day advances, you’ll discover that it’s easier to loosen up. You’ll do particularly well if you make nice with family or find creative, original, and new ways of enjoying home life. Breaking from the past in some little way can be satisfying, and this can be about decluttering or updating. A change of pace can turn things around in a very positive way now.

Aries

Taurus

Gemini

Cancer

Leo

Virgo

Libra

Scorpio

Sagittarius

Capricorn

Aquarius

Pisces

Tarot Card of the Day

Judgment

The Judgement card, sometimes called “Resurrection,” represents the great reunion that the ancients believed would happen once in every age. This was the time when souls are harvested and taken home to their place of origin, outside the solar system. Then the world is seeded with a batch of new souls and the process starts over.

From a modern point of view, this great reunion — which includes every personality that you have ever been and every soul that you have done deep work with — reunites to consciously complete the process. In a way, we symbolically celebrate this returning to center every year on our birthday.

In personal terms, the Judgment Tarot card points to freedom from inner conflicts, and so clear a channel, that the buried talents and gifts of past incarnations can come through an individual in this lifetime. This card counsels you to trust the process of opening yourself, because what emerges is of consistently high quality. You can effortlessly manifest as a multi-dimensional being, and assist in evoking that response from others.

Daily Love Tarot

The Judgement

The Judgement card is your ticket to second chances today. You have the opportunity to go over ground again. This time you find something you missed the first time out. Be open to great truths and aware of insight. There could be a serendipitous reunion with someone who lets you overcome obstacles if you channel energy together. This is dual power to change old relationship patterns, especially tendencies to repress important issues.

Erotic Tarot for the Weekend of July 28th

The Star

The Star card says that today the outlook for your sex life couldn’t be better. You have every reason to believe that something you’ve been hoping for will come true today, and it will be mind-blowing and inspirational. You’re an extremely motivated sexual partner as well, and the hard work you put in to please your partner does not go unnoticed or unrewarded. You’re the Star of your own sexy show, and everyone wants to be your co-star!

Your Weekend Influences for July 28th

Tarot Influence

Ace of Cups Reversed

Love and happiness may be false. Instability and infertility are possibilities.

Astrological Influence

Gemini Reversed

Gemini reversed denotes vacillation. Decisions are not made, because all side of the issue pull with the same strength

Element Influence

Air

Air denotes freedom and the ability to transcent the mundane. You may be, or may soon experience a spiritual or secular liberation.

Your Karmic Number for July 28th

Hmm, drama lately? Six seems to think so. There are a few reality show producers looking for someone like you because you live your life in some state of (interesting) disarray. Your home is an extension of you and everything is either out of place, mismatched (and not in a Feng Shui way), or covered in dust. Hiring maid service means that you are unwilling to do the work yourself, which you must. Do an emotional cleanse. Cry if you have to. When you are done, throw those tissues away. Stop tucking them in the seat cushions then start clearing your home so that you’re proud to have visitors.

The Wisdom of Buddha

Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.

“The Wheel of the Year has turned once more,
and the harvest will soon be upon us.
We have food on our tables, and
the soil is fertile.
Nature’s bounty, the gift of the earth,
gives us reasons to be thankful.
Mother of the Harvest, with your sickle and basket,
bless me with abundance and plenty.

The power of the Harvest is within me.
As the seed falls to the earth and is reborn each year,
I too grow as the seasons change.
As the grain takes root in the fertile soil,
I too will find my roots and develop.
As the smallest seed blooms into a mighty stalk,
I too will bloom where I landed.
As the wheat is harvested and saved for winter,
I too will set aside that which I can use later.

As the grain dies, it transforms to bread,
and brings us life through the winter.
We bless this bread, and it blesses us in return,
and we are thankful for the gift of the harvest.”

– Patti Wigington, Hold a Lammas Harvest Festival

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The Witches Digest No. 10 for July 27th (Plus Lammas Primer)

The Witches Digest No. 10

July 27th, 2017

(Plus Lammas Primer)

Let’s take a trip back in time, let’s say about some 2000 years ago. The setting: a Bard sitting in a long house, or round a fire. His audience would be hunters, warriors and farmers, ancient Celts, anywhere in western Europe. The story and the characters would be familiar to his audience, because it formed part of their mythology, and the story of the cycles of nature and the way of the world as they knew it.

He begins, this then, is the story of Lammas, which is the first harvest of the year, the harvest of the grains. It is told from the point of view of the ordinary people present at this great event and told and reenacted to those gathered to celebrate.
We now turn to a stone circle at the top of a hill, we listen as the Bard begins his story….

Listen to this!
And we will tell you the tale of the Lammas-tide
When the sacred King will come to die ,
Who plays the Fool, choosing to collude
man his artifice and sacrificial tool!
The would-be godling learns his lore
And knows his pow’r is naught but that –
the gods adore.
We “ little jests ” by our Jester played .
~ This is our great god Cern! ~

The dealings of the Danu , we shall see anon;
Of their favour this our tale shall tell.
For the Satyr grown strong , his Song sung deep ,
Since Yule-born Faun , sleeping amongst
the briar thorn .
Now to keep compact with the sacred stone
He sings at last his final bellow
Then goes , from the world we know to
the shadows below
His mother our Mare , both Maid and Crone .
~ This is our great god Cern ! ~

Should we ask , ” Are you belov’d of the
blessèd gods ? ”
Then you shall die young . So it is sung ,
and truly
For who is more loved than the strong son?
So this is the story of the son and lover
Cut down by the hand of his mother .
~ This is our great god Cern ! ~

By the blight of his strength and beauty
The scion of the wild will give his wergild gift
To restore we forfeit acorn born .
Reclaimed by right his untamed life
renews our land ,
And, orlog wov’n in the weft of wyrd
We too play our long-appointed part :
man must defaud
But the Danu to their nature true .
~ This is our great god Cern ! ~

Now listen! For the wheel of the world
will turn today,
Cern renews all life at Lammas-time…..

—Song of Cerannon – Lammas
Bard Cerannon

Your Daily Sun & Moon Data for Thursday, July 27th

The Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 45.39° NE
Sun Altitude: -19.44°
Sun Distance: 94.399 million mi
Next Equinox: Sep 22, 2017 3:01 pm (Autumnal)
Sunrise Today: 5:55 am↑ 65° East
Sunset Today: 8:05 pm↑ 295° Northwest
Length of Daylight: 14 hours, 10 minutes

The Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 351.96° N
Moon Altitude: -49.24°
Moon Distance: 237886 mi
Next Full Moon: Aug 7, 20171:10 pm
Next New Moon: Aug 21, 20171:30 pm
Next Moonrise: Today10:29 am
Current Moon Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 19.2%

Lunar Calendar
Moon Phase Tonight: Waxing Crescent
First Quarter: Jul 30, 2017 at 10:23 am
(Next Phase)
New Moon: Jul 23, 2017 at 4:45 am
(Previous Phase)

Source

Your Astronomy for Thursday, July 27th

The Moon is in Virgo until 11:36 AM, after which the Moon is in Libra.
The Moon is void from 2:30 AM to 11:36 AM.
The Moon is waxing and in its Waxing Crescent.
The New Moon occurred on the 23rd in the sign of Leo, and a First Quarter Moon will occur on July 3oth.
Mercury is in its pre-retrograde shadow (Mercury will retrograde from August 12-September 5).

Moon in Virgo

We instinctively gravitate towards practical activities under the influence of a Virgo Moon. In order to set things right, we might easily find ourselves re-organizing and rethinking plans. Emotional satisfaction comes from solving problems, making order out of confusion, and helping others. Health matters might come into focus. We notice the smaller parts that make up the whole, and instead of letting nagging details bother us, we might work on ironing them out so that we can feel more confident moving ahead.

The Moon in Virgo generally favors the following activities: Mental pursuits, work activities, services, and routines. Activities that would benefit from tending to details.

The Sky This Week for July 27 to 30

Constellations, a crescent Moon, and other cool things to look for in the sky this week.
By Richard Talcott

Thursday, July 27

As an inner planet, Venus moves quickly relative to the background stars. After passing south of M1 yesterday, this morning the planet appears 0.4° north of the 3rd-magnitude star Zeta (z) Tauri, the southern horn of the constellation Taurus the Bull.

Friday, July 28

Saturday, July 29

Sunday, July 30

Source

The Astronomy Magazine

Thursday, July 27th

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. This is why almost all adages about Thursday are positive, such as “Thursday’s child has far to go,” “Sneeze on Thursday, some 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 – Sagittarius

Planet: Jupiter

Tree: Oak

Herb: Henbane

Stone: Turquoise – Topaz

Animal: Goat – Aurochs

Element: Fire

Color: Orange – Brown

Rune: Thorn (TH)

Celtic Tree Month of Tinne(Holly) – July 8 – August 4

Runic Half-Month of Ur (primal strength) – July 14 – July 28

Goddess of the Month of Kerea – July 11 – August 8

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

The Pagan Book of Days for Thursday, July 27th

St. Pantaleone

St. Pantaleone, worshiped today, was among other things the patrons saint of trousers!

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

On Thursday, July 27th, We Honor the God Bacchus

Roman God of Wine and Fertility

In Roman legend, Bacchus stepped in for Dionysus, and earned the title of party god. In fact, a drunken orgy is still called a bacchanalia, and for good reason. Devotees of Bacchus whipped themselves into a frenzy of intoxication, and in the spring Roman women attended secret ceremonies in his name. Bacchus was associated with fertility, wine and grapes, as well as sexual free-for-alls. Although Bacchus is often linked with Beltane and the greening of spring, because of his connection to wine and grapes he is also a deity of the harvest.

A celebration is held in his honor each year at the beginning of October.

Bacchus was the son of Jupiter, and is often portrayed crowed with vines or ivy. His chariot is drawn by lions, and he is followed by a group of nubile, frenzied priestesses known as Bacchae. Sacrifices to Bacchus included the goat and the swine, because both of these animals are destructive to the annual grape harvest — without grapes, there can be no wine.

Bacchus has a divine mission, and that is his role of “liberator.” During his drunken frenzies, Bacchus loosens the tongues of those who partake of wine and other beverages, and allows people the freedom to say and do what they wish. In mid-March, secret rituals were held on Rome’s Aventine hill to worship him. These rites were attended by women only, and were part of a mystery religion built up around Bacchus.

In addition to being the patron of wine and drink, Bacchus is a god of the theatrical arts.

In his earlier incarnation as the Greek Dionysus, he had a theater named for him in Athens. He is often portrayed as a slightly effeminate figure, prone to good humor and general bawdiness.

Bacchus in Mythology

In classical mythology, Bacchus is the son of Jupiter and Semele. However, he was raised by nymphs after Semele burned to ashes, overwhelmed by the splendor of Jupiter in his true form.

Once he grew up, Bacchus wandered the earth learning about the culture of the vine and the mysteries of winemaking. He studied the religious rites of the goddess Rhea, and began sharing the good news far and wide. When Bacchus returned home from his adventures, the king was none too pleased with his shenanigans, and ordered him put to death.

Bacchus tried to talk his way out of execution by spinning a fanciful yarn in which he claimed to be a fisherman, but the king wasn’t having any of it. However, before the death sentence could be carried out, the prison doors sprung open of their own accord, Bacchus vanished, and his worshipers threw a huge party in his honor.

Bacchus is mentioned in Longfellow’s Drinking Song as the leader of a drunken, debauched parade:

Fauns with youthful Bacchus follow,
Ivy crowns the brow, supernal
as the forehead of Apollo,
and possessing youth eternal.

Round about him, fair Bacchantes,
Bearing cymbals, flutes, and thyrses,
Wild from Naxian groves, or Zante’s
Vineyards, sing delirious verses.

He also appears in the writings of Milton, in the story of Circe:

Bacchus that first from out the purple grapes
crushed the sweet poison of misused wine,
after the Tuscan mariners transformed,
Coasting the Tyrrhene shore as the winds listed
on Circe’s island fell (who knows not Circe,
The daughter of the Sun? Whose charmed cup
Whoever tasted lost his upright shape,
and downward fell into a grovelling swine).

In his Greek incarnation as Dionysus, he appears in a number of myths and legends. Represented by grapevines and a drinking cup, Dionysus taught mankind the art of winemaking. Pseudo-Apollonius warns of the dangers of overindulgence, and says in Bibliotheca, “Icarius received Dionysos, who gave him a vinecutting and taught him the art of making wine. Icarius was eager to share the god’s kindness with mankind, so he went to some shepherds, who, when they had tasted the drink and then delightedly and recklessly gulped it down undiluted, thought they had been poisoned and slew Icarius. But in the daylight they regained their senses and buried him.”

While slaying one’s host is considered bad form today, you can certainly celebrate Bacchus in his guise as a god of vine and wine – just be sure to do so responsibly!

Author

Published on ThoughtCo

On Thursday,, July 27th, We Celebrate….

Niman: Hopi Kachina Dances (Southwestern United States)

NUVAK’CHIN’MANA

Themes: Ghosts (Spirits); Blessings; Weather; Winter

Symbols: Cold Items; White; Moisture

About Nuvak’chin’mana:
This goddess’s name means Snow Maiden. In the Niman festival, Nuvak’chin’Mana is a Kachina who appears to pray for the return of cold weather so the moisture in the earth gets replenished. In our lives, she comes to replenish the well of our spirits and cool any overheated tempers that erupt with summer’s heat.

To Do Today: In Hopi tradition, Kachinas are spirits that help the tribe in all matters of life. Each year the Kachinas emerge around February to remind people of their blessings and to teach the sacred rituals that bring rain. Around this time of year, the Kachinas return to their rest, escorted out of the human realms by the Niman ritual.

To bring Nuvak’chin’Mana’s coolheadedness and refreshing energy to your entire day, drink a glass of milk on the rocks at breakfast, lunch, and dinner (or anytime in between). It’s very refreshing, and the appearance of the beverage honors the goddess. If your region has been suffering from a dry spell, pour out a little of the milk and ice on the ground as an offering to Nuvak’chin’Mana so she might carry your need for rain to the nature spirits.

Last, take a moment at some point during the day to thank the Powers for all your blessings. A grateful heart is one ready to give and receive more of the Goddess!

Source

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

The Magickal Day of Thursday

Thursday is a day of royal blues and greens, associated with the planet Jupiter and metals like tin. When it comes to deities, look at leader type gods like Thor, Zeus, and Jupiter. Gemstone correspondences for Thursday include turquoise, amethyst and lapis lazuli, and plant associations can be found in honeysuckle, cinquefoil, and even oak trees.

This is a day for honor, fealty and family loyalty, as well as harvesting, success, and prosperity.

Take advantage of Thursday’s different aspects and do spellwork that brings abundance to you, declares your allegiance, and embraces prosperity.

Author

Published on ThoughtCo

Thursday’s Witchery

Today is the day for prosperity work of all kinds. It can also be used for healing work, whether that is a physical healing of an illness or an emotional healing. Also remember that you have to follow up your healing work and prosperity magick and physical action.

I can’t tell you the number of times I have met new witches who complain to me that their prosperity spell or “I need a better job” spell did not work as they expected. They’ll ramble on and on about how much time and money they spent working their magick….but, alas, they had no glorious manifestation of wealth or fabulous job that suddenly dropped out of the sky and landed in their laps.

Then, when I gently ask them, “Did you enchant your resume or application when you filled it out? Did you do a little confidence-boosting spellwork when you went to apply for the job or went to the interview?” typically they give me a blank, confused stare.

Nine times out of ten, their response is, “You mean I have to go out and actually look for the job too?” Um, yes, my dear, you certainly do. Magick follows the path of least resistance, which means it’s going to manifest along the simplest, quickest route. Get out there and hit the pavement. See what you can find. Times are tough and competition for good jobs is fierce, so you need whatever edge you can get. For folks like us, we’re going to get the edge by using our magick and our spellcraft.

Thursdays have such a rich source of magick for us to draw upon that, honestly, the sky is the limit. This is the day associated with the gods of the sky and heavens, after all. Get to know these deities and add their wisdom and magick into your days

Source

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

The Witches Honey-Do List for Thursdays

Try wearing some honeysuckle-scented perfume to encourage prosperity. Bewitch someone by wearing deep royal blue or brighten up a dreary day by wearing lucky, prosperity-drawing green. Brew up a pot of mint tea to help increase your cash flow. Try adding a pinch of nutmeg or cinnamon to an unscented candle to encourage some fast cash. Bake up a loaf of wheat bread for the family, and celebrate abundance and be thankful for all that you have.

Conjure up a witchy craft and create a philter or two for your magickal needs. Work with the deities and the magickal plants corresponding with Thursday.

How did the energies of the plants of Jupiter enhance your magick? What did you learn by working with Juno, Jove, or Zeus? The truth is that by adding these new techniques and information into your spellcasting repertoire, you will indeed advance your skills, thereby moving up in the ranks to become a more adept magickal practitioner

Just by believing in yourself and working toward creating abundance, health, and prosperity, you have already begun to transform your outlook on life. Put your game face on; think positively. Work with Thor for perseverance and courage, and apply those qualities to your own prosperity spells and healing witchery. Break out the tarot cards; How could you incorporate that symbolism into other spells of your own design?

Use your imagination, check Thursday’s correspondence list, and see what other bewitching things you can conjure up for prosperity magick all by yourself. Call on the gods and goddess of Thursday and bring some positive change, abundance, health, and prosperity into your life!

Source

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

The Witches Almanac for Thursday, July 27th

Sleepyhead Day (Finnish)

Waxing Moon

Moon phase: First Quarter

Moon Sign: Virgo

Moon enters Libra 11: 37 am

Incense: Clove

Color: Purple

The Witches Correspondences for Thursday, July 27th

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

Thursday Is Ruled By Jupiter

Thursday is a Jupiter day. Here is the day of the week for prosperity, abundance, and good health. Thursday is “Thor’s day.” This Norse god gave the day his name and many of his attributes, including strength and abundance. Some suggestions for Thursday enchantments would include:

Wearing a regal and royal shade of blue to see how it affects your mood and your magic. Other colors for the day include purple and green

Carrying a turquoise tumbled stone in your pocket to draw a little protective and healing energy your way

Incorporating honeysuckle blossoms and cinquefoil foliage into prosperity charms

Calling on Thor for abundance, or on the Roman god Jupiter for the ability to peacefully referee a fight

Adding a few oak leaves—which are sacred to these Thursday gods—to your charms to see how much better your spell works out

Casting a charm with wheat stalks for prosperity, and calling on Juno Moneta to bring wealth into your life

Baking up some whole wheat bread and blessing it for abundance. Be sure to thank the gods for your family and your good health.

Lammas

Northern Hemisphere: August 1 or 2
Southern Hemisphere: February 1 or 2

Pronounced: LAH-mahs

Themes: first fruits, harvest, gratitude, benevolent sacrifice, utilizing skills and talents

Also known as: Lughnasa, August Eve, Feast of Bread, Harvest Home, Gŵyl Awst, First Harvest

Situated on the opposite side of the Wheel from Imbolc, which heralds the end of the winter season, Lammas marks the beginning of the end of summer. It is the cross-quarter day between the Summer Solstice and the Autumn Equinox.

Although the days are still hot, sunshine is still abundant and the fields and forests are still teeming with life, we can begin to feel the telltale signs of the approaching autumn. The Sun sets earlier with each passing day, and many plants begin to wither, dropping their seeds to the ground so that new life can return at the start of the next growing season.

Berries, apples, and other fruits begin to ripen on trees and vines, and the grain in the fields has reached its full height, ready to be cut down and stored for the winter. This is a bittersweet time, as we are surrounded by the abundance of the summer’s bounty, yet becoming more aware by the day that we are heading back into dark time of year.

Lammas is the time of the “first fruits”and is known in Wiccan and other Pagan traditions as the first of the three harvest festivals. Grain crops are now or soon will be ready for harvesting, along with corn and many other late-summer vegetables and early-autumn fruits. Of course, plenty of produce has already been available for harvesting, and plenty more will be ready later on in the season. But Lammas marks the point in time when harvesting, rather than planting or tending, becomes the main focus.

This is a time to consciously recognize the fruits of our labors—whether literally or metaphorically—and to give thanks for all that has manifested. We recognize the inherent sacrifice of the plants that give their lives so that we may eat, and we are humbled by the greater life-and-death cycles that govern all of creation.

Just six weeks after the Summer Solstice, the God at Lammas is now visibly on the wane. He is approaching his old age, rising later each morning and retiring sooner every night.

The Goddess in her Mother aspect is still waxing, as the Earth continues to bear the fruit of the seeds planted at the start of the growing season. She is still pregnant with the new God, who will be born at Yule, after the old God completes his journey to the Underworld at Samhain. This is one of the most poignant moments on the Wheel of the Year, as the Goddess demonstrates that life goes on even though we all experience loss and the fading of the light.

In ancient agricultural civilizations, grain was often associated with the death and rebirth cycle, and many Wiccan mythological traditions draw on this archetype at Lammas. In one version, the Sun God transfers his power to the living grain in the fields, and so is sacrificed when the grain is cut down. The God willingly sacrifices himself so that his people may live.

And yet the God is later reborn, ensuring that the crops will grow once again to feed the people for another year. The harvest practice of saving seed grain for planting next year’s crop is both a practical necessity and a way of participating in the metaphor—saving the seeds is a way of ensuring the God’s rebirth.

Source

Wicca Wheel of the Year Magic: A Beginner’s Guide to the Sabbats, with History, Symbolism, Celebration Ideas, and Dedicated Sabbat Spells
Lisa Chamberlain

Witches Lammas Day

Lammas Day comes from a term circulated in the Dark Ages of Europe meaning “Loaf Mass”. It was a feast celebrating the final processes of the harvest year. Gathered wheat was made into delicious breads and even early forms of pastries, like berry and apple pies (all of the much- boasted-about recipes of the wealthy and powerful came from, yes, the “peasantry”).

The Gaelic Celts lists this as one of the four seasonal festivals of the pagan calendar and called it “Lughnasadh” (Loo-nass-sahh) meaning, “victory of Lugh” the three-faced god of Irish folklore. The day was commemorated with matchmaking, games, bilberry tea and climbing the hills to dance. What the good ole’ days must have been like!

Source

The Enchanter’s Almanac: 2016 to 2017 (First Edition)
Murray T. Paschal

Celebrating Lammas

The year is 1100. The date is August 1. The monks in the abbey at Gloucester are celebrating the holy-day of St. Peter in Chains. One of the monks wakes from a strange dream in which God promises to strike down the wicked King who has abused the Holy Church. His superior, Abbot Serlo, on hearing of the dreams sends a warning to the King, William the Red, who has oppressed all of England with taxes and disgusted many with his licentiousness and blasphemy. Red, as he is called, receives the message the following day while preparing to indulge in one of his favorite sports, hunting, in the New Forest. Although there are no longer any people dwelling in the New Forest — they were all cleared out by Red’s father, William the Conqueror — there are rumors that it’s a hotbed of pagan activity. And August 2 is an important pagan holy-day. The Saxons call it Lammas, the Loaf-Mass. William the Red laughs at the warning from the monks and goes out hunting. A short time later, he is dead, struck in the chest by a stray arrow, and his brother, Henry, who was in the hunting party is riding hot-foot for Winchester and the crown.

Now some people say that William the Red was a Lammas sacrifice, that having made a wasteland of his kingdom, he was killed by the people (or the Gods) as a sacrifice to bring new life to the land. And some people say his brother Henry has him assassinated. And some people say that both versions are true.

This story comes to my mind when I think of Lammas because I spent ten years researching a medieval novel set in the time of William the Red and Henry. But this tale of sacrifice and hunting, a dying King and a wasted land, embodies many of the dominant themes of Lammas, one of the four seasonal quarter-days, and perhaps the least well-known.

The Celts celebrate this festival from sunset August 1 until sunset August 2 and call it Lughnasad after the God Lugh. It is the wake of Lugh, the Sun-King, whose light begins to dwindle after the summer solstice. The Saxon holiday of Lammas celebrates the harvesting of the grain. The first sheaf of wheat is ceremonially reaped, threshed, milled and baked into a loaf. The grain dies so that the people might live. Eating this bread, the bread of the Gods, gives us life. If all this sounds vaguely Christian, it is. In the sacrament of Communion, bread is blessed, becomes the body of God and is eaten to nourish the faithful. This Christian Mystery echoes the pagan Mystery of the Grain God.

Grain has always been associated with Gods who are killed and dismembered and then resurrected from the Underworld by the Goddess-Gods like Tammuz, Osiris and Adonis. The story of Demeter and Persephone is a story about the cycle of death and rebirth associated with grain. Demeter, the fertility Goddess, will not allow anything to grow until she finds her daughter who has been carried off to the Underworld. The Eleusinian Mysteries, celebrated around the Autumn Equinox, culminated in the revelation of a single ear of corn, a symbol to the initiate of the cyclical nature of life, for the corn is both seed and fruit, promise and fulfillment.

You can adapt the themes of Lughnasad and Lammas to create your own ceremony for honoring the passing of the light and the reaping of the grain.

Source

School of the Seasons

Lammas Ritual

Items needed: Dress your altar with an orange altar cloth and decorate with straw, wheat, corn stalks, and flowers (red, orange and yellow) You will also need a bowl of cornmeal. Most appropriate cakes and ale is bread and red wine.

Set up: Green Candle Cakes and Ale Yellow Candle Silver candle Bowl of fresh bread Gold candle dough

Blue Candle Athame Red Candle

Pre-ritual instructions: Prepare your favorite recipe of bread dough ahead of time and let it rise so that it’s ready for your ritual.

Walk around your circle, sprinkling cornmeal.

This circle is now cast. Only love and light are present here. All negativity is banished!

Light the yellow candle.

Spirits of Air, of the warm summer winds Welcome to my circle.

Light the blue candle.

Spirits of Water, of the steady summer rains Welcome to my circle.

Light the red candle.

Spirits of Fire, of the hot summer sun Welcome to my circle.

Light the green candle.

Spirits of Earth, of the rich summer soils Welcome to my circle.

Light the silver candle.

Demeter, Ceres, keeper of the grain All Mother Goddesses Welcome here to my circle. Bestow your bounties here.

Light the gold candle.

Apollo, Ra, rulers of the sun, All Father Gods Welcome to my circle. Bestow your bounties here.

The fields are ripe, the first harvest is here. Nature has been bountiful under the blessings of the Lord and Lady. Our survival depends on the abundance of the earth, And our spirits depend on the love from above. The Sun God begins to grow weaker

As our bodies grow stronger from this harvest. Lord of the Grain, help me to understand your sacrifice. As you prepare to journey to the underworld, So prepare me for my own spiritual journey. Lady of the Moon, help me to understand the Great Cycle of life. As you prepare to give up your mate,
So prepare me to be reborn.

Take your athame and draw the shape of a sun on top of your bread dough. Meditate on the turning of the Wheel and the sacrifice of the God.
Raise your bread and goblet of wine to the sky.

Snuff the silver candle.

Lady of the Moon,
Corn Goddess,
Mother of All
I thank you for your blessings And the fertility you bestow on this earth.

Snuff the yellow candle.

Spirits of Air, of the warm summer winds Though your breezes die down Your presence is always felt. Hail and farewell

Snuff the blue candle.

Spirits of Water, of the steady summer rains Though your drenching nourishment tapers

Snuff the gold candle.

Lord of the Sun,
God of the Grain
Father of All,
I thank you for your blessings And the warmth you bestow on this earth.

Snuff the red candle.

Spirits of Fire, of the hot summer sun Though your rays grow weaker Your presence is always felt. Hail and farewell

Snuff the green candle.

Spirits of Earth, of the rich summer soils
Your presence is always felt. Hail and farewell.
Though your sands grow drier Your presence is always felt. Hail and farewell.

Sweep up and collect the cornmeal.

This circle is now open Yet still unbroken. Blessed be!

Post-ritual instructions: bury the cornmeal in the earth and ask for harvest blessings. Bake the bread dough with the sun on it, and share with your friends or family, giving thanks for the harvest.

Source

The Magical Circle School Newsletter: Lammas 2009
Colleen Criswell

Lammas Prayer to the Gods of the Harvest

Lammas is the season of the early harvest. It’s the time of year when the grain fields are abundant, and if you live in a rural area, it’s not uncommon to see threshers working their way across acres of wheat, corn, barley, and more. In less developed places, people still harvest their grain by hand, much as our ancient ancestors did. It’s also a time when many of us are enjoying the fruits of our labors, collecting greens, squashes, tomatoes, beans, and all kinds of other goodies that we planted in the spring.

This simple prayer is one you can use during your Lammas rituals, or even while you’re harvesting the bounty of your own gardens, honoring the many deities of the early harvest season. Feel free to add in the gods or goddesses of your own tradition as well.

Prayer to the Harvest Deities

The fields are full, the orchards blooming,
and the harvest has arrived.
Hail to the gods who watch over the land!
Hail to Ceres, goddess of the wheat!
Hail Mercury, fleet of foot!
Hail Pomona, and fruitful apples!
Hail Attis, who dies and is reborn!
Hail Demeter, bringing the dark of the year!
Hail Bacchus, who fills the goblets with wine!
We honor you all, in this time of harvest,
and set our tables with your bounty.

Author

Published on ThoughtCo

Celebrating Legends, Folklore & Spirituality 365 Days A Year for July 27th – 28th

July 27th and 28th

Hopi Kachina Dance

The Witches Current Moon Phase for July 27th

Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 20%

Phase Details for – Thursday, July 27, 2017

Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 20%
Moon Age: 4.40 days
Moon Angle: 0.51
Moon Distance: 386,752.47 km
Sun Angle: 0.53
Sun Distance: 151,910,724.50 km’

Source

Here’s a custom sunrise/set calendar (check the moonrise/set box).

A “Filthy Rich” Horoscope

Your Astrology birth chart holds clues to wealth

It fascinates me to know that each time I study my Astrology birth chart I am looking at the horoscope of someone with indications of significant wealth. Yep, I’ve got the birth chart of a rich person.

Of course, as someone with the natal Sun in Taurus I’m here to learn plenty of lessons about developing my talents, monetizing them and accumulating a physical legacy. That in itself is not a surefire indicator of wealth. In fact, ask any Taurus and you’ll hear a common story about going through significant fluctuations when it comes to money.

Astrology houses related to money

But when you combine my Taurus Sun with some of the other, classic indicators of wealth potential … well, it’s something any astrologer would take notice of. Take my Venus-Pluto opposition, which is the tightest aspect in my chart. Venus rules my natal 2nd House of Earned Income, while Pluto rules my natal 8th House of Joint Resources, which rules money that you get from sources besides your income. Things like royalties, investments, inheritance or your spouse’s income. Pluto intensifies whatever planet it touches, and when you’ve got a Venus-Pluto link that ties into your chart in a particular way, it can promise significant money.

If your Venus-Pluto link ties into Jupiter — the planet of expansion and abundance — then it’s a no-brainer that you’ll hit the jackpot in finances. In my case, Venus-Pluto ties into my Moon-Neptune conjunction in my 8th House of Joint Resources. Here we have a solid indicator that I will always marry someone with money. Not that I’m looking for it. Still, it’s a strong indication in my chart. Venus rules my 2nd House of Earned Income, but it also rules my 7th House of Partnerships. Interestingly enough, my first marriage was to a man of means. I truly loved him, but I will say that marrying him elevated my financial status in an incredible way.

Divorcing him, on the other hand, did not. Indeed, if you’ve got Neptune in the 8th House of Joint Resources there is a chance that you’ll amass great wealth, but that you might be defrauded into losing it at some point. Of course, with that Venus-Pluto opposition there are lessons of power struggles attached to money. Yeah, that divorce was not pretty — I paid a hefty price. And I’m not just talking about the $150,000 in legal fees.

What my divorce DID teach me, however, is that I am fully capable of creating my own wealth. And while it’s in my chart to marry well, it’s also in my chart to make that money myself. Thank God for that! Ironically, this will only happen as long as I am doing something spiritual and serving.

More money-making indicators

Another one of my “money-making indicators” is that I’ve got a gorgeous trine between Mars and Jupiter. When these two planets link up in a positive way in your chat, it’s a surefire gauge that you’ll always make money faster than you can spend it. I have found this to be true. Even when I’ve struggled financially, I always managed to stay ahead.

Jupiter happens to be in my 12th House of Spirituality, along with Venus. These two benefic planets are money planets, and some might think that because they’re tucked away in the hidden 12th house that I’ll never materialize these money dreams. Quite the opposite, actually.

The planet Neptune and its corresponding 12th House of Spirituality are notoriously active in the charts of the wealthy. There’s something to be said about having total faith in your ability to acquire wealth. If you’ve got a strong 12th house and/or Neptune, you’ve got that faith in spades.

Both of my 12th house planets aspect Neptune in the 8th house in my chart. Venus forms a trine and Jupiter a square. A Jupiter-Neptune aspect is known as the “millionaire’s aspect,” by the way. It doesn’t matter what type of contact these planets make in your chart. As long as there’s contact, there’s potential. If you’ve got a contact between Jupiter and Pluto in your chart, as Bill Gates does, then congratulations — you’ve got the “billionaire’s aspect.” I’m happy with the millionaire indicators — I don’t want to get greedy, now!

Free will still plays a role

Yes, it’s fun to contemplate how it appears I have the horoscope of someone destined for wealth. But the reality is that your natal promise needs your free will to fire it up and maximize all the potential you’ve got. And, of course, you need the right transits/progressions to trigger any promise in your horoscope, whether it’s for marriage, divorce, a move or wealth.

I grew up in the most humble of circumstances — a working-class family, the daughter of an immigrant from Italy. We lived paycheck to paycheck and I vividly remember significant hard times when my mother was forced to choose between paying a utility bill and buying us food. It was normal for us to eat rice and beans or pasta all week long during the really difficult times.

Growing up in an environment with so little physical security does lend itself to being a seeker of that security later in life. I’m pretty sure that’s why my soul chose to be a Taurus this time around. To learn the lesson that true security does not come from anything material. It does, in fact, come from within. Kudos to my Scorpio friends for already knowing that everything material is temporary. I know I can’t take it with me when I die, but while I’m here I would really like the security of not worrying how to provide for myself or my family.

I do not apologize for wanting financial security — or wealth for that matter. However, my soul does know with alarming clarity that for the universe to deliver this promise I must remain serving, benevolent and humble. I’ll continue to do my best to keep up my end of the promise to the universe as I patiently wait for him to deliver his end of the bargain.

In the meantime, what’s your wealth quotient? Maybe it’s time you scheduled a personal consultation with your friendly neighborhood astrologer to find out

Your Daily Horoscopes for Thursday, July 27th

Aries

Until midday, you’re in a work-oriented mood, dear Aries, whether this is about your job or getting your life sorted in small ways, such as by running errands, cleaning out a closet, working out, or applying yourself to a project that requires extra attention. You’re not always plugged into details as much as you are now, so take advantage! As the day advances, you’ll want to change your focus to something more interactive and fun. This change is due to the Moon’s move into your partnership sector and its harmony with the Sun and Mars in your house of recreation and romance. It’s a fine time to enjoy good company, a crush or attraction, or an exciting game. Others have a positive influence on you, gently egging you on and encouraging you to take action or do something fun and interesting that you may not have felt motivated to do otherwise.

Taurus

The morning is mostly smooth and has a natural flow to it, dear Taurus, as the Moon moves through and completes its transit of your sector of romance, fun, and leisure. Your emotions are similarly geared – you are looking for a good time! As the day advances, your interest in recent new projects and ideas returns, and as the Moon moves into your work and health sector midday, you begin to seek out more productive or practical activities. Motivation to improve family or home life propels you forward, and today, it may be about getting organized. This is also a fine time for taking care of your health and fitness. You’re striving towards a healthier, more engaged, and happier lifestyle.

Gemini

The first half of the day is good for attention to detail, dear Gemini, particularly related to home and family matters. While you could find yourself rather serious or retiring this morning, you’re coming out of your shell as the day advances. You become more and more impassioned, motivated, and positive, particularly if you’ve had some rest and centered yourself emotionally. There may be extra sizzle in a love relationship now, especially on a mental level. Communications can be spicy, exciting, and motivating. Passionate interest in what you’re doing is attractive to others. Your emotional doors are open, and good energy is with you for artistic expression, recreation, art appreciation, and hobbies. With your emotions and desire nature cooperating beautifully tonight, you are both appealing to others and highly resourceful.

Cancer

The first half of the day is good for intellectual and technical matters, dear Cancer, but as the day advances, you crave more downtime. The Moon moves into your home and family sector, and tonight, it cooperates wonderfully with the Sun and Mars in your resources sector, pointing to a greater need for security and familiarity, as well as willingness to put effort into pursuing these things. You’re motivated to make your life more comfortable and to enjoy family or domestic life more thoroughly. It’s a potentially excellent time for tapping into deeper needs, desires, and wants, although you could find yourself more desirous than usual! Your senses are powerful and working overtime. Your need for action is stirred, and with motivation, you can move mountains.

Leo

You’re in an action-oriented frame of mind these days, dear Leo, no doubt about it, but until midday, you’re focusing on building and developing rather than initiating. In fact, it’s an excellent time for attention to detail. As the day advances, however, your motivation to start something new or to create and share builds. While you are certainly more aggressive these days with the Sun and Mars in your sign, the other side of this is enthusiasm, and something you learn or come across can excite your curiosity now. You’re feeling independent, but you’re playing well with others today! Today is good for getting the word out, making connections, and exploring a new interest or idea.

Virgo

The first half of the day is excellent for seeking out a stronger connection to the world around you, dear Virgo. You’re unusually engaged and reactive now with the Moon in your sign. The second half of the day is more emotionally settled but just as action-oriented. You are highly motivated to get something useful done! While you have greater needs than usual for steadiness and comfort, you’re ready to pursue these things determinedly. You may be acting on a sudden or unusual whim, attraction, or desire, and this is most likely related to a relationship, joy, or creature comfort. You are extraordinarily resourceful today. You’re ready to make the most of what you have, but you also desire just a little more. You could feel a stronger motivation to make or spend money now!

Libra

Until midday, you’re inclined to keep to yourself, dear Libra, or to avoid mentally and emotionally stressful or demanding situations. This mood is due to the Moon’s transit of your privacy sector. You need a break from the usual pace of your life. You also tend to sort through recent and past experiences and see them from a different perspective. Your observation skills are excellent. The second half of the day is considerably livelier. Not only does the Moon move into your sign, stimulating high attention to unmet needs, but it also cooperates with the Sun and Mars in your friendship sector. You’re getting back in the game! You are particularly resourceful, suave, and dynamic now. While self-directed activities fare the best today, you’re gaining others’ cooperation easily.

Scorpio

The first half of the day is friendly but low-key, dear Scorpio, which can be welcome after some busy days. You’re gearing up as the day advances, but it’s also time to hit the emotional reset button as the Moon enters your sector of rest, reflection, and privacy. This is the time of the lunar month, lasting over two days, for taking a break, looking to the past, and reorienting yourself as you prepare for a new beginning. Even so, you’re unlikely to be inactive as the Moon connects to fireball Mars and the proud Sun. The desire to break from the past or to reconnect to it is high, and even though you’re going under the radar, you’re also quite focused on certain goals and ambitions. Aim for self-improvement today.

Sagittarius

You’ll be all geared up to take care of business this morning, dear Sagittarius, and while your sign doesn’t always play well with details, rules, and plans, you’re in an unusual mood for trying now. You can derive quite a bit of satisfaction out of crafting goals and making lists right now, so take advantage. As the day advances, you’re likely to want to kick back and enjoy yourself, but you won’t be kicking back too far. In fact, it can be a busy, engaged evening. Your sense of humor is in full force, and others truly enjoy your ideas and good company. The day should be spirited and hold some space for exploration and discovery, even if this only happens on a mental plane. You’re highly motivated to learn and share.

Capricorn

Until midday, you’re in great shape for learning and sharing, dear Capricorn. You’re interested in expanding or growing on a personal level, and learning is one way of expanding your horizons. You’ve been craving a little more adventure than usual, but as the day advances, you’re perfectly content to put aside your explorer’s hat and get down to business. In fact, you’re anxious to get going on new projects and ideas, and you’ll find that others are cooperative and supportive, even if this just means they’re stepping out of the way for you to pursue your goals. You’re active today, but you’re also pacing yourself well. You tend to draw upon the strength of your feelings to be productive and take the initiative.

Aquarius

Until midday, you’re in a focused, exclusive, and emotionally intense mood, dear Aquarius, as the Moon continues its transit of your intimacy sector and you seek out deeper satisfaction from your interactions, projects, and experiences. It’s a great time for doing a little research, investigation, or analysis. You’re bound to see all the details you’ve overlooked on other days, although you may not see the whole story quite yet. Bits and pieces need sorting, and further thought will get you there eventually. The second half of the day is more outgoing, sociable, and outwardly active. It can be a perfect time for a one-on-one activity or for learning something new. You can show a keen interest in a new topic of interest, and you may feel more courageous about taking a trip or mini adventure of sorts that pushes your usual boundaries.

Pisces

The first half of the day is rather light and sociable, dear Pisces. As long as you avoid dissecting a relationship or focusing on flaws rather than the bigger picture, you’re in a good position to enjoy yourself — and perhaps a relationship as well. As the day advances, your interest in doing something new, different, or bold returns full-on. However, you’re inclined to want to work independently, and you’re taking in more than you’re releasing energy. A project or work that needs doing can be in intense focus and can benefit from your enthusiasm. Your willingness to plumb the depths of a matter can work to your advantage, particularly if you apply this passion to something you love or a project that you’ve put off for later.

If You Were Born Today, July 27th

You are intensely curious and have a great hunger for knowledge. Your intellect is strong, and you can be a pioneer or natural leader. You possess organizational savvy and could do well in various media careers. Idealistic in love, it can take some time for you to find what or who you want. You are drawn to people who are strong, dynamic, and also responsible. While you can be self-sufficient and independent for the most part, you are also quite emotional and moody, and you have a great love of, and interest in, people and how they “work”. You are intimidating to some but admired by most.

Famous people born today: Norman Lear, Peggy Fleming, Maya Rudolph, Taylor Schilling, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Julian McMahon.

Get A Jump on Tomorrow….

Your Horoscopes for Friday, July 28th

Aries

Taurus

Gemini

Cancer

Leo

Virgo

Libra

Scorpio

Sagittarius

Capricorn

Aquarius

Pisces

Daily Tarot Card

The Empress

________________________________________

July 27, 2017

Keywords: ideas, creative impulses, intellect!

Astrological Correspondence: Venus

The Empress signifies the queen of life, the ideal woman, the archetypal mother. She represents the matriarchal goddess, being part of nature, fertility, sexuality, and the generative forces. As the life-giving mother she is connected to the Earth and the natural rhythms, the appreciation of the senses. As a card of good fortune she signifies that if we are gentle and caring, as well as patient, we can bring anything to fruition; we have to be able to wait until the time is right for action so that we can reap the rewards; as a result, hard work pays off and relationships become satisfying. The Empress can, in negative situations, also depict vanity, undeveloped creativity, stagnation, and apathy.

Daily Love Tarot

The Star

__________________________________________

July 27, 2017

The Star represents the end of a previous journey and the beginning of delight. When the Star chooses you it tells of a more balanced course that is something more agreeable than the rollercoaster ride you have been on. Just be careful what you wish for, because the Star is the promise of wishes fulfilled. It is the card of second chances. Or if you didn’t or do not take them, third chances.

Daily Rune for Thursday, July 27th

Hagalaz

“Hag-all-az” – Literally: “Hail” or “Hailstone” – Esoteric: Crisis or Radical Change

Key Concepts: hailstones, crisis and catastrophe, disruption, radical change, destructive elements of nature, severe weather, the uncontrollable, unavoidable unpleasantness, Jungian shadow, psychoanalysis, regression, acceptance of the unalterable

Psi: disruption, change, personal past

Energy: power beyond human ability to harness, perfect pattern, seed formation, objective confrontation, destructive natural forces, chaos

Mundane: bad weather, obstacles, surprises, shelter

Divinations: Change according to ideals, changes for the long-term good, controlled crisis, corrections, completion, inner harmony; or catastrophe, crisis, stagnation, loss of power, loss of property, short-term disappointment, victim-consciousness, obsession with the past, blame.

Governs:
Completeness and balance of power, integration of unconscious shadow elements
The inevitability of Fate, Wyrd, Orlog
Evolutionary progress and operations of becoming
The outworking of a perfect pattern
Protection through banishing or exorcising disharmonious patterns, protection
Awareness of the unconscious ideas for eventual processing
Causing discomfort in others by awakening their own subconscious ‘garbage’

Daily Crowley Thoth Tarot Card

Fortune

_________________________________________

July 27th, 2017

Fortune represents that aspect of life that is directed by forces and events we may not understand or even be aware of. In short, Fortune deals with chance—those occurrences that manage to alter even the most structured of lives, usurp man’s “best laid plans.” While the effects of Fortune are unpredictable, the outcome is always change; sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. Our path through life is never a ride down a perfectly straight highway. Sometimes we may even experience hairpin turns or complete reversals of direction. Fortune is strong reminder that despite our plans, the Universe has its own agenda from which we cannot escape participation.

Daily Animal Spirit

The Lizard

______________________________________________

July 27th, 2017

Are you dreaming a dream that’s big enough? If Lizard has appeared before you today, the gauntlet has been thrown down, the challenge made. Stop hiding your light beneath a rock—be willing to be bigger than life, to dream bigger than your imagination, to throw caution to the wind, and aim for the target you’ve spent a lifetime avoiding.

The Wisdom of Buddha

You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.

Earth Sky News for Thursday, July 27: Go someplace dark and watch meteors!

By Bruce McClure in Tonight

Tonight – July 27, 2017 – and in the coming nights, treat yourself to one of nature’s spectacles. Every year, people look forward to the August Perseid meteor shower. And it’s wonderful, with regular rates of about 60 meteors per hour at its peak. The Perseids are gearing up even now, so if you go outside between midnight and dawn tonight or this weekend, you might see some. But there’s another meteor shower happening now, too. It’s the Delta Aquarid meteor shower.

The Delta Aquarids don’t have as definite a peak as the Perseids. Instead, the shower produces a steady supply of meteors for some weeks in late July and early August. Tonight – or this weekend – are good times to watch because the moon is in a waxing crescent phase. That means the moon now sets in early evening. In other words, we have deliciously dark skies for watching the Delta Aquarids, which are at their best in dark hours before dawn.

These meteors are beautiful! See the photo above? Kelly Dreller in Lake Havasu City, Arizona caught this meteor in late July of 2016.

Tonight, or this weekend – under a dark sky, between midnight and dawn – you might see as many as 10 to 15 meteors per hour. Most will be somewhat faint, so be sure to find a dark sky!

The Perseid shower is expected to produce the greatest number of meteors on the night of August 11-12 or 12-13, 2017. However, the waning gibbous moon will be bright in the hours after midnight.

You can try watching the Perseids in moonlight. You’ll definitely see a few of the brighter ones, if you do. But late July/early August might be a better time to watch meteors in 2017, before moonlight becomes too overpowering. The Perseids are known to rise to a peak gradually, so they’ll be increasing in numbers every night over the coming weeks – although, at the same time, the moon will be increasing in brilliance and edging into the post-midnight sky.

Meanwhile, the Delta Aquarids will be raining down steadily, night after night.

Yes, you can watch from the South Hemisphere, too! The Delta Aquarids, especially, are a good shower for you. The Delta Aquarids fall more abundantly in the Southern Hemisphere, featuring perhaps 15 Delta Aquarid meteors per hour in an inky dark sky. All around the world, the radiant of the shower climbs highest up for the night around 2 to 3 a.m. local time (3 to 4 a.m. local Daylight Time), but the radiant soars way higher in the Southern Hemisphere than at comparable latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere.

Bottom line: Given dark skies, you won’t see as many meteors in late July and early August as you will at the Perseid meteor shower’s peak dates on the mornings of August 11, 12 and 13. But this year, in 2017, you won’t have much moon-free time for viewing the Perseids.

Bruce McClure

Bruce McClure has served as lead writer for EarthSky’s popular Tonight pages since 2004. He’s a sundial aficionado, whose love for the heavens has taken him to Lake Titicaca in Bolivia and sailing in the North Atlantic, where he earned his celestial navigation certificate through the School of Ocean Sailing and Navigation. He also writes and hosts public astronomy programs and planetarium programs in and around his home in upstate New York.

Article Published on EarthSky.org

A Little Thought from Me to You….

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To live a Life

Others Do Nor Understand

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“Remember For All Your Magickal Needs, think Magickal Necessities!”

The Witches Digest No. 9 for Tuesday, July 25th

The Witches Digest No. 9

Tuesday, July 25th, 2017

A Witch’s Tale

What is it like
To cast a spell?
To chant a charm?
To ring a bell?
To cast a circle?
To praise the moon?
To love the Earth?
To read the rune?
To love the Goddess?
To live her way?
To ebb and flow
Every day?
The trees, the grass,
The clouds and hills;
All these things
Witchcraft fills.
Every laugh,
Every cry,
Need you ask
The reason why?
The power can be found
From deep witin,
When you find it
You’re ready to begin.

—By The Light Of The Crystal Moon: A Book of Pagan Poetry and Short Stories
Elizabeth Gardiepy

Your Daily Solar & Lunar Info for Tueday, July 25th

The Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 91.04° E
Sun Altitude: 35.04°
Sun Distance: 94.417 million mi
Next Equinox: Sep 22, 2017 3:01 pm (Autumnal)
Sunrise Today: 5:54 am↑ 65° Northeast
Sunset Today: 8:07 pm↑ 295° Northwest

The Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 81.34° E
Moon Altitude: 6.67°
Moon Distance: 231504 mi
Next Full Moon: Aug 7, 20171:10 pm
Next New Moon: Aug 21, 20171:30 pm
Next Moonset: Today9:52 pm
Current Moon Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 6.4%

Lunar Calendar
Moon Phase Tonight: Waxing Crescent
First Quarter: Jul 30, 2017 at 10:23 am
(Next Phase)
New Moon: Jul 23, 2017 at 4:45 am
(Previous Phase)

Source

This list is originally from Astronomy Magazine’s August 2017 special eclipse issue.

Your Astronomy for Tuesday, July 25th

The Moon is in Leo until 6:32 AM, after which the Moon is in Virgo.
The Moon is waxing and in its New phase.
The New Moon occurred on the 23rd in the sign of Leo and the First Quarter Moon will occur on July 30th.
Mercury is in its pre-retrograde shadow (Mercury will be retrograde from August 12-September 5).
Mercury enters Virgo today (Mercury transits Virgo July 25-August 31 and then September 9-29).

Daily Astronomy Overview for Tuesday, July 25

The Moon continues its transit of Leo until 6:34 AM EDT when it enters Virgo. The Virgo Moon is practical and helpful. While we can find many things to do and we’re busier than usual, it’s easy to get into a comfortable routine. We want to be useful and productive, and focusing on details seems the best route to making headway. We are analytical, critical, and technical under the influence of a Virgo Moon. The details of daily existence capture our attention more than usual now, and in the coming weeks as well with Mercury’s move into the sign today. Mercury will transit Virgo until August 31st and then again from September 9-29 — a longer stay than usual due to Mercury’s upcoming retrograde from August 12th to September 5th. Mercury feels right at home in Virgo, one of the signs that it rules (the other is Gemini). We aim for more precision in our speech, thoughts, and methods during this cycle. We need to be careful that we don’t lose perspective if we find ourselves lost in details. We should also be aware of the possibility of expressing ourselves in a too factual manner, so much so that we come across as dry, critical, or unimaginative. Otherwise, this is a useful transit, particularly for skill-building, organization, and analysis.

A void of course Moon occurs from 5:23 AM EDT, with the Moon’s last aspect before changing signs (a conjunction to Mercury), until the Moon enters Virgo at 6:34 AM EDT.

The Sky This Week for July 25 to 30

Constellations, a crescent Moon, and other cool things to look for in the sky this week.
By Richard Talcott

Tuesday, July 25

The waxing crescent Moon stands some 8° to the upper left of the Mercury-Regulus pair this evening. Nine percent of Luna’s face appears lit tonight, and the greater illumination combined with the higher altitude make it much easier to see than it was yesterday.

Wednesday, July 26

By the time morning twilight starts to paint the sky, brilliant Venus already dominates the scene. The planet rises around 3 a.m. local daylight time and stands 10° high at the start of twilight an hour later. It’s hard to mistake Venus for anything else — at magnitude –4.0, it shines far brighter than any other object in the morning sky. Although the view with the naked eye or through binoculars is dazzling, you also should point a telescope in the planet’s direction. Not only does Venus show an 15″-diameter disk that appears nearly three-quarters illuminated, but this morning also offers a bonus: The planet lies less than 1° south of the Crab Nebula supernova remnant (M1).

Mars reaches solar conjunction at 9 p.m. EDT, when it lies on the far side of the Sun from our perspective. The Red Planet will remain hidden in our star’s glare until it emerges into morning twilight in September.

Thursday, July 27

Friday, July 28

Saturday, July 29

Sunday, July 30

Source

The Astronomy Magazine

25 things to bring to the eclipse

You know to bring eclipse glasses and a camera, but here are some things you will also want to bring along.
By Michael E. Bakich

I drew up this list for people who will be traveling to see the eclipse but won’t be part of an organized travel group. You might be planning to observe the eclipse alone, with friends or family, or at a public event. I wanted to provide a checklist of both common and unusual items that I’ll be bringing along and that I think you should bring to the eclipse as well. Such an inventory could get out of hand quickly, so I limited it to 25 entries. They’re not ordered in any special way except for items #1 and #2, which I consider the most important of all.

1. Sunscreen

When someone says, “solar safety,” this is what I think of. So should you. And here’s something to note: If your bottle of sunscreen is more than two years old, replace it. That’s the standard shelf life for this product. If you see someone who has forgotten sunscreen, please be a peach and share. You also might want to bring an umbrella for some welcome shade.

2. Water

August 21 will be warm everywhere in the United States and hot in many places. Even large events may run out of this vital fluid. Don’t leave home without it. If you’re driving, bring at least a case of bottled water with you. For just a couple of bucks, you’ll be guaranteed not to dehydrate.

3. Approved solar filter

Whether you use eclipse glasses, a homemade filter using solar Mylar, or a #14 welder’s glass, you will need this to view the partial phases. Also, if you plan to view the partial phases through any equipment (binoculars, telescope, etc.), you will need approved solar filters — not eclipse glasses — for each of them.

4. Camera

You’ll want to document the day and the activities surrounding the event. My advice remains firm, though: Do not photograph the eclipse! For those of you ignoring this sage wisdom, also pack a tripod.

5. Transistor radio

Some events (like the one in St. Joseph, Missouri) will be broadcasting as the eclipse happens. Others will be reporting eclipse-related news, including important items like traffic and weather. The nice thing about a radio is that the broadcast will come in no matter how many people are listening. That won’t be true if you’re relying on Wi-Fi or cell service. Make sure your radio’s batteries are fresh.

6. Binoculars

This is a great way to get close-up views of the corona during the total phase of the eclipse. And during the half-hour or so prior to totality, you can scan the sky away from the Sun to try to locate Venus (and Jupiter from locations east of Idaho).

7. An eclipse guide

Several are available as books or e-books. You might, for example, check the selections at Astronomy’s online store, http://www.myscienceshop.com.

8. Food or snacks

Certainly this isn’t as critical as water; I mean, you’re not going to starve. You probably will get hungry waiting for the eclipse to start, however. Don’t assume your location will have food. We expect millions of people to flock to events along the center line. It’s quite possible that even well-stocked stores and supply stands will sell out even before you arrive. Consider having some healthy snacks or premade sandwiches. Such items can help you avoid fast food and give you options in more culinary-challenged communities.

9. Medicine

Be sure you have any prescriptions you need to take with you. And some pain medication also is a good idea. Sometimes too much Sun gives certain people headaches, and too much standing for older folks can be painful. Which leads to . . .

10. Chairs

Bring at least one chair (fold-up varieties pack best) for each person in your party. Even if you attend an organized event, don’t assume anyone will provide seats. Do assume that if there are seats, they will already have been taken. You’re not going to want to stand for (a minimum of) three hours, and if you’re like me, you don’t do well lying on the ground. The best chairs you can bring let you sit upright or recline. Actually, if I weren’t hosting an event, I’d bring the nice air mattress we keep for those occasions when several guests visit.

11. Toilet paper

Let’s see, millions of people on the road, rest stops few and far between . . . you fill in the details.

12. Hand sanitizer

13. Extra eyeglasses

You won’t forget the ones on your face, but something may happen to that pair.

14. Kids’ stuff

I have no children, so I can’t specify items. I can, however, advise you to bring whatever you will need to keep your offspring happy, comfortable, and occupied. Be aware that, in many locations, cellphone and Wi-Fi access may be limited or nonexistent. Bring along something that doesn’t rely on wireless access to entertain your kids. You may discover, much to your chagrin, that your young children do not share your appreciation or awe for the eclipse. Obviously, you’re a terrible parent. But don’t worry; they’ll be seven years older when the 2024 eclipse rolls around.

15. Broad-brimmed hat

This will keep the Sun off your head and face, and also your neck if the hat’s brim is wide enough. You’ll probably sweat, but that’s a reasonable trade-off. Keep drinking water.

16. Power inverter

You can’t plug most laptops or video players directly into a car. A small DC-to-AC power inverter will let your passengers play games or movies for the whole length of the trip without having to worry about draining the batteries in their devices. Another similar device is a car-lighter-plug-to-USB socket. Such adapters can operate or charge items that don’t require much power, like cellphones.

17. Pillow

Actually, bring a pillow for every reclining chair you take along. Your passengers also might like to use these in the car if the ride is long.

18. Sunglasses

Remember, despite their name, sunglasses are not for viewing the Sun through. They are for providing eye comfort when you look at everything else.

19. Cash

If you meet me at the event I’m hosting in St. Joseph, Missouri, you can thank me with this. Seriously, some vendors at eclipse events may not take credit or debit cards, and, even for those who do, with the huge numbers of people in transit, paying with cash may save you some serious time.

20. Insect repellent

The farther along the shadow’s path toward the southeastern United States you set up, the more important this item will become.

21. Phone

I list this mainly for completeness. Does anyone ever forget to bring a phone anymore? Certainly nobody under 35. Now, permit me one further note about this item. It’s probable that at large events (especially in smaller towns), the number of people accessing their cellphones will overwhelm nearby cell towers. Be sure to tell anyone tracking your movements that you may be out of touch for a significant amount of time. If you need definite access to communication, consider renting a satellite phone for the weekend. I hope you don’t need it, but a small investment will yield peace of mind.

22. Telescope

But reduce the hassle by bringing along only the minimum number of items to go with it. I won’t detail them here because everyone’s scope “kit” is different. Before you pack it, set up your scope either outside in the daytime or indoors, and verify that you have a complete system.

23. Astrophoto gear

If you’re going to photograph the eclipse, you’ll need more than a camera. Make sure you have whatever essentials you need. Keep these items together, preferably in the same bag or container as your camera. Check them twice, then have someone else check them while you watch.

24. Odd parts and tools

If you have a telescope, you’ll understand what I mean. As an example, some of the things my kit contains are extra knurled knobs, an Allen wrench set, half a dozen small ziplock plastic bags, at least two each of three types of small clamps, a micro-screwdriver set (also useful for fixing eyeglasses), lens-cleaning paper, at least a dozen each of two sizes of plastic zip ties, extra hardware for any tripod-mounted setups I may attempt, extra solar filters, and, you guessed it, duct tape.

25. Personal items

You won’t be hiking the Himalayas or venturing into the deep ocean aboard a submarine to experience this event. You’ll have room for a few extras, especially if you’re driving. If there’s something that’s especially meaningful to you and you want to bring it along, no harm done.

The Magick of Tuesday

Magickal Intent:
Courage
Binding
Protection
Achievement
Power
Initiation
Protection
Passion

Planet: Mars

Colors: Red, Orange

Crystal: Garnet, Ruby

Incense: Myrrh, Ginger, Cardamom

Plant: Cardamom

Today is Tuesday, July 25th

Tuesday is dedicated to the powers of the planet Mars, personified in Ares, Tiwaz, Tiw, Tuisco and Tyr. Tuesday rules controlled power, energy and endurance.

Deity: Tiwaz

Zodiac Sign: Aries

Planet: Mars

Tree: Holly

Herb: Plantain

Stone: Agate

Animal: Crab

Element: Fire

Color: White

Number: 2

Rune: Tyr (T)

Celtic Tree Month of Tinne(Holly) – July 8 – August 4

Runic Half-Month of Ur (primal strength) – July 14 – July 28

Goddess of the Month of Kerea – July 11 – August 8

Source

The Pagan Book of Days
Nigel Pennick

On Tuesday, July 25th, We Honor The Goddess Spider Woman

MANY CULTURES AROUND THE world believe that all of the world’s creatures are connected by a strong, but delicately woven, web. The Pueblo Indians credit the spinning of this web of life to a creation goddess so potent that her true name is never spoken aloud. Some call this goddess Spider Woman. She is also honored as Thought Woman, because everything was created from her thoughts.

Spider Woman existed before the world existed. By spinning and chanting, she was able to create the four directions of the universe—north, south, east, and west. Within this sacred space, she produced her daughters, Ut Set and Nau Ut Set. Following their mother’s directions carefully, Ut Set and Nau Ut Set made the sun, moon, and stars to banish darkness from the universe; they created these heavenly bodies from shells, turquoise, red rock, yellow stone, and clear crystal.

As she spun her web and thought, Spider Woman made all of life, including the mountains, lakes, oceans, and deserts. She also created the different races of people from differently colored clays. Finally, using a last thread of her web, Spider Woman connected each human being to her always.

Other Native American traditions acknowledge Spider Woman. She is a creatress to the Pima and Zia Indians. The Navajo believe she taught them how to weave. Among the Hopi Indians, who settled in what is now known as Arizona, she was one of the deities who created Poquanghoya and Palongawhoya; these powerful twins created the earth, with its bountiful fields, seas, and mountains.

Source

The Book of Goddesses: Expanded Anniversary Edition
Kris Waldherr

The Magickal Day of Tuesday

Named for the Norse god Tyr, who was a deity of heroism and combat, Tuesday is a very martial sort of day – color associations include bright red and oranges, as well as warrior-like metals such as iron and steel.

The ancient Romans called this day Martis, after the warrior god Mars – other deities associated with Tuesday include Ares, the Morrighan, and other gods of battle and glory. Red gemstones like rubies and garnets come into play on Tuesdays, as do herbs and plants such as thistles, holly, coneflowers and cacti – you’ll notice these are all sharp, prickly plants!

One of the interesting – and more than a little amusing – aspects of Tuesday magic is that in addition to war and conflict against your enemies, this is a day also associated with marriage. You can also use this day of the week for magical workings connected to protection and initiation. Use Tuesday to assert yourself, make a mark and stake your claims

Source

Patti Wigington, Paganism/Wicca Expert
Article originally published on & owned by ThoughtCo.

The Witches Guide To Tuesdays

A god, goddess, or planet governs each day of the week. It is usually easy to spot the ruler of the day by its name. The word Tuesday, however, is not so easy, but if we look at the word in Spanish, Martes, we clearly see its connections to Mars.

Because Tuesday revolves around the energy of Mars, Tuesdays are good for business, mechanical things, buying and selling animals, hunting, beginning studies, gardening, sexual activities, and confrontation. This is a day for sex magick, energy, stamina, and health. As in the old saying, Tuesdays child is full of grace, is also good for success magick and defense against enemies.

Angels of Tuesday are Camael, Samael, Satael, Amabiel, Friagne, and Hyniel. When invoked, Camael takes the form of a leopard. In Druid mythology he is a god of war, which is why we see him associated with Mars. Camael is said to be a member of the “Magnificent Seven” in some circles. Camael is another “terminator” angel.

Samael walks both worlds as a magician and sorcerer. some see him as the angel of death, others as “the bright and poisonous one.” Many consider him more of a demon, and accuse him of being Satan. However, there is reference to the satans (plural) as enforcers of the law, a sort of angelic police, if you will. Supposedly, when Samael is around, dogs howl in the night. On one hand, he is the ruler of the fifth heaven and in charge of two million angels; on the other, he is the one who changed into a serpent and convinced Eve to partake of the forbidden fruit of knowledge.

Satael is an angel of air invoked in magic rites and is the presiding spirit of the planet Mars. Amabiel is another spirit of the planet Mars; however he spends his energy on issues of human sexuality. Friagne, also an angel of this day, is invoked from the east. He is a member of the fifth heaven. Hyniel also belongs to this day and is subject to the east wind.

On Tuesdays the hour of sunrise and every eight hours after that are also ruled by Mars, and that makes these times of the day doubly blessed. These four hours are the strongest ones to do ritual in. Check your local newspaper, astrological calendar, or almanac to determine your local sunrise.

Source:

Gypsy Magic

The Witches Almanac for Tuesday, July 25th

Illapa Festival (Incan)

Waxing Moon

Moon phase: First Quarter

Moon Sign: Leo

Moon enters Virgo 6: 32 am

Incense: Geranium

Color: Gray

Moon in Virgo

The Moon in Virgo generally favors the following activities: Mental pursuits, work activities, services, and routines. Activities that would benefit from tending to details.

Correspondences for Tuesday, July 25th

Tuesday (Tiw’s-day)

Planet: Mars

Colors: Red and Autumn Shades

Crystals: Bloodstone, Ruby, Garnet, Flint, Rhodonite, Iron and Steel

Aroma: Basil, Ginger, Black Pepper, Mars Oil, Dragon’s blood and patchouli

Herb: Basil

The day of Mars. This day could only ever symbolize the sheer power of the god of war! The ideal spells to be cast on this day are that of force, power war and protection.

Dedicated to the powers of the planet Mars, personified as Ares, Tiwaz, Tiw, and Tyr.

Magical aspects: controlled power, energy, and endurance, passion, sex, courage, aggression, and protection.

This is the proper day of the week to perform spells and rituals involving courage, physical strength, revenge, military honors, surgery, the breaking of negative spells, dynamic energy, matrimony, war, enemies, prison, hunting, politics, contests, protection, victory, and athletics.

Tuesday Is Ruled By Mars

Tuesday is a Mars day, and just like the god of war, this is the time to tap into magicks to call for strength and courage. This day of the week is for rebels and warriors. If you are facing a challenge of any kind, need a boost to your courage, or want to enhance your passions, Tuesday is the day of the week for you. Some suggestions for Tuesday enchantments would include:

*Wearing the fiery colors associated with this day: scarlet, red, black, and orange. Don some of the more daring and bewitching colors of your wardrobe on Tuesdays and turn a few heads.

*Carrying a bloodstone in your pocket or wearing garnet-studded jewelry to reinforce your convictions

*Working with protective and fire-associated plants such as the snapdragon, thistle, and holly to boost your shields and bravery

*Burning spicy-scented energy-enhancing candles to add a little magical aromatherapy to your home

*Cooking up a hearty meal featuring carrots, peppers, and garlic (all Mars foods and spices) to empower yourself for victory and success

The Energy of Mars

Weekday ruled by Mars: Tuesday

Stones:
Bloodstone
Garnet
Carnelian
Pink Tourmaline

Herbs and Plants:
Red Rose
Cock’ comb
Mugwort
Mullien
Nettle
Thistle
Wormwood

Magickal Intention: Courage, physical strength, revenge, military honors, surgery, breaking negative cycles, war, viltality, Assertiveness.

The Witches Magick for Tuesday, June 25th – Amaterasu Sun Goddess Ritual

You will need:

1 red candle to represent the goddess

1 candle to represent yourself in your preferred color

1 black candle to represent the shadow self

1 white candle

Round mirror or mirrors (makeup compact mirrors are okay)

Crystals, if desired

Cinnamon incense

Oils, such as Jasmine and/or Dragon’s Blood

Cast your Circle; call in the Elements, 4 Directions, and the Higher Powers. Also your ancestors and guides, if you wish.

‘Dress’ or oil your candles. If you are going to carve anything on them though, do that first. On the red candle, carve an image of the sun. On the black candle, carve ‘facing the shadow self’ and ‘releasing negativity’. You can use two black candles if you wish, up to you. You can carve your name on yours, and since the white one will represent Spirit or Enlightenment, you can carve that on it or just leave it blank. (The intent is always the main thing!) Put mirrors around to represent the sun goddess, and crystals such as white quartz or citrine, yellow topaz.

Light your candles. Put the white candle next to the black candle to represent illumination. Put your candle next to the goddess candle. Put mirrors and crystals around the candles.

Center yourself; then say this invocation three times.

INVOCATION TO AMATERASU

Amaterasu, bright Goddess of the Sun!

Shine upon us who call upon you!

Light the path before us,

Keep us safe in your warm comfort.

You who abhor violence and strife,

Please defend us from any evil ones

With your heavenly arrows.

Help us laugh like you did with Uzume,

As she did her funny dance for you!

Shed light on our shadow selves

So we can work through darkness within,

And find the love and joy we need.

…….
When you are through with the invocation, visualize bravely facing the shadows within yourself. Visualize light being shed upon any darkness within, and then coming out of a cave and into the light. You are greeted by your ancestors, guides and guardians, and surrounded with love. Amaterasu gives you a kiss on your forehead and gives you her blessing.

When you are through, go to the door and open it. Visualize yourself as guided, protected, and full of joy, and this going out into the Universe to manifest. Then say, “So Mote it Be!” Clap your hands and visualize any extra energy going into Mother Earth.

A Little Humor for Your Day – Signs That You Need More Room For Ritual

Your goals for ritual include finishing without knocking over the fire element.
You need to time your rituals to last no more than 1 hour, in order to not be suffocated by the one incense stick in the east.
Your familiar entering the circle pushes you out of it.
And your familiar is a dragon fly.
Your cauldron is a coffee cup and your altar is a dinner plate.
You must dance while sitting, so you don’t trip over Freya.
You think your carpet has turned white, but then you realize it’s the salt you used to mark the circle.
The last time you invoked the Horned One, you had to patch the ceiling.
The water element sunlight’s a fishbowl, a drinking glass, and a sink, simultaneously.
Your coven is only three people, and you still have to leave your shoes in the hallway to make room.
You have to offer money to the Gods, because a steak or loaf of bread would take up too much space in the circle.
You have to fold the bed against the wall to fit the air element in.
Your rituals are all skyclad, after that nasty incident of an overanxious candle torching all the coven’s robes at once last Lammas.
You’re a Taurus, and you still think this situation must change.
You’re a Scorpio, but you’re developing a fear of candle fire.
You’re a Gemini, but you have no indecision about the need for more room.
You’re a Leo, and you’re growing shy because it’s your bedroom we’ve been practicing in.
You’re an Aries, but you’re now adept at dancing around numerous candles on the floor without burning yourself, for reasons of survival.
You’re a Cancer, but you don’t need to ask your mother if this is enough space. You know it’s not.
You’re a Virgo, and you can’t manage to engineer the space in order to fit everyone.
You’re a Libra, and you’re firmly with Gemini on this one.
You’re a Sagittarius, but the remains of the sea glass from the West at last Esbat which will still not leave your feet are starting to depress you.
You’re a Capricorn and you are starting to dream of grand forests with acres of space, and a mansion to practice in on rainy days.
You’re an Aquarius and the burning hair problem is starting to make you emotional.
You’re a Pisces but you know that something’s wrong.
You’re a Discordian, but when asked if the problem needs to be fixed, you reply, “Yes, immediately! How about my place?”
You’re a New Ager, but not even you believe another crystal will help.
You’re an Old Wiccan, but have started using the chalice and wand for the Great Rite anyway.
You’re a Neo Wiccan, but you’ve had to remove some of the rainbows and “Goddess loves us!” banners in order to make room for your name.
You’re Asatru, but you’re starting to consider putting some of your battle axes into storage.
Last time to walked to the West you flooded the place.
Casting a circle involves moving things out of the way.
Jumping over your bed is part of the spiral dance.
If the whole coven ever drew their athames to call the quarters, you would wind up with CSI: Between The Worlds.
You are openly Pagan but still can say you’re in the closet.

Source

Turok’s Cabana

The Witches Current Moon Phase for Tuesday, July 25th

Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 6%

Phase Details for – Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 6%
Moon Age: 2.32 days
Moon Angle: 0.53
Moon Distance: 376,973.35 km
Sun Angle: 0.52
Sun Distance: 151,941,683.83 km

Source