Spellcrafting for Friday

 Love
 Peace
 Family
 Marriage
 Beauty
 Growth
 Art
 Social status
 Passion
 Music
 Sexuality

 

Source

A Spell Crafter’s Compendium
Terri Paajanen

The Sky This Week: May 20 – May 22

 

Friday, May 20

• Although Saturn will reach opposition and peak visibility two weeks from today, observers will be hard-pressed to see it as inferior this week. The ringed planet rises shortly after 9 p.m. local daylight time and appears highest in the south around 2 a.m. Saturn shines at magnitude 0.1 and stands out against the relatively dim background stars of southern Ophiuchus. If you target the beautiful world through a telescope, you’ll see its 18″-diameter disk surrounded by a ring system that spans 42″ and tilts 26° to our line of sight.

Saturday, May 21

• The Moon looks completely illuminated all night as it reaches Full phase at 5:14 p.m. EDT. You can find our satellite rising in the east around sunset and peaking in the south at 1 a.m. local daylight time. The Moon passed 6° due north of Mars during the afternoon hours, and those two form a dramatic quadrilateral with Saturn and the 1st-magnitude star Antares throughout the night.

Sunday, May 22

• Mars lies opposite the Sun in our sky today as it reaches peak visibility for 2016. The Red Planet appears low in the southeast as darkness falls and grows more prominent as the evening wears on and it climbs higher. By 1 a.m. local daylight time, it stands one-third of the way to the zenith in the southern sky against the backdrop of stars in northern Scorpius. The world shines at magnitude –2.1, brighter than it has been since 2005. When viewed through a telescope, the planet’s ocher-colored disk spans 18.4″ and shows subtle dark markings along with a whitish north polar cap. The Red Planet actually will come closest to Earth eight days from now, when its disk will swell to 18.6″ across. For more details on viewing the planet, see “Observe Mars at its best” in the May Astronomy.

• The Moon’s eastward motion relative to the background stars carries it 3° north of Saturn in this evening’s sky.
 

Source

Astronomy Magazine

 

 

Your Daily Sun & Moon Data for Friday, May 20th

Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 101.69° ESE
Sun Altitude: 48.50°
Sun Distance: 94.075 million mi
Next Solstice: Jun 20, 2016 5:34 PM (Summer)
Sunrise Today: 5:42 AM↑ 64° Northeast
Sunset Today: 8:00 PM↑ 296° Northwest
Length of Daylight: 14 hours, 18 minutes

 

Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 304.08° NW
Moon Altitude: -53.97°
Moon Distance: 251510 mi
Next Full Moon: May 21, 20164:14 PM
Next New Moon: Jun 4, 20169:59 PM
Next Moonrise: Today6:58 PM
Current Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous
Illumination: 98.4%

 

Source

timeanddate.com

 

I just happened to run across a tons of old Irish & Celtic blessings & prayers. Since I am Celtic (and missing my homeland), I automatically fell in love with them. I was wondering if you would mind if I shared them with you.

If you survive my Celtic tradition, feel free to let us know about your tradition. We will see what we can dig up and do the same for you. Post any and all information about your Path, Tradition or Religion we can find, all you have to do is ask.

So let’s get this party started, I hope I don’t give you Celtic burn out and remember if you want us to do the same for your Tradition, just let us know.

Have a blessed day, my sweets,

Love ya,

Lady A

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2016 May 19

The Surface of Europa
Image Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech, SETI Institute

 

Explanation: An enhanced-color view, this image covers a 350 by 750 kilometer swath across the surface of Jupiter’s tantalizing moon Europa. The close-up combines high-resolution image data with lower resolution color data from observations made in 1998 by the Galileo spacecraft. Smooth ice plains, long fractures, and jumbled blocks of chaos terrain are thought to hide a deep ocean of salty liquid water beneath. Though the ice-covered alien ocean world is outside the Solar System’s habitable zone, new studies show the potential chemistry driving its oxygen and hydrogen production, a key indicator of the energy available for life, could produce amounts comparable in scale to planet Earth. Hydrogen would be generated by chemical reactions of the salty water in contact with the rocky ocean floor. Oxygen and other compounds that react with hydrogen would come from Europa’s surface. There water ice molecules would be split apart by the intense flux of high-energy radiation from Jupiter and cycled into the Europan ocean from above.

Deneb, tail star in Cygnus the Swan

Tonight, look for Deneb, the brightest star in the constellation Cygnus the Swan. The night sky chart at the top of this post presents the view toward the northeast in mid-to-late evening during the month of May. It’s the view from mid-northern latitudes. It’s by looking in this direction that you can get a good look at the bright star Deneb, which should be visible even in tonight’s moon-drenched skies. This star is part of not one but two striking star patterns. And it’s one of the most distant stars we can see with the eye alone, well over 1,000 light-years away. Follow the links below to learn more.

Deneb is part of the Summer Triangle pattern

Deneb is also part of a smaller, cross-like pattern

Deneb is part of the Summer Triangle pattern. Deneb – along with the stars Vega and Altair – is part of the famous Summer Triangle asterism, which will be well up in the east in mid-evening next month. On these Northern Hemisphere late spring evenings, you might not be able to see the whole Summer Triangle until later at night. The star Altair will be the last of these three stars to rise. But you can see the bright star Deneb to the lower left of Vega, the Summer Triangle’s brightest star.

Deneb is also part of a smaller, cross-like pattern. Deneb is the brightest star in the constellation Cygnus the Swan. If you look at the cross-like pattern indicated on the chart at the top of this post, you might be able to imagine Deneb as the point marking the short tail of a long-necked swan flying toward the south. This is how early Arabian stargazers saw it. The name Deneb comes from the Arabic and means tail, and in skylore Deneb is often said to be the Tail of the Swan. The little star Albireo marks the Swan’s Head.

But there’s another way to see this pattern of stars that works equally well. In more modern skylore, this pattern is sometimes called the Northern Cross. It looks like a cross, right? If you prefer to see the Cross instead of the Swan, Deneb marks the head of the Cross. Cross or Swan … this is a lovely pattern to pick out on the sky’s dome.

Astronomers know that Deneb is one of the most distant stars we can see with the eye alone. The exact distance to Deneb can only be estimated, with estimates ranging from about 1,425 light-years to perhaps as much as 7,000 light-years. At any of these estimates distances, Deneb is one of the farthest stars the unaided human eye can see. It is so far, that the light that reaches the Earth today started on its journey well more than 1,000 years ago.

More about Deneb: Among most distant stars visible

Bottom line: The star Deneb is part of the Summer Triangle asterism. And it’s part of the constellation Cygnus the Swan, which can also be seen as a Cross. Look for the star Deneb tonight! At well over 1,000 light-years away, it’s one of the most distant stars we can see with the eye alone.

 

Source

EarthSky

The Words of Confucius

The superior man is distressed by the limitations of his ability; he is not distressed by the fact that men do not recognize the ability that he has.

Consult the Psychic Eight Ball Oracle

Query: How will the rest of our day be?

Well, ain’t that informative, lol!

Your Daily Influences
May 19, 2016

 

Four of Swords
A period of rest and restoration of energies. Tensions subside. Good changes are soon to come.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sowilo
The Sun Rune, denotes power and strength. That which you want may be attained. Sowilo also denotes mental clarity and added warmth to your relationships.

 

 

 

 

The Hei Tiki
Now is an ideal time to learn. Your mind is particularly keen at this time for the study of witchcraft, divination and esoteric subjects. Knowledge affects this aspect.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Daily Influences represent events and challenges the current day will present for you. They may represent opportunities you should be ready to seize. Or they may forewarn you of problems you may be able to avoid or lessen. Generally it is best to use them as tips to help you manage your day and nothing more.

Your Daily Charm for Today

Today’s Meaning:
A course of events that cannot be altered has been set in motion within this aspect. Accept whatever happens in the near future and do not waste your time fretting about it–you can do nothing.

General Description:
This was a favourite charm in Egypt, worn in order to frustrate magicians, sorcerers and evil wishers from bewitching the wearer and stealing the soul from the heart; for it was the general belief that if the soul left the heart, the body would soon fade away and perish. The ancient Egyptians also believed that, after death, the heart was taken, in the underworld, and weighed against the symbols of the law; if found perfect, it was restored to the body, which at once came to life again and enjoyed everlasting felicity

I had a lady in the back ask me about the Witches Runes. She wanted to know if I could explain them to her. At that time, I didn’t take time to respond to her because the Runes are complicated. Well not complicated, just a lot to them. Their history, how to make them, how to consecrate them, how to use them for divination and much, much more. I could not begin to give you all the details involved in the Runes in that tiny comment section. So I posted the link to our Rune section below. It will give you a general idea of what they are. I believe mostly there is info about the Elder Futhark Runes is there. The Witches Runes only consists of 13 runes and there is very little known about them. Every time I run across anything about them, I immediately snatch it.

 

I didn’t want you to think I had ignored you. But there is way too much about the Runes for me to explain back there and this link will give you a better understanding than I ever could. After you look over, if you have any questions, please let me know.

 

Blessings to you,

Lady A

https://witchesofthecraft.com/category/the-runes/

Witches Rune for the Day

The Blank Rune

Meaning: This is a rune of difficulty and negative influences will rule your life for a time, but as all difficulties are a learning experience it will lead to improved personal perspective and progress on your life’s path. Always consult the surrounding runes with this stone. If it lies with a positive stone, it indicates that the pain of this experience will lead to a beneficial change in circumstances