Tag: Azure (color)

Calendar of the Moon for October 1

Calendar of the Moon

1 Gort/Puanepsion

Day of the Ivy

Color: Sky blue
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon a sky-blue cloth set a pot of ivy, a single sky-blue candle, a pot of soil, seeds of some rare medicinal herb, a bowl of water, and a bell.
Offerings: Plant seeds. Do a spiral walking meditation.
Daily Meal: Vegan

Invocation to the Green Man of the Ivy

Hail, Green Man of the Autumn!
Ivy that twines up stone walls,
Who can hold up a house or tear it down,
Spiral dancer whose twisting
Echoes the material we are made of,
Wreath of the Maenads,
Kin to the red-caps in the faery rings,
You remind us that there is a price
For your twining sister’s intoxication.
Mute swan who outstretched wings
Are your elegant speech to the sky,
Ivy-girl of the final harvest,
You bind the last sheaf of wheat,
As mute testament to the failure
Of those whose work has not
Matched the speed of the turning year.
We bow our heads in supplication
Before you, ivy that winds us
And our dead in their sleeping places.
We hail you, sacred ivy,
Green Man of the Autumn,
On this the day of your binding.

(Each comes forward and plants a seed in the pot of soil, saying, “Hail Green Man of the Earth!” Water is poured onto the pot, and then the rest is poured out as a libation. Then all join hands and move in a silent spiral dance to the sound of slow drumming. Ring bell and dismiss.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 23

Calendar of the Moon

23 Tinne/Hekatombaion

Day of Llew Llaw Gyffes

Color: Blue
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a sky-blue cloth lay the figure of a hawk, a chalice of milk, and a spear.
Offering: Put your trust in something risky, and accept the failure if it comes.
Daily Meal: Poultry and/or fish.

Invocation to Llew Llaw Gyffes

Llew of the Skillful Hand,
Hawk’s flight, Quick-Eyed One,
Child of Innocence,
You teach of the costs
And blessings of trust.
You turn your eyes, a trusting babe,
Onto Gwydion of the clever tongue
And many small dishonesties,
And he is struck with love and swears
That he will protect you forever,
And in loving you,
He learns to do good in the world.
Yet your trust is betrayed
By Blodeuwedd, flower maiden,
Who is constructed for your use
Without your thought, or hers.
That trust which turns even a tainted heart
To good, fails against the breast
Within which no heart beats,
And this is a hard lesson for you,
And for all of us.
What can we learn from your struggle?
What can we learn about trust,
And where to place it?
Yet better to risk than never to open at all,
And this, too, you teach us.
Help us with this lesson, Skillful Hand,
That we may always know when to open our own,
And when to close them.

(Pass the milk and pour the rest out as libation. Each shall announce what it is that they shall endeavor to trust.)

 

[Pagan Book of Hours]