Calendar of the Moon for August 2

Calendar of the Moon

Holly Tree Month

Colors: Iron-grey, red, and dark green.
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of dark grey set many sprigs of holly, real or created, four red candles, a spear and a sword.
Offerings: Honor your inner warrior, including examining the areas where s/he overreacts.
Daily Meal: Red food. Meat of any kind.

Tinne Invocation

Call: Hail the month of the Holly King!
Response: Hail the King of the waning year!
Call: Hail, sharp leaves and sharper eye!
Response: Hail, white flowers that give way to blood-red berries!
Call: Hail the month of the starling’s flock!
Response: For the starlings move together as one!
Call: Like them, we defend what is dear to us!
Response: Like them, we do not let each other stand alone against opposition!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the sword and the spear!
Call: For our sword is Reason….
Response: And our spear is the death of Illusion!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the armor and the shield!
Call: For our armor is Hope….
Response: And our shield is Love.
Call: The Oak King gives way to the Holly King…
Response: For all things have a time of increase, and a time of decrease.
Call: For all things wax and wane.
Response: For all things rise and fall.
Call: This is the moment just beyond the year’s apex!
Response: This is the time of the beginning of the end!
Call: May we take courage with every passing morning!
Response: May courage fill us with every breath!

Chant:
Spear of truth, find me,
I open myself to you.
Chains of honor, bind me,
Bound, I am free to hold true.

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for August 2

Calendar of the Sun

2 Weodmonath

Barley Day

Color: Brown
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon a brown cloth set a clay jug of beer, a bowl of barley porridge, a sickle, and a sheaf of barley.
Offerings: Give food to the poor.
Daily Meal: Cooked barley porridge.

Barley Invocation

I sing the praises of grain,
That which sustained our foremothers
That which strengthened our foremothers
That which fed all children’s hungry mouths
That which multiplies from the earth,
Giving back more than we give in turn.
I sing the praises of the sacrifice
That is cut down
That we may live.

(The jug of beer is passed around, and the last of it poured out as a libation.)

I sing the praises of Barley,
Growing in the footsteps of Frey
Cut down in the body of Ing
Brewed to make the drink
That makes hearts high and warms the family circle
Grain of companionship,
Grain of Rune of Sacrifice,
I sing the praises of Barley.

(The bowl of barley is passed around, and the last of it poured out as a libation.)

Song: John Barleycorn

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for July 31

Calendar of the Sun

31 Haymonath

Oiche Lughnasadh: Lammas Eve

Colors: Golden and purple
Element: Earth
Altar: The golden and purple cloth is laid for the Lammas altar, and a single purple candle is lit in the center, but nothing else is in place. This is a time of waiting.
Offering: Promise to work for the harvest.
Daily Meal: Fasting, till nightfall. The great feast will come on the next day.

Lammas Eve Invocation

Imagine…..
That you fly through the air on the back of a crow
Fly back in time
See all our ancestors
Reaping the harvest
Reaping the grain
That will be their daily bread
Reaping the life
From the breast of the Earth
Who feeds us forever.
Imagine
That you fly high in the air
Watching the fields stripped
Like a man combs his hair
Like the scythe reaps the row
Like the wings of the crow
Like golden Lugh shining bright
Like the wind bears your flight
Like the Sun that blinds your sight….
Imagine.
(Each approaches the altar and lays down an empty basket, which will be filled tomorrow.)
Summer is the season for cultivation and caring.
Flowers come forth, later to give way to fruit.
Now is the time for us to review all things –
That which is to remain, and that which must
Be pruned away, for the sake of growth.
Growth in all things; in the seeds of the Earth
And in ourselves.

Chant: We look forth to the grain,
We look back to the grave.

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for July 30

Calendar of the Sun

30 Haymonath

Tyr’s Day

Color: Red
Elements: Fire and Air
Altar: Upon a red cloth lay swords, lined up in a row, a horn of mead, and a single glove.
Offering: Agree to a promise that limits your convenience.
Daily Meal: Red meat.

Invocation to Tyr

Honor is not comfortable.
It demands all you have,
All you are, all you can do.
It wraps you like a chain
That you may only shuffle where others run
And yet that chain will bear you up
When others trip and fall.
It limits you, like the loss of a limb;
You reach, and fall ever short,
Brought up by honor’s limitation,
And yet this limiting hones you sharper,
Like a tool that must be cut down to work,
As every sharpening is removal of some of you.
O Lord of Honor, you whose name
Invoked, seals bargains without
A thought of cheating, you whose
Word is law and law is will,
You who are never afraid
To do what must needs be done
Even when there is no question
That there will be great loss,
May we all have half the steel
That lies in you, O warrior one-handed,
In your spine, in your hand,
And in your soul.

(The mead is passed by one who has been chosen, and as they pass it they say, “May honor bind you.” Each in turn replies, “May honor find you.” The remainder is poured out as a libation.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 26

Calendar of the Moon

26 Tinne/Hekatombaion

Day of the Hero

Color: Red
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon a red cloth place symbols of historical and real-life heroes, and a chalice of wine.
Offerings: Give aid to someone whom you believe to be a hero.
Daily Meal: Simple travel food, such as bread and cheese.

Invocation to the Hero

Call: Hail to the wandering hero!
Response: Hail Hercules!
Call: Hail to the questing hero!
Response: Hail Theseus!
Call: Hail to the crusading hero!
Response:
Call: Hail to the tormented hero!
Response: Hail Orpheus!
Call: Hail to the warrior hero!
Response: Hail Achilles!
Call: Hail to the hero under sail!
Response: Hail Jason!
Call: Hail to the innocent hero!
Response: Hail Percival!
Call: Hail the romantic hero!
Response: Hail Lancelot!
Call: Hail to the hero pure of heart!
Response: Hail Galahad!
Call: Hail all the heroes of legend!
Response: Hail all the heroes who live today!
Call: May they bless us with courage…
Response: …Even as we bless them with immortality!

(Any who wish should stand forward and cry out the names of other heroes. Then the libation is poured for them, and tales are told of their deeds. The tales are an offering as much as anything else, so do not shirk on this point.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 25

Calendar of the Moon

Holly Tree Month

Colors: Iron-grey, red, and dark green.
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of dark grey set many sprigs of holly, real or created, four red candles, a spear and a sword.
Offerings: Honor your inner warrior, including examining the areas where s/he overreacts.
Daily Meal: Red food. Meat of any kind.

Tinne Invocation

Call: Hail the month of the Holly King!
Response: Hail the King of the waning year!
Call: Hail, sharp leaves and sharper eye!
Response: Hail, white flowers that give way to blood-red berries!
Call: Hail the month of the starling’s flock!
Response: For the starlings move together as one!
Call: Like them, we defend what is dear to us!
Response: Like them, we do not let each other stand alone against opposition!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the sword and the spear!
Call: For our sword is Reason….
Response: And our spear is the death of Illusion!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the armor and the shield!
Call: For our armor is Hope….
Response: And our shield is Love.
Call: The Oak King gives way to the Holly King…
Response: For all things have a time of increase, and a time of decrease.
Call: For all things wax and wane.
Response: For all things rise and fall.
Call: This is the moment just beyond the year’s apex!
Response: This is the time of the beginning of the end!
Call: May we take courage with every passing morning!
Response: May courage fill us with every breath!

Chant:
Spear of truth, find me,
I open myself to you.
Chains of honor, bind me,
Bound, I am free to hold true.

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for July 25

Calendar of the Sun
25 Haymonath

Day of Aegir and Ran

Colors: Sea-blue, sea-green.
Element: Water
Altar: Upon cloth colored like the sea place shells, nets, figures of fish, sea floats, and anything that comes from the sea. Place there also a cup of wine with flecks of gold in it.
Offerings: Singing. Blood given to the ocean. Aid those who clean the seas.
Daily Meal: Seafood.

Invocation to Aegir, Ran, and the Nine Sisters

Lord and Lady of the Depths,
Keepers of the great flocks and herds
That float by the millions
Through glass-green waves,
Lady Ran of the ten-times-fingering weed,
Your hair spread throughout the worlds,
Lord Aegir of the great currents
And the waves that keep the ship afloat,
Generous in your bounty,
Capricious in your favor,
Brewer of ale for gods and lost souls,
Keep us safe as we pass over your realm
In life, in dreams, and in mystery.
Nine Sisters of the Waves, Sacred Undines,
Daughters of Aegir and Ran, fish-tailed,
Blood on your hands and beauty in your song,
We hail you from the shores, the depths, the heights of sea-cliffs.
Kolga the Cold One, Ice-Maiden of the floes and castles.
Duva the Hidden One, Keeper of island treasures.
Blodughadda, Blood-Haired One, shark’s delight.
Hronn, Sucking Whirlpool, Eel-daughter and Mistress of Fear.
Hevring, Heaving Storm, Mourning’s Mistress.
Bara, Great Wave of the Whale, battering the land’s stalwart stand.
Bylgja, Breaker’s Dancer, Rider of the Wave-Horse.
Unn, Billowing Tides, Maiden of the Counting Moon’s Rhythm.
Himinglava, Fair-Weather Mermaid, Sun Shining Through.
Teach us by the Powers of Water
How to find the way to our own souls.

Song: Harp Song of the Dane Women, along with any other sea songs, sung as offerings.

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 24

Calendar of the Moon

Holly Tree Month

Colors: Iron-grey, red, and dark green.
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of dark grey set many sprigs of holly, real or created, four red candles, a spear and a sword.
Offerings: Honor your inner warrior, including examining the areas where s/he overreacts.
Daily Meal: Red food. Meat of any kind.

Tinne Invocation

Call: Hail the month of the Holly King!
Response: Hail the King of the waning year!
Call: Hail, sharp leaves and sharper eye!
Response: Hail, white flowers that give way to blood-red berries!
Call: Hail the month of the starling’s flock!
Response: For the starlings move together as one!
Call: Like them, we defend what is dear to us!
Response: Like them, we do not let each other stand alone against opposition!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the sword and the spear!
Call: For our sword is Reason….
Response: And our spear is the death of Illusion!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the armor and the shield!
Call: For our armor is Hope….
Response: And our shield is Love.
Call: The Oak King gives way to the Holly King…
Response: For all things have a time of increase, and a time of decrease.
Call: For all things wax and wane.
Response: For all things rise and fall.
Call: This is the moment just beyond the year’s apex!
Response: This is the time of the beginning of the end!
Call: May we take courage with every passing morning!
Response: May courage fill us with every breath!

Chant:
Spear of truth, find me,
I open myself to you.
Chains of honor, bind me,
Bound, I am free to hold true.

[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]

Calendar of the Sun for July 23

Calendar of the Sun

23 Haymonath

Neptunalia

Colors: Blue and blue-green of the sea
Element: Water
Altar: Set with sea-colored cloths, figures of dolphins, the figure of a ship, a compass, and a great bowl of salt water.
Offerings: Sea salt. Face some emotion that seems overwhelming to you.
Daily Meal: Fish. Seafood. Seaweed.

Invocation to Neptune

Great Bull from the Sea
Crashing against the rocks
Master of the waves and depths
Foaming horses champing wild
Break against the yielding shore
And you, Lord of bitter brine,
Sink not our ships as they make their way
From safe harbor to safe harbor.
Show us the depths of our own souls
As you know the depths of the ocean itself,
And give us safe passage there as well.
Save us from the whirlpool and the drowning tides,
Save us from the circling predators
That would drag us to the bottom.
Earth-shaker, loudest voice
In the world between heaven and underworld,
The voice that booms up from the depths
Of every water-borne soul.

Chant:
Earth-Shaker
Storm Maker
Lord of the Wave

(The compass is then passed from hand to hand, and each person in turn says, “Guide me in my navigations, Lord of the Unending Waters, and bring me safe home again.” The bowl of salt water is then passed hand to hand, and each splashes a bit onto their heads. The rest is poured out as a libation.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for July 21

Calendar of the Sun

Carista – Day of Peace in the Family

Color: Lavender
Element: Water
Altar: Upon a lavender cloth set a tray of cakes shaped like clasping hands, and many cups full of hot tea.
Offerings: Promise to attempt to be more considerate of those you live with.
Daily Meal: Any food, but it must be served from one great plate for every table, and it should not be in separate portions.

Carista Invocation

May there be Peace in this house.
(Response: “May there be peace in this house!”)
Peace can be a hard mistress.
The daily round of the ordinary,
The simple turn of day and night and day
The presence of the same souls
Can come to be like a shadow on the sun,
And yet Peace still demands
That we find a way to move past
That ordinariness
And all the thousand thorns and briars
And bring Peace into the house.
(Response: “May there be peace in this house!”)
Take the hand of your sister, your brother,
The one who shares your roof, your table,
The ground you walk on,
Whose feet know the boards as well as your own,
And swear to find a way
To bring peace into the space between you.
(Response: “May there be peace in this house!”)

Chant:
My brother, my heart, my sister, my soul;
My family, my life, come in from the cold;
My sister, my heart, my brother, my soul;
My family, my life, that makes this life whole.

(Instead of a ritual, this period of time should be used to mediate and address problems between members of the community, with emphasis on peacemaking and compromise and useful solutions. At the end of the meeting, all share cakes and tea.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 20

Calendar of the Moon

12 Tinne/Hekatombaion

Kronia

Color: Golden
Element: Earth
Altar: The Kronia celebrates the Golden Age when Kronos and Rhea ruled, when there was no order, so nothing is done ordinarily this day. The altar is laid with whatever cloths those present may bring, and set with whatever things they may think appropriate to the celebration of a mythical utopian anarchy.
Offerings: Do nothing in its order today. Invite in those not of the House and let them order the activities. The newest novice should replace the House Elder for the afternoon. Order is restored by Hesperis.
Daily Meal: Let those not of the house bring potluck. No one cooks today, and all fend for themselves.

Kronia Invocation
(With random shouting throughout)

Long ago, before there was Law,
Kronos inherited the throne
(Hail Kronos!)
From his mother, Gaea, who recognizes only
(Hail Gaea!)
The laws of nature, and his father Uranus,
(Hail Uranus!)
Who was capricious as the wind and the sky.
For hundreds of years he ruled their way,
Until he realized the value of Rules
(Hail Eunomia!)
And became their strongest servant.
When his son Zeus overthrew him,
(Hail Zeus!)
And with his thrice-blessed wife Hera
(Hail Hera!)
Ascended the throne, he kept the Rules.
Yet today we remember that time,
Like unto the childhood of the world,
Where there were no rules,
(Hail Chaos!)
Nor were any needed. Go now,
And spend one day without them,
That you may appreciate them the more in the end.
(All exit in a rush, snatching things from the altar, and have a drumming and dancing circle.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for July 20

Calendar of the Sun

Feralia: Day of Purification

Color: White
Element: Air
Altar: On a white cloth put a lit candle, incense, a cup of water, and a bowl of salt.
Offering: Although this day is not a day of total silence, it is a solemn day and talking should be done only when necessary and in quiet tones. Bodies should be thoroughly cleaned during the bathing hour, and then the altar area should be cleaned and purified with all four elements. Each person, upon entering the altar space at the beginning of Sponde should remove their clothing and be naked, and each body should be purified with the four elements and marked with water and salt, at which point they may enrobe again. Chores of the day should concentrate on cleaning and repair.
Daily Meal: Vegan and extremely simple and plain.

Feralia Invocation

Breathe the air into your body
And breathe out again,
And as you breathe out,
Let all grime and corruption
Depart on that breath
(All breathe together for twelve breaths.)
Feel the blood coursing through your body
And imagine it clean
Of anything but what should be there.
Feel the energy coursing through your body
And wash it clean
Of anything that does not belong.
Feel the Earth beneath you,
Remember that She can absorb all
Remember that all rot is her provenance
Draw her energy up into you
And give it back again.

(After this grounding, all breathe together again in a yogic breathing pattern for the next half an hour, after which all will go with water and salt and incense and fire to all rooms in the house and cleanse them. Great care should be taken for the rest of the day not to disturb the energy of the freshly cleaned house.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 19

Calendar of the Moon

Holly Tree Month

Colors: Iron-grey, red, and dark green.
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of dark grey set many sprigs of holly, real or created, four red candles, a spear and a sword.
Offerings: Honor your inner warrior, including examining the areas where s/he overreacts.
Daily Meal: Red food. Meat of any kind.

Tinne Invocation

Call: Hail the month of the Holly King!
Response: Hail the King of the waning year!
Call: Hail, sharp leaves and sharper eye!
Response: Hail, white flowers that give way to blood-red berries!
Call: Hail the month of the starling’s flock!
Response: For the starlings move together as one!
Call: Like them, we defend what is dear to us!
Response: Like them, we do not let each other stand alone against opposition!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the sword and the spear!
Call: For our sword is Reason….
Response: And our spear is the death of Illusion!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the armor and the shield!
Call: For our armor is Hope….
Response: And our shield is Love.
Call: The Oak King gives way to the Holly King…
Response: For all things have a time of increase, and a time of decrease.
Call: For all things wax and wane.
Response: For all things rise and fall.
Call: This is the moment just beyond the year’s apex!
Response: This is the time of the beginning of the end!
Call: May we take courage with every passing morning!
Response: May courage fill us with every breath!

Chant:
Spear of truth, find me,
I open myself to you.
Chains of honor, bind me,
Bound, I am free to hold true.

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 18

Calendar of the Moon

18 Tinne/Hekatombaion

Arthur’s Day

Color: Gold
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon a golden cloth place a single red candle, a crown, two crossed swords, and the figure of a knight on horseback.
Offerings: Aid someone in a leadership position.
Daily Meal: Roasted meat.

Invocation to the Spirit of Arthur

To be a King
Is to live a life of compromise
And to do it uncompromisingly.
To be a King is to be the center of every struggle
Yet be not on the front line of the battle.
To be a King is to balance warring forces
Whose very nature is to be opposed,
To rein in the lions and then to release them.
To be a King is to be first among equals
And to never forget that they are equals
Yet never let them forget that you are first.
To be a King is always to be an example
And never forget that you are watched.
To be a King is to be gracious
Even to those who do not deserve it,
And to struggle always between justice and mercy.
To be a King to the land and the people
In the sacred manner,
Is to lead by inspiration
Rather than by force.
To be a King is to be an avatar of the Sun
And to let it burn through you,
Even if you are consumed in the process.
So let us remember those who were consumed
Even to ash of body and soul
And let their lives sift through our fingers
And live again in inspiration.

Song: “Cold Iron”

(End with readings of Arthur and other such who embody the qualities of honorable nobility.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for July 18

Calendar of the Sun

18 Haymonath

Nephthys’s Day

Colors: Black and Tan
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon cloth of black and desert-tan place a winnowing-basket, a clay cup of beer, and incense of myrrh.
Offerings: Give to the poor.
Daily Meal: Whole grains and lentils, very plain. Only water to drink until Hesperis.

Invocation to Nephthys

Lady of the House, Dweller Within Senu,
Holy Neb-Thet, keeper of mystery,
Dark sister of the blessed Isis,
Mother of Anubis, guide of the Dead,
Lady of the Winnowing Basket
Who takes the suffering souls
Of the great mass of the lowly,
Let the tombs of the wealthy
Glorify your sister whose arms
Cradle only the high and noble;
Your winged span enwraps the nameless ones,
Those who were bound in what rags
Could be spared from a menial life.
Those whose bodies were soaked in salt,
Bound to the shape of an unborn child,
And buried in the endless sands of the desert.
You are the Dark One of decay and corruption.
You are the Lady of the barren sand’s edge
That in the time of greatest flooding
Springs suddenly green and alive.
Friend and counselor of the newly dead,
Comforter of the forgotten bereaved,
You who give courage to the birthing mother,
Mourning kite who wails through the sky,
You who understand what it is
To be bound to tyranny against your will
And to have the courage to flee,
Aid those of us whom the world does not honor
With riches and glory; remember us
When our time comes to pass through again.
(All kneel silently before the altar, then the libation is poured and all exit in silence.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for July 14

Calendar of the Sun

14 Haymonath

Ellegua’s Day

Colors: Red and black
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of red and black place three pennies, a clay head with cowrie eyes, small tricky games, a glass of rum, and Ellegua’s crossroads trident.
Offerings: Chocolate, chicken, and rum.
Daily Meal: Should include chicken and chocolate.

Invocation to Ellegua

Ai! Dancer at the Crossroads,
Maker of many shapes,
Cunning eyes in the bushes,
Your gaze misses nothing.
You are the opener of the Gate,
Without which we cannot speak
To all other orisha.
You are the Great Phallus
Which does not always follow its owner.
Mate and match of Pomba Gira,
Lady of whores and lust
Whose skirts of black lace hide mysteries,
Lord of panic, lord of cunning,
Faithful friend who comes in the pinch,
Little girl with the cowrie eyes,
Old chickenman with the sly smile,
Brewer of trouble split red and black,
You who love to make us break our word
That we might understand its true importance,
Help us to keep the door open
To new possibilities
Lest we fall into complacent sleep.

(The hour should end with a drum circle, and wordless chanting, or chanting of his many names – “Eshu!” “Ellegua!” “Legba!” “Maitre Carre-Four!” “Chickenman!” and so on.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 12

Calendar of the Moon

12 Duir/Skirophorion

Skirophoria

Colors: Grey and brown
Element: Earth
Altar: Divide the altar in half, with one grey cloth and one brown cloth. On the grey side place a ship and a fish for Poseidon, and for Athena a stack of books selected for their wisdom, the figure of a small city, and a glass cup of wine. On the brown side lay a sickle, a hoe, a basket full of poppies, many small bowls of grain, a cup of ale, and the figure of a small peasant’s hut. On the line between them, place the figure of a golden sun. Before it should be a bowl containing Pentaploa, a mixture of wine, honey, cheese, grains, and olive oil.
Offerings: If you are rural, visit the city. If you are urban or suburban, visit a farm. Do so in the spirit of discovery and appreciation. Also, the day’s exercise at Gymnastika should be running a race, and the runners should carry grapevines in their arms, in honor of the boughs brought to the temple of Athena by ancient runners. Deposit the grapevines before Athena’s shrine.
Daily Meal: Eat food on your trip, wherever you go.

Skirophoria Invocation

(To be given by five people, one each representing Athena, Poseidon, Demeter, Persephone, and Helios. They should wear white, blue, green, red, and gold respectively. They should come together under a white canopy.)

Athena: On this day, long ago, so tradition says, the first harvest was cut of the first grain that mankind ever sowed. Ever since then, the people have been fed from the land. Those of us whose hearts are in the city do come before you today to honor the givers of our nourishment.
Poseidon: From the metropolises of the coasts to the great gathering places of plateau and mountain we come on this day. For we could not live without you to support us. We feed from you, and give you little in return, save trinkets and trouble.
Demeter: We thank you for your honor, and we promise in turn that our abundance shall never cease, so long as you continue your respect. Our lands must remain clean and unfettered by disease and pollution. So long as you grant us that, and safety, and fair commerce, there will always be an equal exchange.
Persephone: We thank you for your honor, but you are wrong in that you give us nothing. You are the keepers of thought and culture. When darkness rushes across the land, as it sometimes must, it is in your domain that such things are kept. You are the memory of our people, as we in our eternal round of seasons cannot always be.
Helios: I have come before you to hear your oaths. Will you serve and protect each other?
All: We shall be as two hands on one body.
Helios: So it is witnessed by the overarching Sun. So shall it be written, so shall it be done.
All Present: So it is witnessed by the overarching Sun. So shall it be written, so shall it be done.

(The Pentaploa is passed and shared, and the ale and wine are poured as a libation.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 11th

Calendar of the Moon

Holly Tree Month

Colors: Iron-grey, red, and dark green.
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of dark grey set many sprigs of holly, real or created, four red candles, a spear and a sword.
Offerings: Honor your inner warrior, including examining the areas where s/he overreacts.
Daily Meal: Red food. Meat of any kind.

Tinne Invocation

Call: Hail the month of the Holly King!
Response: Hail the King of the waning year!
Call: Hail, sharp leaves and sharper eye!
Response: Hail, white flowers that give way to blood-red berries!
Call: Hail the month of the starling’s flock!
Response: For the starlings move together as one!
Call: Like them, we defend what is dear to us!
Response: Like them, we do not let each other stand alone against opposition!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the sword and the spear!
Call: For our sword is Reason….
Response: And our spear is the death of Illusion!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the armor and the shield!
Call: For our armor is Hope….
Response: And our shield is Love.
Call: The Oak King gives way to the Holly King…
Response: For all things have a time of increase, and a time of decrease.
Call: For all things wax and wane.
Response: For all things rise and fall.
Call: This is the moment just beyond the year’s apex!
Response: This is the time of the beginning of the end!
Call: May we take courage with every passing morning!
Response: May courage fill us with every breath!

Chant:
Spear of truth, find me,
I open myself to you.
Chains of honor, bind me,
Bound, I am free to hold true.

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for July 10

Calendar of the Moon

Holly Tree Month

Colors: Iron-grey, red, and dark green.
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of dark grey set many sprigs of holly, real or created, four red candles, a spear and a sword.
Offerings: Honor your inner warrior, including examining the areas where s/he overreacts.
Daily Meal: Red food. Meat of any kind.

Tinne Invocation

Call: Hail the month of the Holly King!
Response: Hail the King of the waning year!
Call: Hail, sharp leaves and sharper eye!
Response: Hail, white flowers that give way to blood-red berries!
Call: Hail the month of the starling’s flock!
Response: For the starlings move together as one!
Call: Like them, we defend what is dear to us!
Response: Like them, we do not let each other stand alone against opposition!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the sword and the spear!
Call: For our sword is Reason….
Response: And our spear is the death of Illusion!
Call: Hail the color of cold iron!
Response: Hail the armor and the shield!
Call: For our armor is Hope….
Response: And our shield is Love.
Call: The Oak King gives way to the Holly King…
Response: For all things have a time of increase, and a time of decrease.
Call: For all things wax and wane.
Response: For all things rise and fall.
Call: This is the moment just beyond the year’s apex!
Response: This is the time of the beginning of the end!
Call: May we take courage with every passing morning!
Response: May courage fill us with every breath!

Chant:
Spear of truth, find me,
I open myself to you.
Chains of honor, bind me,
Bound, I am free to hold true.

[Pagan Book of Hours]