Tag: Farmers Almanac

Information About the Snow Moon: Full Moon in February 2023

Got your snow shovels ready? February’s full Snow Moon reaches its peak on Sunday, February 5! Why is it called the full Snow Moon? Find out in our February Moon Guide!

When to See the Full Moon in February 2023

February’s full Snow Moon reaches peak illumination at 1:30 P.M. EST on Sunday, February 5. It will be below the horizon at this time, so for the best view of this Moon, look for it starting the night before or later on Sunday; it will drift above the horizon in the east around sunset and reach its highest point in the sky around midnight. See when the Moon will be visible in your area.

Why Is It Called the Snow Moon?

The full Moon names used by The Old Farmer’s Almanac come from a number of places, including Native American, Colonial American, and European sources. Traditionally, each full Moon name was applied to the entire lunar month in which it occurred, not just to the full Moon itself.

The Snow Moon

The explanation behind February’s full Moon name is a fairly straightforward one: it’s known as the Snow Moon due to the typically heavy snowfall that occurs in February. On average, February is the United States’ snowiest month, according to data from the National Weather Service. In the 1760s, Captain Jonathan Carver, who had visited with the Naudowessie (Dakota), wrote that the name used for this period was the Snow Moon, “because more snow commonly falls during this month than any other in the winter.”

Alternative February Moon Names

Names for this month’s Moon have historically had a connection to animals. The Cree traditionally called this the Bald Eagle Moon or Eagle Moon. The Ojibwe Bear Moon and Tlingit Black Bear Moon refer to the time when bear cubs are born. The Dakota also call this the Raccoon Moon, certain Algonquin peoples named it the Groundhog Moon, and the Haida named it Goose Moon.

Another theme of this month’s Moon names is scarcity. The Cherokee names of Month of the Bony Moon and Hungry Moon give evidence to the fact that food was hard to come by at this time.

Click here to find out more about February’s Full Moon and other topics from The Farmers Almanac

The Witches Almanac for Wednesday, August 28th

Gypsy Comments & Graphics 

The Witches Almanac for Wednesday, August 28th

Wednesday (Mercury): The conscious mind, study, travel, divination and wisdom.

St. Augustine’s Day

Waning Moon

The Waning Moon is a time for study, meditation, and little magickal work (except magick designed to banish harmful energies).

Moon Phase: Fourth Quarter 5:35 am

Moon Sign: Gemini

Gemini:  Things begun now are easily changed by outside influences. Time for shortcuts, communication, games, and fun.

Incense:  Bay Laurel

Color: Brown

Spells to Cast Once in a Blue Moon

Spells to Cast Once in a Blue Moon

Just what is a Blue Moon? There are two definitions for a Blue Moon. According to the more recent definition, a Blue Moon is the second Full Moon in a calendar month. For a Blue Moon to occur, the first of the Full Moon must appear at or near the beginning of the month so that the second will fall within the same month (the average span between two moons is 28 days). That second one is called a Blue Moon.

An older definition for the Blue Moon is recorded in early issues of the Maine Farmer’s Almanac. Between 1932 and 1957, instead of the calendar year running from January 1 through December 31, the almanac relied on the tropical year, defined as extending from one winter solstice (“Yule”) to the next. Most tropical years contain 12 Full Moons-3 each in winter, spring, summer and fall-and as in the previous chart, each is named for an activity appropriate to the time of year. But occasionally a tropical year contains 13 Full Moons so that one season has 4 Moons rather than the usual 3. That fourth Moon of the season is the Blue Moon.

Many practitioners regard a Blue Moon as a special gift from the Goddess and look upon it as a good time to set new goals for themselves. Write your goals on a piece of paper, fold the paper in half, and place it the light of the Full Moon. Ask the Goddess for the strength and endurance to work toward your goals successfully. In the morning, burn the paper in the flame of a candle you have anointed with an oil you especially enjoy. The smoke will help carry your goals to the ears of the Goddess. Your resolve to get started on them will amaze you.

Calendar of the Moon for Wednesday, April 25

Calendar of the Moon
25 Saille/Mounukhion

Day of Eros

Color: Pink
Element: Air
Altar: Upon a cloth of pink set a bow and arrows, two pink candles, incense of roses and violets, a pitcher of fruit juice, and a plate of pink cakes.
Offerings: Give affection to someone. Try to help a couple who are struggling with romantic problems, although this must be done with no agenda as to their fate together.
Daily Meal: Sweet things. Fruit.

Invocation to Eros

Hail, winged one, Lord of Love!
We do not always welcome you
Into our busy lives as we should,
For you have no regard for
Our convenience, our rules,
But simply see each of us
As another target for love.
Sometimes, when you come, we rejoice.
Sometimes, when you come, we weep.
Yet even when your arrows
Are painful and agonizing,
Even when we lie awake at night
Aching from the wounds you have dealt us,
We must remember that all love
Is truly a blessing, no matter
Where it starts or ends,
No matter what its path or means,
No matter whether it must live unsung
And die unborn in our hearts
Or whether it can run freely
Hand in hand with the love of another.
Bless us with your wounds, winged one,
As you have endured love,
And made mistakes, so you will
Have patience with us as we
Fumble our way through your maze.

Chant: Love is a river,
Flowing from my heart, flowing from my heart.
(Each steps forward and touches an arrow point to their heart, saying, “I am open to love.” The fruit juice and cakes are passed around, and the remainder is offered as a libation for Eros.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Moon for Sunday, April 8th

Calendar of the Moon
4 Fearn/Elaphebolion

Alder Tree Month

Color: Crimson
Element: Fire
Altar: Upon cloth of crimson set a flaming brazier filled with charcoal and incense.
Offerings: Purification. Write what has been dragging your down, and place it in the fire.
Daily Meal: Hot, nourishing food.

Fearn Invocation

Call: Now is the time of the warming of Earth.
Response: Now is the time of the Sun’s first warmth.
Call: Now is the time when the waters of Spring are banished.
Response: Now is the time when fire dries the flood.
Call: Now is the time when the heat rises within us.
Response: Now is the time when our tears are dried.
Call: Now is the time when our inner floods give way.
Response: Now is the time when our inner fields are greening.
Call: Like the birds who build their nests in the Spring….
Response: Like the creatures of the woods who brave the open fields…
Call: As they brave the world….
Response: So we now brave the world.
Call: As they seek sustenance of the body….
Response: So we seek sustenance of the soul.
Call: As they are driven forth by need and the cycle of life…..
Response: So we are driven forth by need and the cycle of life.
Call: No house can contain our souls….
Response: As no house contains the foundation on which it is built.
Call: We will be the piles that lift the house from the water….
Response: And we will lift our spirits from the winter’s flood.
Call: We will be the island in the river….
Response: The islands where the future is told…
Call: And we will see that future running like the current….
Response: Knowing not where it will lead….
Call: Save by the grace of the gods.
Response: Save by the grace of the Gods.

Chant:
We gather at the river
We bring fire to the water
Our fire burns within us
The river parts before us

[Pagan Book of Hours]