Archangel: Sachiel
Candle colours: Blue
Incenses: Sandalwood or sage
Crystals: Lapis lazuli or turquoise
Use Thursdays for spells for career, justice, prosperity, leadership, creativity, marriage and all partnerships, whether love or business, and for male potency.
Where possible work on a hillside, moorland or near a natural sacred site.
January 10 – Daily Feast
When something in our minds rings a bell that warns us, we do well to listen. What is it that wants to lure us away from the chose path? Is it not from the good side? Then, run like a rabbit! Every one of us has a sounding board, as testing place that detects the way we are moving. Like a compass, it points the right way – and we are foolish not to understand – gohlga. To ignore the impressions that are within us is like trying to go through a door, but refusing to use the doorknob. It is one thing to be dense and another to be willfully determined to get lost in the wilderness. Listen to the alarm system. It is there for a good reason – and later on we won’t have to say that something told us not to go a certain way and we didn’t listen.
~ He hears voices other do not hear; sees visions that confirm his dreams. ~
EAGLE OLD MAN
‘A Cherokee Feast of Days’, by Joyce Sequichie Hifler
…that you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is stalk them and hope they panic and give in.
…that no matter how much I care, some people are just assholes.
…that it takes years to build up trust, and only suspicion, not proof, to destroy it.
…that you can get by on charm for about fifteen minutes. After that, you’d better have lots of money and proof of it.
…that you shouldn’t compare yourself to others – they are more screwed up than you think.
…that you can keep puking long after you think you’re finished.
…that we are responsible for what we do, unless we are celebrities.
…that regardless of how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, the passion fades, and there had better be a lot of money to take its place.
…that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you’re down will be the ones who do.
…that we don’t have to ditch bad friends because their dysfunction makes us feel better about ourselves.
…that no matter how you try to protect your children, they will eventually get arrested and end up in the local paper.
…that the people you care most about in life are taken from you too soon and all the less important ones just never go away.
…to say “Screw ’em if they can’t take a joke” in 6 languages.
Archangel: Sachiel
Candle colours: Blue
Incenses: Sandalwood or sage
Crystals: Lapis lazuli or turquoise
Use Thursdays for spells for career, justice, prosperity, leadership, creativity, marriage and all partnerships, whether love or business, and for male potency.
Where possible work on a hillside, moorland or near a natural sacred site.
Thursday Is Ruled By Jupiter
Archangel: Sachiel
Candle colours: Blue
Incenses: Sandalwood or sage
Crystals: Lapis lazuli or turquoise
Use Thursdays for spells for career, justice, prosperity, leadership, creativity, marriage and all partnerships, whether love or business, and for male potency.
Where possible work on a hillside, moorland or near a natural sacred site.
Devotion to your career is admirable, but it might cost you in the relationship department. This week it’s likely that professional opportunity and obligation will conflict with your ability to offer attention to your mate. A New Moon on Wednesday looks potent and positive for you in terms of your ambitions, but it’s unlikely you’ll receive the support you yearn for from your partner. Sometimes, it’s lonely at the top. If there’s ever a time you’ll feel this way, it’s now.
One priority in your love life is that you must feel a deep spiritual connection with the person you’re with in order to fuel the sparks. If you aren’t connected in the soul department, then sex becomes empty. This week, expect a test in this arena. On Wednesday, you may begin a new quest that you’re passionate about, but you’ll quickly discover that your mate doesn’t share your same enthusiasm. In fact, it may conflict with his or her ideology. This could be a problem. You can’t open your heart to someone who keeps a closed mind.
The tension in your love life might hit an all-time high. You’re ready to explore deeper intimacy with a partner, but you might feel frustrated as you attempt to get closer. This may have to do with your sex life, but it can just as easily be a deeply personal matter you hope your mate can open up to you about. If you’re ready to fight for this relationship, you’ll certainly have an opportunity. Your sweetheart will not make it easy, but if you’re convinced the love is strong enough, then no amount of frustration will deter you.
A fresh start is possible for you and your partner, but it certainly won’t be without its share of stress. If you’re committed to working things out with your mate, remain confident in your ability to make it happen. At the same time, however, you may be at an impasse when it comes to a domestic situation you can’t seem to agree on. Optimism and faith may be renewed by Friday, but don’t forget that any conversation involves listening and speaking. Remember to take turns!
If you’ve been caught up in a bad office romance, things are about to get messier. Perhaps you and your lover have tried to keep this a secret affair, and if so it’s possible that by Friday someone at work will let the cat out of the bag. Another possibility is that you have unrequited feelings for someone or unrealistic expectations about a current relationship. Consider talking to a counselor or someone you trust about your love life debacle. It’s time to unravel a few knots.
Out of all the signs, you win the cosmic jackpot for the most promising developments in the romance department this week! You can thank a potent New Moon in your true love sector this Wednesday, joined by an even more transformational connection between the Sun and Pluto in the same area of your chart. You crave intensity and depth more than ever these days when it comes to love. Fortunately, you’re likely to attract someone who can meet your expectations and satisfy your hunger. Still be aware: An obsessive love connection is possible.
If you’re married or live with your partner, this may not be an easy week. It’s possible that you and your love are knocking heads these days when it comes to a domestic problem or living situation. You may be at a deadlock — unable to agree on where to live, whether or not to move, or even how to live with each other without losing your sanity. If you’re dating someone and plan to introduce him or her to your clan this week, you may want to think again. Hold off until next week, because that might be the difference between your family embracing your new sweetheart or rejection.
When it comes to your love life, you want to know the truth — no matter how hard it may be to digest. A New Moon in your communication sector on Wednesday may set the stage for information overload. You’ll likely have at least one new writing, teaching or sales project to focus on, and this may take your attention away from matters of the heart. Still, if there’s any secret information or unspoken words between you and someone close, this will be the week to get things out into the open. Besides, you already hear the screaming beneath the silence, don’t you?
Financial strain might distract you from romance this week. While it’s true that Wednesday’s New Moon in your earned income sector will invite the opportunity to earn cash from a new revenue stream, at the same time it appears that your expenses are unusually high these days. You might have decided to cut back on your holiday spending, and if so your sweetheart may take it personally if he or she didn’t get the material gifts hoped for. If this happens, you will begin to see your lover in a whole new light. A turn-off for sure.
This week it’ll be impossible to ignore the rumblings inside of you that demand change. If you’ve been less than satisfied with the course of your life or a love relationship, this Wednesday’s New Moon in Capricorn will urge you to be the change you want to see in the world. As you move toward the fresh chapter in your life, if there’s an old, outworn relationship holding you back you’ll examine whether or not it’s time to breathe new life into it or just let it go.
The roadblocks in love may continue for you this week. Not only is Venus Retrograde in your private 12th house, but a New Moon in the same area of your chart will occur on Wednesday. This lunation will be a tense one, and although there is the potential for new beginnings, it’s not without stress. In your case it appears that the fresh start has everything to do with your ability to let go of a past disappointment related to heartbreak. You deserve to move forward. What’s stopping you?
A testy New Moon on Wednesday, followed by the Sun connecting to Pluto, may stress you out socially. A power struggle between you and a friend might begin to surface, and if so it’ll be difficult for you to remain diplomatic. Not helping the situation is the potential for your lover to get involved by Friday. He or she may run off at the mouth to your pal in an effort to defend you. Do your best to resolve this situation on your own. This week, keep your friends and your sweetheart apart.
Putting People on a Pedestal
Allowing Our Loved Ones to Be Human
When we fall in love with someone or make a new friend, we sometimes see that person in a glowing light. Their good qualities dominate the foreground of our perception and their negative qualities. They just don’t seem to have any. This temporary state of grace is commonly known as putting someone on a pedestal. Often times we put spiritual leaders and our gurus on pedestals. We have all done this to someone at one time or another, and as long as we remember that no one is actually “perfect,“ the pedestal phase of a relationship can be enjoyed for what it is—a phase. It’s when we actually believe our own projection that troubles arise.
Everyone has problems, flaws, and blind spots, just as we do. When we entertain the illusion that someone is perfect, we don’t allow them room to be human, so when they make an error in judgment or act in contradiction to our idea of perfection, we become disillusioned. We may get angry or distance ourselves in response. In the end, they are not to blame for the fact that we idealized them. Granted, they may have enjoyed seeing themselves as perfect through our eyes, but we are the ones who chose to believe an illusion. If you go through this process enough times, you learn that no one is perfect. We are all a combination of divine and human qualities and we all struggle. When we treat the people we love with this awareness, we actually allow for a much greater intimacy than when we held them aloft on an airy throne. The moment you see through your idealized projection is the moment you begin to see your loved one as he or she truly is.
We cannot truly connect with a person when we idealize them. In life, there are no pedestals—we are all walking on the same ground together. When we realize this, we can own our own divinity and our humanity. This is the key to balance and wholeness within ourselves and our relationships.
No matter what happens, you can respond in whatever way you choose. So make your response the most positive one for every person it affects.
There’s nothing to be gained by adding more negativity on top of negativity. You have the opportunity to break the pattern.
Instead of responding to anger with more anger, challenge yourself to respond with understanding and compassion. When you’re tempted to respond with frustration, make the more positive choice to respond with patience.
For your world to be a more positive place, you must take responsibility for putting more positive energy into it. Though a positive response may be the more difficult one, it is also the more valuable choice in the long run.
Rather than choosing a response based on what has happened, choose your response based on the direction you wish to go. Even when life has let you down, your best choice is a positive response that creates a more positive future.
Each response to life is an opportunity to make progress. Choose a positive response, again and again, and create a much more positive world.
— Ralph Marston
This was considered to be the last chance to marry before the beginning of Advent, during which marriage was frowned upon. It was believed that if a man wanted to marry women who were in debt, he would not be responsible for the woman’s financial obligations if he took her, dressed in her undergarments, from the hands of a Priest.
This elemental approach to the human soul is a fascinating way to understand who you are, especially in relationship to others. Do you crave attention from a partner? You may be a Fire type. Do you like to organize and plan activities with your significant other? You may be an Earth.
Take this simple quiz to find out your soul-type so you can learn more about the ways you relate:
1. You sometimes have regrets, but nonetheless you revel in the joy of having created an effect, whether good or bad. You live in a drama of sorts, either emotionally or creatively.
2. You are a person who needs attention, who needs to be recognized and admired, who is sensitive and easily hurt over the smallest thing, who can love and hate with equal passion.
3. You are a person who thrives on love and passion in personal relationships, who needs to be number one in their partner’s life, who likes to have their own way, who feels easily neglected and is capable of being quite jealous when their spouse’s attention is somewhere else.
4. You are a person who needs to plan before acting, although you are determined to turn your plans into action. You make lists and like to take control.
5. You pay close attention, striving for perfection, even in the little things, generally organized, especially in situations you consider important, sensitive but able to reason and to be fair, steady, and reliable.
6. You thrive on being the organizer in the family; are loyal to your spouse and expect the same respect and loyalty in return; can seem on occasion to be bossy and you like to take charge; you like to be romanced and need genuine affection.
7. You don’t like pressure, and you don’t like to be upset or argue, but you do like new people and new experiences.
8. You love animals and children, do not sweat the small stuff, and are usually easygoing, happy to go along in life without fuss, generally calm, and somewhat passive.
9. You thrive on simply being loved, are undemanding in your personal relationships, like to keep things simple and uncomplicated, hate arguments and fights, and will try in most cases with your spouse to pacify and keep things on an even keel.
10. You usually find a way, through compromise, to please others and yourself. You are able to evaluate and solve problems by negotiating and seeking harmony.
11. You avoid attention, shy away from the limelight but still like approval from others for work well done; you strive to be fair and considerate of others’ feelings, but can be so immersed in your own life that you can be neglectful of issues outside yourself or your family.
12. You thrive on the ability to communicate with your spouse and family; feel the need to always strive to be seen to be reasonable, even when they perhaps cannot be, and are strong-minded and capable of standing your ground in an argument when issues are important.
If you answered yes to 1, 2 and 3, you are a FIRE.
If you answered yes to 4, 5, and 6, you are an EARTH.
If you answered yes to 7, 8, and 9, you are an AIR.
If you answered yes to 10, 11, and 12, you are a WATER.
Be sure to read this great book to find out more about your sign and the ways it manifests.
Divorce with Grace
A Life-Altering Decision
Like the act of marriage that binds two people together, divorce is the result of a life-altering decision. It is the dissolving of a relationship that we believed would last our whole lives. We may not even be able to articulate how we got to this place, yet we may also feel we have no choice but to sever this tie. Whatever we feel, we need the support of the friends and family who will stand by us no matter what we decide. At some point, we may need to be challenged to look deeper inside ourselves as we make this very important decision, but what we need most of all is unconditional love and loyalty.
Divorce is a process that, once in motion, becomes difficult to stop, and this can be painful if we find ourselves having second thoughts. We may feel that we should do more to save the marriage, or we may wonder if there is something about ourselves that we could fix or change instead of going through with this painful separation. On the other hand, we may be seeing in hindsight that our marriage was truly only meant to last for a short time so that we could learn something we needed to know. Whatever the case, we need friends who will allow us to linger in confusion when we don’t have the answers and who will support us whether we find ways to reconcile and stay married or whether we walk away.
Of course, the most essential ally we have lives inside our hearts and speaks to us from within. We can trust this inner guide to help us choose people who will support us in kind and loving ways as we navigate the rough terrain of confusion and loss. Sometimes all we can do is look to the horizon, remembering that we will get through this time, and no matter what happens we will once again feel whole.
The birthstone of November is the mystical, magical topaz. The ancient Greeks believed that this gemstone had the power to give strength, improve eyesight and make its wearer invisible in times of emergency. Ages-old traditions also say that topaz is a symbol of friendship, love, fidelity and purity. I suppose that getting all of those gifts from this one stone would make anyone celebrating one have a very happy birthday this month!
By Ellen Whitehurst for Astrology.com
Happiness is not based on the way you appear. Happiness is an authentic state of being that you can choose.
When you are truly happy, people around you will no doubt see it. Yet there’s so much more to being happy than merely looking happy.
If you’re striving to impress others with how happy you are, you’re not happy at all. Let go of the striving and the needs, and allow happiness.
You can be happy doing nothing. You can be happy doing anything.
Happiness does not come from the situation the person is in. Happiness comes from the person who is in the situation.
Be the person to allow happiness. And you can experience it at any and every time and place.
— Ralph Marston
Great Goddess
Be with me in this time of sorrow
Ease the pain of my heart
And soothe my battered spirit
Bless my nights and restful sleep
So I might cope with the long days ahead
Enfold me in your compassionate arms
As I learn to live with my loss
Help me to move forward with life
And let the pain grow less as time passes
Bless me with your love
And watch over me
And the one I have lost
So Mote It Be
Your Rune For Today
Naudhiz
Naudhiz may foretell needs unmet and friction in relationships. You may be in a time where you should be very careful in whatever endeavor you take on. Also it may be that you are about to learn some of life’s hard lessons and come out the other side of this period a stronger being.
HANDFASTING AND MARRIAGE BROOM LORE
As a Priestess and Wiccan Minister, I perform several Handfasting Rites per
year. One of the main things I encourage Wiccan engaged couples to do is to find
a broom together. This is the symbol of hearth and home. Once the broom has been found, then it is anointed as I stated above, then some of the broom brush is pulled from the stem. That brush is then woven together and placed upon the
wedding altar. The broom is present during our counseling sessions and then the
wife-to-be is usually the keeper of the broom until the wedding. This represents
that she is the keeper of the home and keeps peace and harmony while the man
goes out to work. It also means that she is the keeper of the Magickal power of
the home. As it seems in these modern times that this is wrong to have such
sexed roles, this is celtic lore from more than 600 years ago.
The night before the wedding, the couple will dress the broom by weaving 3
strand of colored ribbon around the handle. What this represents is the inter-
twining of their lives and they themselves are no longer individuals but are
part of each other. The broom is then placed either standing by the altar or
placed lying under the altar during the ceremony as the vows are said, the
promises made, that hands fasted. They are pronounced husband and wife and the broom is then put before them as the final test of love. The couple either
steps, or in old tradition, jumps, over the broom. This is the final end of the
ceremony. Then it is recommended that the couple takes the broom home and
makes love with the broom under the bed. This seals the marriage.
Your broom can be your best friend and your magickal ally. Treat your broom with honor, reverence and respect and you will have a life-long companion and ritual tool.
“To marry over the broomstick,” “jump the besom”, was an old-time form of
marriage, in which both parties jumped over a broomstick to signify that they
were joined in common-law union. Also in the Netherlands, one can still find the
old saying “over de bezem trouwen” (marrying over the broomstick). At gypsy
wedding ceremonies, the bride and groom jump backwards and forwards over a
broomstick. A besom used to be placed before the doorway, the married couple
had to jump over it without dislodging the broom, from the street into their new
home. At any time within a year, this process could be reversed to dissolve the
marriage by jumping backwards. All this had to take place before several
witnesses.
In folk-belief, like that in Yorkshire, it was unlucky for an unmarried girl to
step over a broomstick because it meant that she would be a mother before she
was a wife. Light-hearted wags used to delight in putting broomsticks in the
path of unsuspecting virgins.
August 12 – Daily Feast
Time and space mean nothing to friends. They find each other again and again, to share the things that are important – and a great many things that are ordinary, everyday events. Tsu na li I, friends or close ones, forgive us whether we deserve it or not. They know how easy it is to get off center. But they have high hopes for us – maybe even higher than we have for ourselves. We are at our best when someone chooses to be that kind of friend, to make allowances for our lapses of memory – for no other reason than precious, loyal friendship. It is a quiet, peaceful and dear relationship that never grows old and never ends. Being such a friend is a sweet and blessed responsibility.
~ The Great Spirit has smiled upon us and made us glad. ~
KEOKUK
‘A Cherokee Feast of Days’, by Joyce Sequichie Hifler
Goal: To open yourself to love in all its forms
Optional extra: White or pink candle
Notes: This spell was originally published in the book “The Goddess Is In The Details.” It is mostly aimed at opening your own heart so that love can come in, rather than drawing in any specific other person. It doesn’t necessarily have to be limited to romantic love—if you are looking for a best friend, then substitute the word “friendship” for lover and put out that intention instead.
Light the candle, then visualize your heart being surrounded by a white light that protects it at the same time it helps you open yourself up to loving and being loved.
“I ask the moon and stars above
To open my heart to perfect love
Striving not, nor chasing after
But open wide to love and laughter.”
“Hopeful am I and willing too
To open myself to lover’s woo
But while I wait for love that’s meant
With myself I’ll be content.”
“I wish for love that’s true and right
Filled with joy and shining light
I release all that which blocks my way
And open my heart to one who’ll stay.”
Although it has taken on a strictly romantic revision of meaning in some modern decks, traditionally the Lovers card of Tarot reflected the challenges of choosing a partner. At a crossroads, one cannot take both paths. The images on this card in different decks have varied more than most, because we have had so many ways of looking at sex and relationships across cultures and centuries.
Classically, the energy of this card reminded us of the real challenges posed by romantic relationships, with the protagonist often shown in the act of making an either-or choice. To partake of a higher ideal often requires sacrificing the lesser option. The path of pleasure eventually leads to distraction from spiritual growth. The gratification of the personality eventually gives way to a call from spirit as the soul matures.
Modern decks tend to portray the feeling of romantic love with this card, showing Adam and Eve at the gates of Eden when everything was still perfect. This interpretation portrays humanity before the Fall, and can be thought to imply a different sort of choice — the choice of evolution over perfection, or the choice of personal growth through relationship — instead of a fantasy where everything falls into place perfectly and is taken care of without effort.
Witches Of The Craft® 
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