Tag: Witchcraft Magazine

July 8 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1099 First Crusade: 15,000 starving Christian soldiers march in religious procession around Jerusalem as its Muslim defenders look on

1497 Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama departs on his first voyage, will become the 1st European to reach India by sea

1777 Independent Vermont introduces a new constitution, prohibiting slavery

1800 Dr Benjamin Waterhouse gives 1st cowpox vaccination in the US to his son to prevent smallpox

1853 Commodore Matthew C. Perry sails his frigate Susquehanna into Tokyo Bay, opening Japan to Western influence and trade

1948 500th anniversary of the Russian Orthodox Church celebrated in Moscow

1949 South Africa’s Prohibition of Mixed Marriages Act commences, prohibiting marriage or a sexual relationship between White people and people of other races [1]

Today’s Historical Events

939 The Major Occultation, or Ghaybat el-Kubra of Muhammad al-Mahdi

1099 First Crusade: 15,000 starving Christian soldiers march in religious procession around Jerusalem as its Muslim defenders look on

1283 War of the Sicilian Vespers: Battle of Malta

1497 Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama departs on his first voyage, will become the 1st European to reach India by sea

1579 Our Lady of Kazan, a holy icon of the Russian Orthodox Church, was discovered underground in the city of Kazan, Tatarstan

1663 King Charles II of England grants a charter to Rhode Island

1672 William III is appointed stadholder by the States General in the Netherlands

1680 The first confirmed tornado in America kills a servant at Cambridge, Massachusetts

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1954 KMOX (now KMOV) TV channel 4 in Saint Louis, MO (CBS) 1st broadcast

1982 15th San Diego Comic-Con International opens at Hotel San Diego

2005 Marvel superhero film “The Fantastic Four” starring Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis premieres

2010 “Inception”, directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, premieres in London

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1946 “Tidbits of 1946” opens at Plymouth Theater NYC for 8 performances

1949 Monte Irvin & Hank Thompson, 1st black players for New York Giants, 4-3 loss to Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field

1982 “7 Brides for 7 Brothers” opens at Alvin Theater NYC for 5 performances

1988 Rockers Jonathan “Chico” & Robert DeBarge indicted on drug trafficking

1988 Stevie Wonder announces he will run for mayor of Detroit in 1992; he does not follow through

1996 British girls group the Spice Girls release their debut single “Wannabe” in the UK

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1889 John L. Sullivan successfully defends last officially sanctioned, bare-knuckle world heavyweight prizefighting championship; Jake Kilrain’s trainer throws in towel after 75 x 1-minute rounds near Hattiesburg, Mississippi

1889 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: William Renshaw wins his 7th Wimbledon singles title; beats twin brother Ernest Renshaw 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 6-0

1898 Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Red Donahue no-hits Boston Beaneaters, 5-0 at the Baker Bowl

1902 Baltimore manager John McGraw is accused by AL President Ban Johnson of trying to wreck the Orioles & Washington Senators; negotiates his release from the Orioles, having already signed with NY Giants

1905 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: May Sutton becomes first American player to win the singles title at Wimbledon; beats Dorothea Chambers 6-3, 6-4

1905 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Home town favourite Laurence Doherty wins his 4th consecutive Wimbledon singles title; beats Norman Brookes of Australia 8-6 6-2 6-4

1909 1st pro baseball game (minor league) played under lights

1911 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Anthony Wilding of New Zealand wins 2nd of 4 consecutive Wimbledon singles titles beating Herbert Roper-Barrett 6-4, 4-6, 2-6, 6-2 ret

Charming Something to Use for Personal Protection Workshop

I have had more requests than usual on how to make a personal protection talisman. So, I decided to do a witchy workshop on the topic. It will cover why everyone should always carry personal protection talisman along with a discussion about the topic. We will also make a personal protection talisman during the workshop. The workshop should last about 90 minutes depending on the Q & A part. The circle to make your personal protection talisman will take no longer than 30 minutes. 

Email High Priestess Lady Beltane at ladybeltane@aol.com to reserve your place for this workshop. Workshop will be held on Saturday, July 9 at 11:00 AM CDT. Workshop limited to 10 people. The donation for this workshop will be $20.00 USD.

You can use this link to find out what YOUR local time will be.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

An object you will wear or carry with you daily

Bowl of water large enough to dip your object in

A red candle to run the object through the flame

Small amount of table salt or dirt to lightly sprinkle on the object

RITUAL:

Lady Beltane will cast a sacred circle and call the quarters

First, we will cleanse the object with the objects that represent the elements

Second, we will charm the object

Lastly Lady Beltane will open the circle and dismiss the quarters

July 7 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.

2022 July 7

The NGC 6914 Complex

Image Credit & Copyright: Giorgio Ferrari

Explanation: A study in contrasts, this colorful skyscape features stars, dust, and glowing gas in the vicinity of NGC 6914. The interstellar complex of nebulae lies some 6,000 light-years away, toward the high-flying northern constellation Cygnus and the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy. Obscuring interstellar dust clouds appear in silhouette while reddish hydrogen emission nebulae, along with the dusty blue reflection nebulae, fill the cosmic canvas. Ultraviolet radiation from the massive, hot, young stars of the extensive Cygnus OB2 association ionize the region’s atomic hydrogen gas, producing the characteristic red glow as protons and electrons recombine. Embedded Cygnus OB2 stars also provide the blue starlight strongly reflected by the dust clouds. The over 1 degree wide telescopic field of view spans about 100 light-years at the estimated distance of NGC 6914.

A Thought for Today

Until we meet again dear sisters, brothers, and honored guests may your life be filled with all things positive!

July 7, 2022 Daily Horoscopes Digest

Click here for Georgia Nicols daily horoscopes

Moon Alert

Avoid shopping or important decisions after 9 PM EDT today (from 6 PM to 10:30 PM PDT). After 10:30 PM PDT, the Moon moves from Libra into Scorpio.

Aries (March 21-April 19)

Thankfully, today is a lovely day for important discussions with partners and close friends. It’s an excellent day to sign contracts or to agree to something important because you are wearing your sensible hat. Nevertheless, be open to advice from someone older or more experienced than you.

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

This is a practical day at work; and you will be pleased because you will find it easy to accomplish a lot. Make a To Do list in the morning and get going! One of the reasons you will be productive is that you have a sober, realistic view of things today, plus you are patient.

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

This is an excellent day to teach children or young minds because people are willing to put up with a bit of adversity to get what they want today. An older teacher or professor or someone more experienced might have good advice for you today.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

Family discussions will go well today. It’s easy to respect parents and older relatives and welcome their advice. After all, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel, do you? Why not stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before you?

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22)

Discussions with others will go well today, especially concerning important papers, contracts and negotiations. Because you’re in a sensible frame of mind, you will realistically see what you’re getting into because you will be aware of the parameters. It’s a solid day.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

This is an excellent day for business and commerce because whatever you do, you will do carefully and thoroughly. You will also have the discipline and strength to face some challenges if they occur. Someone older has advice for you – listen.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

This is a winning day for you! Ask for what you want and in fact, have the courage to ask for a little bit more than you expect because you very likely will get it. Today you have great skills negotiating issues about children, the entertainment world, the arts, sports and social outings.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

Quiet research done alone or behind the scenes will pay off today. This could benefit your home or some kind of domestic situation or possibly a parent. In turn, a parent or an older family member might have practical advice or assistance to offer you. Be open to this.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)

A discussion with an older female will definitely benefit you today. In fact, whatever takes place might ultimately affect how you think about some future goals. You might change your mind about something. You might take a new approach that is more practical.

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

People will respect you today. You are a bit high viz. more than usual; nevertheless, people see that you have a sober and realistic view of things, which is why they want to know your thoughts and opinions. Basically, you understand the principle of “No pain, no gain.” (You always have.)

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)

This is an excellent day for study of any kind. It’s a good day for legal negotiations, signing contracts and making serious plans about future travel. Discussions with foreign interests and older people will go well. Listen to what others have to say before you jump in.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)

This is a fine day to deal with financial matters related to shared property, banking, taxes, debt, insurance issues and inheritances. All that red-tape stuff. Fear not, you have the patience and you’ll be realistic.

If Your Birthday Is Today

Musician, singer, songwriter Ringo Starr (1940) shares your birthday today. You are very sensitive. You have a strong, intellectual drive and constantly seek ways to improve yourself and become a better person. You are independent, self-sufficient and loyal to family. This year you are focused on relationships because it’s important to find relationships that benefit you.

July 7, 2022 Current Moon Phase Digest

You can use this link to go forward or backward in time for Moon phase information. If you are curious, you can even find out what phase the Moon was in when you or anyone else was born.

From MoonGiant.com

The Moon’s current phase for today and tonight is a First Quarter phase. This phase occurs roughly 7 days after the New Moon when the moon is one quarter of the way through its orbit around the earth. Exactly half the moon will be illuminated and half dark. On the day of the First Quarter phase the moon is high overhead at sunset and is visible until mid-night when it sets in the west. The First Quarter phase is a one-day event and in the following days enters a Waxing Gibbous phase becoming more illuminated each day until the Full Moon.

Visit the July 2022 Moon Phases Calendar to see all the daily moon phase for this month.

Today’s First Quarter Phase

The First Quarter on July 7 has an illumination of 54%. This is the percentage of the Moon illuminated by the Sun. The illumination is constantly changing and can vary up to 10% a day. On July 7 the Moon is 7.79 days old. This refers to how many days it has been since the last New Moon. It takes 29.53 days for the Moon to orbit the Earth and go through the lunar cycle of all 8 Moon phases.

The 8 Lunar Phases

There are 8 lunar phases the Moon goes through in its 29.53 days lunar cycle. The 4 major Moon phases are Full Moon, New Moon, First Quarter and Last Quarter. Between these major phases, there are 4 minor ones: the Waxing Crescent, Waxing Gibbous, Waning Gibbous and Waning Crescent. For more info on the Moon Cycle and on each phase check out Wikipedia Lunar Phase page.

Phase Details

Phase: First Quarter
Illumination: 54%
Moon Age: 7.79 days
Moon Angle: 0.53
Moon Distance: 379,217.65 km
Sun Angle: 0.52
Sun Distance: 152,096,500.65 km

Useful Moon Resources

Check the weather before a night of Moon gazing at weather.com

For a list of all the current meteor showers visit American Meteor Society

7 July 2022 Southern Hemisphere’s Planetary Positions Digest

If you need to calculate the planetary positions for a specific use and time, click on this link

Currentplanetarypositions.com

To figure out GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) to your local time use this link

 For Your Local Time and Date 

Southeastern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Sao Paulo, Brazil, South America

7 July 2022
03:00 pm GMT 12:00 PM BRT
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:15 Cancer 29
Moon:22 Libra 01
Mercury:04 Cancer 43
Venus:17 Gemini 27
Mars:01 Taurus 39
Jupiter:07 Aries 59
Saturn:24 Aquarius 25 Rx
Uranus:18 Taurus 00
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 39 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 36 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 19

Chiron:16 Aries 22
Ceres:22 Cancer 51
Pallas:01 Gemini 11
Juno:20 Pisces 29
Vesta:06 Pisces 54

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

Southern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Cape Town, South Africa

7 July 2022
10:00 am GMT 12:00 PM SAST
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:15 Cancer 18
Moon:19 Libra 15
Mercury:04 Cancer 18
Venus:17 Gemini 12
Mars:01 Taurus 31
Jupiter:07 Aries 59
Saturn:24 Aquarius 26 Rx
Uranus:18 Taurus 00
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 39 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 36 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 18

Chiron:16 Aries 22
Ceres:22 Cancer 45
Pallas:01 Gemini 05
Juno:20 Pisces 28
Vesta:06 Pisces 54

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

Southwestern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 

7 July 2022
02:00 am GMT 12:00 PM AEST
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:14 Cancer 59
Moon:14 Libra 51
Mercury:03 Cancer 37
Venus:16 Gemini 48
Mars:01 Taurus 17
Jupiter:07 Aries 57
Saturn:24 Aquarius 27 Rx
Uranus:17 Taurus 59
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 40 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56 Rx
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 37 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 16

Chiron:16 Aries 22
Ceres:22 Cancer 36
Pallas:00 Gemini 55
Juno:20 Pisces 26
Vesta:06 Pisces 54

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

July 7, 2022 Northern Hemisphere’s Planetary Positions Digest

If you want to calculate the planetary positions for a specific use and time, click on this link

Currentplanetarypositions.com

To figure out GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) for your local time use this link

For Your Local Time and Date

Northwestern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Los Angeles, California, USA

July 07, 2022
07:00 pm GMT 12:00 PM PDT
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:15 Cancer 39
Moon:24 Libra 15
Mercury:05 Cancer 03
Venus:17 Gemini 39
Mars:01 Taurus 46
Jupiter:08 Aries 00
Saturn:24 Aquarius 24 Rx
Uranus:18 Taurus 00
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 39 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 35 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 20

Chiron:16 Aries 22
Ceres:22 Cancer 55
Pallas:01 Gemini 16
Juno:20 Pisces 30
Vesta:06 Pisces 54

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

Northern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Chicago, Illinois, USA

 July 07, 2022
06:00 pm GMT 12:00 PM CDT
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:15 Cancer 37
Moon:23 Libra 41
Mercury:04 Cancer 58
Venus:17 Gemini 36
Mars:01 Taurus 45
Jupiter:08 Aries 00
Saturn:24 Aquarius 25 Rx
Uranus:18 Taurus 00
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 39 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 35 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 20

Chiron:16 Aries 22
Ceres:22 Cancer 54
Pallas:01 Gemini 14
Juno:20 Pisces 30
Vesta:06 Pisces 54

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

Northeastern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Frankfurt, Germany, Europe

7 July 2022
10:00 am GMT 12:00 PM CEST
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:15 Cancer 18
Moon:19 Libra 15
Mercury:04 Cancer 18
Venus:17 Gemini 12
Mars:01 Taurus 31
Jupiter:07 Aries 59
Saturn:24 Aquarius 26 Rx
Uranus:18 Taurus 00
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 39 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 36 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 18

Chiron:16 Aries 22
Ceres:22 Cancer 45
Pallas:01 Gemini 05
Juno:20 Pisces 28
Vesta:06 Pisces 54

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

Spell for Today – Strengthen Your Psychic Shield

 

The night before the Full Moon, find a place where your altar will not be disturbed for 24 hours. Put the cauldron in the center with a red candle on the right side, black candle of the left side, and white candle in the back; but do not light them yet.

Sprinkle a mixture of equal parts of elder blossoms, marjoram, mint and rue in an unbroken circle around the cauldron. Into a tiny vial, measure equal drops of clove, frankincense, jasmine, and lavender. Set the sealed bottle in the cauldron and leave until the night of the Full Moon.

On Full Moon night, take a cleansing bathe and robe yourself in white. Carry a good protective or purification incense through every room in the house. Make certain that the smoke drifts into closets.

Return to the altar and light the candles. Take up the dagger or sword. Face the East and raise the sword in salute. To salute in this manner, simply hold the sword point upward in front of you. Say:

By the power of the rising sun, all evil in my life is done.
Turn to the South, salute, say:
By the power of darkening night, my shield is strong, my armor tight.
Turn to the North, salute, say:
By Full Moon in blackening sky, I am not alone. My help is nigh.
The Goddess’s hands around me stay, To keep me safe by night and day.
Begone, foul spirits, unbidden here. I send you back, I do not fear.
For I have won. I am set free. You have no further power over me.

Face the altar and take up the vial of oil. Put a drop of oil on your finger and anoint your forehead, heart, solar plexus, wrists and ankles. As you do this, visualize a shining blue suit of armor slowly descending over your body until you are entirely protected. Cap the bottle and store in a safe place.

 

Thank the Powers for their help and extinguish the candles.
Apply the oil and repeat the chants whenever you feel the armor is slipping.

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Words are

Astral Plane

and

Astral Projection

From moonlitpriestess.com

Realm believed to be beyond space and time; considered by some as an alternative dimension running alongside the physical realm we currently inhabit where beings (including ourselves) can travel and interact in spirit or astrally; sometimes visited to perform magick that can affect change on the physical plane.

AND

Also called astral traveling; the art of “leaving one’s body” while in a trance state to visit other locations or realms astrally, or “in spirit.” Traveling into the astral plane, generally understood as a parallel world unseen in our world of form. Studies have shown an individual successfully astral projecting can be seen and heard by a non-projecting individual on this plane, giving credit to this ability.

July 7 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1520 Battle of Otumba, Mexico: Hernán Cortés and the Tlaxcalans defeat a numerically superior Aztec force

1937 Japanese and Chinese troops clash at the Marco Polo Bridge, beginning the Second Sino-Japanese War

1947 Alleged and disputed Roswell UFO incident

2005 Coordinated terrorist bomb blasts strike London’s public transport system during the morning rush hour killing 52 and injuring 700

2005 Influenced by global Live 8 concerts, G8 leaders pledge to double 2004 levels of aid to Africa from US$25 to US$50 billion by the year 2010

Today’s Historical Events

1124 Tyrus surrenders to Crusaders

1438 King Charles VII issues the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges stating that a General Church Council with superior power to the Pope must be held every 10 years

1456 A retrial verdict acquits Joan of Arc of heresy 25 years after her death

1495 King Ferdinand II returns to Naples

1498 Emperor Maximilian I establishes choir of Imperial Chapel

1520 Battle of Otumba, Mexico: Hernán Cortés and the Tlaxcalans defeat a numerically superior Aztec force

1534 European colonization of the Americas: first known exchange between Europeans and natives of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, in New Brunswick

1543 French troops invade Luxembourg

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1936 RCA shows 1st real TV program (dancing, film on locomotives, Bonwit Teller fashion show and monologue from Tobacco Road & comedy)

1939 “The Rules of the Game”, French film directed by Jean Renoir, starring Nora Gregor and Paulette Dubost, premieres in Paris

1949 “Dragnet” premieres on NBC radio; also a TV series in 1951 & 1967

1956 “Hancock’s Half Hour” premieres as a TV show starring Tony Hancock and Sid James, written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson

1975 TV soap opera “Ryan’s Hope” premieres

1977 “The Spy Who Loved Me”, 10th James Bond film starring Roger Moore and Barbara Bach, premieres in London

1980 Shawn Weatherly, of USA, crowned 29th Miss Universe

1980 Jineane Ford of Arizona replaces Shawn Weatherly (Miss Universe) as the 29th Miss USA

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1949 “Cabatgata (A Night in Spain)” opens at Broadway NYC for 76 performances

1956 Douglas Moore/John Latouche’ opera “Ballad of Baby Doe,” premieres

1965 Otis Redding records “Respect”

1967 Beatles’ “All You Need is Love” is released

1967 Doors’ “Light My Fire” hits #1

1968 Rock group “Yardbirds” disband

1986 It is reported that Boy George is being treated for heroin addiction

1988 Hungarian state funeral for composer Béla Bartók in Budapest, 42 years after his death with his remains relocated from New York

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1868 Surrey wicket-keeper Ted Pooley completes a then-1st class cricket record 12 dismissals (8 caught, 4 stumped) in a County match against Sussex at The Oval

1887 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: 3-time runner-up Herbert Lawford wins his only Wimbledon title beating Ernest Renshaw 1-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4

1890 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Irishman Willoughby Hamilton wins his only Wimbledon title beating 7-time champion William Renshaw 6-8, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-1

1892 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Lottie Dod beats Blanche Bingley-Hillyard for a 4th time in a Wimbledon final 6-1, 6-1

1900 Boston Beaneaters pitcher Kid Nichols notches his 300th career MLB victory with an 11-4 win over Chicago Orphans

1911 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Dorothea Chambers becomes first player not to concede a game in a final beating Dora Boothby 6-0, 6-0

1912 American athlete Jim Thorpe wins 4 of 5 events to win the Pentathlon gold medal at the Stockholm Olympics, medal stripped 1913 (played pro baseball), reinstated 1982

1914 Baltimore Orioles owner Jack Dunn offers future baseball legend Babe Ruth, Ernie Shore & Ben Egan for $10k to Connie Mack (Philadelphia A’s); refuses pleading lack of finance

Popping Pills and Magical Practice

Popping Pills and Magical Practice

Author: Deborah
Since writing my latest article for WitchVox on Magically Cleansing Your Home, I’ve been getting the same question over and over:

Do you think that taking medication affects your magical practice?

My short answer would be: No.

For those of you interested in a discussion, I will share my thoughts with you here. Firstly, I’d like to say that I really dislike it when people are made to feel like they need to engage in secrecy and shame. If that happens, something has really gone wrong in my opinion. The fact that apparently a lot of Pagans/Magical Practitioners feel that they can’t talk about taking prescription medication — and need to hide the reality that they do take medications from the community — makes me really sad. Taking care of your health and taking advantage of modern medicine shouldn’t be something you have to feel shame about in spiritual circles.

So let’s start kicking down some walls and lay it all out there. I have depression, anxiety, anemia and fibromyalgia. I currently take the following medications to make it so that I am a productive member of society: Prozac, Xanax, Remeron, Savella, Celebrex, Vitamin D, Multi-Vitamin and Birth Control. In the past, I have: gone to therapy and tried Kava and St. John’s Wort to help.

The therapy helped immensely, the Kava and St. John’s Wort significantly less so. In addition to my medication I use yoga, stress management techniques, japa/self guided meditation, massage, journaling and talking to loved ones to manage my conditions. I see my doctor regularly. She is very tight fisted with all the “fun” meds and I don’t think I could get a Vicodin out of her if it meant she could retire on an island of her own. But at the same time, she treats my conditions very aggressively.

Even with good coping mechanisms, good medication and a good support structure, I still have days where I’m anxious and can’t sleep and I occasionally have days when I am depressed for no reason. Sometimes my fibromyalgia causes me so much fatigue and pain still that I can’t get out of bed.

Even with taking medication, I still feel the normal human range of emotions and generally only feel sad or stressed when I’m “supposed to”. I’ve worked since I was fourteen. I pay my taxes. I write; I ran a convention. I go out and have fun doing all the things early thirty-somethings like to do. I have loving relationships and I own a car and a condo. My medication makes it so that instead of being too depressed to be motivated, or paralyzed with inexplicable fear and anxiousness, or too bedridden with pain and fatigue, I can lead a fairly “normal” life.

Which is the reason I get confused about why shame needs to be implemented if people choose to take advantage of first world medical care in order to lead functional lives. Are there people who abuse prescriptions? Um, yeah. They’re addicts like the people who are alcoholics and drug abusers. Is that the majority of people who take meds? No.

There’s this idea that really bugs me that there are all these people who take medication they don’t really need and this medication magically takes away all of their problems so they don’t need to deal with them. Last I knew, you needed to take like a fistful of Xanax or are shooting H to get that effect. Which . . .see: addict.

Medication (and therapy) helps get you to the point where you’re not in a full-blown chemical freak-out so you can effectively solve your problems and live your life. If you can do that for yourself without meds, awesome! You have an incredible immune system and brain chemistry. If you can do that solely with homeopathic methods, great! There’s nothing wrong with homeopathy if it works for you.

If you feel taking meds makes you a lesser person somehow then that’s your business and you certainly have a right to your feelings. But I start to get really touchy when someone who thinks that taking meds makes him/her a lesser person insists that I should think that too. I get even more touchy when you start to try to tell me what to do with my body because I have a real problem with that. Agency over my body goes way beyond whether or not I decide to have an abortion; it’s also about having the right to make the decisions I make regarding my health care.

And this junk that some people in our community put on others — about how taking prescription medication is selling out, supporting corporate evil and bringing our community down and how you don’t “believe” in the pharmaceutical industry so neither should anyone else, along with the hype that positive energy/crystals/herbs/alternative therapies would work for everyone regardless of their brain chemistry and body systems and personal desires — is just that: junk.

Because honestly? Unless you’re completely off the grid (and then would not be reading this on the internet) , we all have to make compromises every day with big business. Do I like that? No. Am I willing to compromise my issues with big business in order to be a reasonably functioning human? Yes. Am I saying you have to make that compromise? No. Am I saying you need to leave me alone and make my own big girl decisions about that compromise and why I don’t use crystals for healing? Yes.

With all that out of the way, let’s get to the nuts and bolts of the question asked. While I haven’t been completely unmedicated in roughly ten years, there are occasions when I have a little time in between prescriptions due to various reasons (mostly due to the length of time it takes for my prescriptions to arrive to me via mail) . It is during these times when I am in a quasi-unmedicated state — and/or if my fibro-flare is that impressive that it punches past my meds — that I feel able to give my own take on whether or not my medications have affected my magical practice.

When I was unmedicated/quasi-unmedicated, it was significantly easier for me to be in touch intuitively. What that means to me is that Tarot reading was easier to “pull”, getting random psychic impulses and having an easier time seeing what’s going on with what I call The Tapestry. The Tapestry refers to everything that’s happened in the past, everything that’s happening right now, everything that will happen and everything that never happened. To me it looks like a huge tapestry constantly weaving and unweaving itself in bits and pieces. Typically I could see about like one billionth of the whole tapestry, and it was mostly my little corner of the world.

However. And this is a big however, my magic has significantly improved since medicating. My spells are much more effectively, I now have the focus to have a personal practice (which I didn’t previously) and my rituals are more effective and meaningful.

So while yes, my general fuzzy random psychic ability was better unmedicated, having the ability to cast better and have a better personal practice to me far outweighed my unmedicated abilities. My unmedicated abilities were more “traditional” psychic aspects.

The ability to get the perfect condo through my targeted magic work far outweighed the benefit of being able to say, “Gordon! I think something is going to happen to you on Wedne- Thursd- No, definitely Wednesday. No idea what though. Cheers!” So for me, being more functional in my daily life and being more effective in my targeted magical practice far outweighed being unmedicated.

July 6, 2022 Daily Horoscopes Digest

Click here for Georgia Nicols daily horoscopes

Moon Alert

There are no restrictions to shopping or important decisions today. The Moon is in Libra.

Aries (March 21-April 19)

Do what you can to keep the peace at home today because harmony where you live is important for your own happiness. Anger serves no purpose other than to make everyone miserable. (But you know this.) Be accommodating to others because today the Moon is opposite your sign.

Taurus (April 20-May 20)

Be patient talking to siblings, relatives and daily contacts today because this is the kind of day where tempers will flare because people are ready to clash. Naturally, this doesn’t have to happen. Remember that patience is the antidote to anger. (And definitely more classy.)

Gemini (May 21-June 20)

Money squabbles might occur today. They could be about anything. The cost of a social event, money spent on kids, a romantic gift (or the lack of it), a dispute about earnings or something that you own. A wide variety of things will test your patience today. As the wordsmith of the zodiac, you can cleverly avoid these.

Cancer (June 21-July 22)

Tread carefully because arguments with parents, bosses and the police might take place today. Tension at home, especially with a female relative, is likely. This means someone is unhappy. Unhappy people tend to look for reasons to vent.

Leo (July 23-Aug. 22)

Your day will be happier today if you are patient with relatives, siblings and daily contacts. Don’t take the bait if someone tries to convince everyone about their ideas or beliefs. Let them go their way. You can go yours. Sometimes you have to agree to disagree.

Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)

Money squabbles are possible today. Or you might have a dispute about shared responsibilities or who owns what. Quarrels about shared property or how to use designated funding might also arise. Yes, this is a prickly day so don’t get your belly in a rash.

Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)

With the Moon in your sign today, you might be a bit more emotional than usual. Therefore, do what you can to keep the peace with partners, parents and bosses because people are almost itching for an argument today. You don’t need this.

Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)

Be smart and steer clear of controversial subjects like politics, religion and racial issues, to name a few, because arguments will quickly arise. People will be quick to exaggerate or take opposition to whatever you say. Let’s face it, you can’t win.

Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)

Whether you are involved in a social outing, a fun lunch or a sports event, be smart and zip your lip if tempers begin to flare. Why get involved? Remember the objective of any get-together is to have a good time. And that’s what you like because you work hard and party hard!

Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)

Today the Moon is at the top of your chart and the Sun is directly opposite you, which means they are at odds with each other. This can also mean you’ll find yourself at odds with bosses, parents and the police as well as partners and close friends. Run for cover!

Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)

You are a sign who wants to make the world a better place. This is why many of you are involved in recycling, unions and movements that fight for the underdog. Avoid tension dealing with issues with other people today, especially issues that are work-related. You won’t win.

Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20)

Financial matters might come to a head today, especially if they relate to vacations, the entertainment world, children or sports because people have strong ideas today and very likely, they won’t agree. Just watch from the sidelines. Stay out of the fray.

If Your Birthday Is Today

Nobel Prize laureate His Holiness the Dalai Lama (1935) shares your birthday today. You are strong and passionate, which is why you fervently stand by your beliefs. You are self-disciplined, tenacious, persevering and confident. This year is the beginning of the fresh, nine-year cycle for you. Be courageous and ready to explore new directions and open new doors!

July 6, 2022 Current Moon Phase Digest

You can use this link to go forward or backward in time for Moon phase information. If you are curious, you can even find out what phase the Moon was in when you or anyone else was born.

From MoonGiant.com

The Moon’s current phase for today and tonight is a Waxing Crescent Phase. A Waxing Crescent is the first Phase after the New Moon and is a great time to see the features of the moon’s surface. During this phase the Moon can be seen in the wester sky after the sun dips below the horizon at sunset. The moon is close to the sun in the sky and mostly dark except for the right edge of the moon which becomes brighter as the days get closer to the next phase which is a First Quarter with a 50% illumination.

Visit the July 2022 Moon Phases Calendar to see all the daily moon phase for this month.

Today’s Waxing Crescent Phase

The Waxing Crescent on July 6 has an illumination of 44%. This is the percentage of the Moon illuminated by the Sun. The illumination is constantly changing and can vary up to 10% a day. On July 6 the Moon is 6.8 days old. This refers to how many days it has been since the last New Moon. It takes 29.53 days for the Moon to orbit the Earth and go through the lunar cycle of all 8 Moon phases.

The 8 Lunar Phases

There are 8 lunar phases the Moon goes through in its 29.53 days lunar cycle. The 4 major Moon phases are Full Moon, New Moon, First Quarter and Last Quarter. Between these major phases, there are 4 minor ones: the Waxing Crescent, Waxing Gibbous, Waning Gibbous and Waning Crescent. For more info on the Moon Cycle and on each phase check out Wikipedia Lunar Phase page.

Phase Details

Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 44%
Moon Age: 6.80 days
Moon Angle: 0.52
Moon Distance: 384,050.17 km
Sun Angle: 0.52
Sun Distance: 152,098,210.59 km

Useful Moon Resources

Check the weather before a night of Moon gazing at weather.com

For a list of all the current meteor showers visit American Meteor Society

July 6, 2022 Northern Hemisphere’s Planetary Positions Digest

If you want to calculate the planetary positions for a specific use and time, click on this link

Currentplanetarypositions.com

To figure out GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) for your local time use this link

For Your Local Time and Date

Northwestern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Los Angeles, California, USA

July 06, 2022
07:00 pm GMT 12:00 PM PDT
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:14 Cancer 42
Moon:11 Libra 03
Mercury:03 Cancer 02
Venus:16 Gemini 27
Mars:01 Taurus 05
Jupiter:07 Aries 56
Saturn:24 Aquarius 27 Rx
Uranus:17 Taurus 58
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 40 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56 Rx
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 38 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 14

Chiron:16 Aries 22
Ceres:22 Cancer 29
Pallas:00 Gemini 47
Juno:20 Pisces 24
Vesta:06 Pisces 54

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

Northern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Chicago, Illinois, USA

July 06, 2022
05:00 pm GMT 12:00 PM CDT
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:14 Cancer 37
Moon:09 Libra 58
Mercury:02 Cancer 52
Venus:16 Gemini 21
Mars:01 Taurus 01
Jupiter:07 Aries 56
Saturn:24 Aquarius 28 Rx
Uranus:17 Taurus 58
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 40 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56 Rx
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 39 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 13

Chiron:16 Aries 22
Ceres:22 Cancer 26
Pallas:00 Gemini 45
Juno:20 Pisces 23
Vesta:06 Pisces 54

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

Northeastern Hemisphere

The time for these Custom Planetary Positions is from the local time in Frankfurt, Germany, Europe

6 July 2022
10:00 am GMT 12:00 PM CEST
Zodiac: Tropical (Standard Western)

Sun:14 Cancer 20
Moon:06 Libra 11
Mercury:02 Cancer 16
Venus:16 Gemini 00
Mars:00 Taurus 49
Jupiter:07 Aries 54
Saturn:24 Aquarius 28 Rx
Uranus:17 Taurus 57
Neptune:25 Pisces 25 Rx
Pluto:27 Capricorn 41 Rx

True Lunar Node:20 Taurus 56 Rx
Mean Lunar Node:19 Taurus 40 Rx

Lilith (Black Moon):09 Cancer 11

Chiron:16 Aries 21
Ceres:22 Cancer 19
Pallas:00 Gemini 36
Juno:20 Pisces 21
Vesta:06 Pisces 53

Eris:25 Aries 00

Fire:3
Earth:5
Air:4
Water:7
Cardinal:9
Fixed:5
Mutable:5

Pagan and Magickal Terms and Definitions

Today’s Word is

Aromatherapy

From moonlitpriestess.com

Form of alternative healing using essential oils, believed to contain the power of plants and that the medicinal properties of those plants can work through the olfactory system (sense of smell) as smell is shown to affect the conscious mind; may be used in a multitude of ways, such as candles, and incorporated into other modalities such as massage.

July 6 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.

2022 July 6

Milky Way Motion in 3D from Gaia

Credit & License: ESA, Gaia, DPAC; Text: Ata Sarajedini (Florida Atlantic U., Astronomy Minute podcast)

Explanation: Our sky is alive with the streams of stars. The motions of 26 million Milky Way stars are evident in the featured map constructed from recent data taken by ESA‘s Gaia satellite. Stars colored blue are moving toward us, while red indicates away. Lines depict the motion of the stars across the sky. The large blue on the left and red areas on the map’s right give the overall impression that stars in the Milky Way are rotating around the center. However, there is a region near the middle — caused by our own Sun’s motion relative to a rigidly-rotating central Galactic bar — that seems to reverse it. Understanding details about the motion of stars is helping humanity to better understand the complex history of our Milky Way galaxy and the origin of our Sun.

July 6 Today in History

Today’s Important Historical Events

1348 Papal bull of Pope Clement VI issued during the Black Death stating Jews not to blame and urging their protection

1785 US Congress unanimously resolves the name of US currency to the “dollar” and adopts decimal coinage

1885 Louis Pasteur successfully give an anti-rabies vaccine to 9-year-old Joseph Meister, saving his life

1923 The Central Executive Committee accepts the Treaty of Union, signed in Moscow in December 1922, and the Russian Empire becomes the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

1967 Nigerian Civil War erupts as Nigerian forces invade the secessionist state of Biafra

1970 California passes 1st “no fault” divorce law

Today’s Historical Events

1016 Battle of Pontlevoy: one of largest battles of early Medieval France won by Fulk the Black and Hebert I of Maine again Odo II of Blois in the Loire Valley

1044 The Battle of Ménfő takes place in Hungary, won by a German force led by Peter Orseolo over Hungarians

1189 Richard the Lionheart is crowned King of England, upon the death of King Henry II

1253 Mindaugas is crowned King of Lithuania

1348 Papal bull of Pope Clement VI issued during the Black Death stating Jews not to blame and urging their protection

1415 Bohemian religious reformer Jan Hus is burned at the stake in Constance, Germany

1483 Richard III is crowned King of England after deposing Edward V

1484 Portuguese sea captain Diogo Cão finds the mouth of the Congo River

Today’s Historical Events in Film and TV

1933 “Nertsery Rhymes” short film starring Ted Healy and His Stooges premieres, one of the first film appearance of The Three Stooges

1945 Abbott and Costello‘s film “The Naughty Nineties” released; features longest version of their “Who’s on First?” routine

1954 KMOS TV channel 6 in Sedalia-Warrensburg, MO (PBS) begins broadcasting

1959 WENH TV channel 11 in Durham, NH (PBS) begins broadcasting

1969 Filming begins on “Ned Kelly” starring Mick Jagger

1990 “Jetsons the Movie” by Hanna-Barbera with Tiffany Darwish, premieres

1994 “Forrest Gump”, directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, and Gary Sinise, is released (Academy Awards Best Picture 1995)

Today’s Historical Events in Music

1946 “St Louis Woman” closes at Martin Beck Theater NYC after 113 performances

1957 John Lennon (16) & Paul McCartney (15) meet for 1st time as Lennon’s rock group Quarrymen perform at St. Peter’s, Woolton’s Parish Church in Liverpool

1964 The Beatles’ film “Hard Day’s Night” premieres in London

1965 Rock group “Jefferson Airplane” forms

1975 Dmitri Shostakovich completes Sonate for alto opus 147

1997 “Dream-Johnny Mercer Musical” closes at Royale NYC after 109 performances

2005 Live 8 concert at Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland; performers include Wet Wet Wet, Annie Lennox, James Brown, the Corrs, and The Proclaimers

2010 Brandon Boyd announces the release of his debut solo album, “The Wild Trapeze”

Today’s Historical Events in Sports

1887 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Lottie Dod becomes youngest ever Wimbledon champion (15 years, 285 days); defending champion beats Blanche Bingley 6-2, 6-0

1889 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Blanche Bingley-Hillyard beats Lena Rice 4-6, 8-6, 6-4

1907 Tom Reece takes 5 weeks to compile the highest recorded billiards break in a match (499,135) in London, his ‘cradle’ cannon method is soon banned

1912 V Summer (Modern) Olympic Games officially open Stockholm, Sweden; events conducted prior to the ceremony dating back to 5 May

1920 New York Yankees score MLB record 14 runs in 5th inning of a 17-0 rout of Washington Senators

1923 Wimbledon Women’s Tennis: Suzanne Lenglen of France beats Kitty McKane 6-2, 6-2 for her 5th straight Wimbledon singles title

1928 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: In an all-French final René Lacoste beats defending champion Henri Cochet 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2

1929 Wimbledon Men’s Tennis: Henri Cochet beats fellow Frenchman Jean Borotra 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 for his 2nd Wimbledon singles crown

A Laugh for Today

Wishing you a whimsical Wednesday!

July 5 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.

2022 July 5

A Molten Galaxy Einstein Ring

Image Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, S. Jha; Processing: Jonathan Lodge

Explanation: It is difficult to hide a galaxy behind a cluster of galaxies. The closer cluster’s gravity will act like a huge lens, pulling images of the distant galaxy around the sides and greatly distorting them. This is just the case observed in the featured image recently re-processed image from the Hubble Space Telescope. The cluster GAL-CLUS-022058c is composed of many galaxies and is lensing the image of a yellow-red background galaxy into arcs seen around the image center. Dubbed a molten Einstein ring for its unusual shape, four images of the same background galaxy have been identified. Typically, a foreground galaxy cluster can only create such smooth arcs if most of its mass is smoothly distributed — and therefore not concentrated in the cluster galaxies visible. Analyzing the positions of these gravitational arcs gives astronomers a method to estimate the dark matter distribution in galaxy clusters, as well as infer when the stars in these early galaxies began to form.

 

New APOD Social Mirrors in Arabic: On Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter