Samhain HistoryMentioned from the 10th century onward in Old Irish literature, the 4th fire festival marking the beginning of Winter. Ways to celebrate Samhain Herbs, etc. Stones Symbols **Information shared from my personal Book of Shadows
Category: Sabbats
Celebrations, Herbs, Stones, and Symbols of Mabon
Mabon HistoryLesser Irish holiday named after the Celtic God of the same name. The name ‘Mabon’ is a recent usage, though harvest festivals on the Autumnal Equinox are ancient and universal. Also known as ‘Pagan Thanksgiving’. Ways to celebrate Mabon* Creating a huge, festive feast for friends and family* Taking a walk in nature to…
Celebrations, Herbs, Stones, and Symbols of Lughnasadh/Lammas
Lughnasadh HistoryOne of the Old Irish seasonal festivals marking the beginning of the harvest season. Named after the Irish god Lugh. Mentioned in some of the earliest Irish literature. Ways to celebrate Lughnasadh* Bake bread* Make a seasonal feast with tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, corn and other Summer veggies* Make a corn dolly* Meditate on abundance…
Samhain Corn Chowder
Isn’t Samhain just the best time of year? The magick is palpable now, and everyone is at their witchy best. It’s also my busy time of year with various tarot and Pagan events and activities, so I usually try to find something easy to make, but something that evokes the feelings of the season. What’s…
Creating a Litha/Midsummer Altar
At Litha, we celebrate the sun at the height of its power. This is the longest day and the shortest night, and the highest that we’ll see the sun overhead this year. This is also the calender’s beginning of the Summer season, though the weather has been hot for weeks or months now. This is…
Creating an Ostara or Spring Equinox altar
Now comes the time of year when everything is really starting to wake up and come alive after its Winter slumber. We’re seeing flowers cropping up everywhere, and the animals are all going a little crazy in their rush to mate. The ubiquitous red robin has shown its face, and there’s a lovely, iridescent green…
Magickal Month- February 2020
February is that held breath between the Winter and Spring where we aren’t quite sure about what it is that we should be doing. We’ve spent the Winter going within, taking stock of our inner worlds, and our plans for the Spring are made. But it isn’t time to put them into practice yet. Fortunately,…
Creating a Yule or Winter Solstice Altar
Yule is such a warm, festive time of year for most of us. And if we don’t enjoy Christmas for various reasons, Yule gives us a second chance to reinvent this Winter holiday for ourselves in a way that feeds our spirits through the Winter. The themes here are creating warmth as the weather gets…
Magickal Month- December 2019
It’s December, and we have a lot of new birds coming to our feeder. House wrens and chickadees will be wintering here, it seems, and so we’re making sure they have lots of fatty seeds to see them through the cold months. Husbear found a dove wing in our shed, however, where it had been…
Creating a Samhain or Halloween altar
Creating a Samhain or Halloween Altar It’s no secret that witches really come alive around Samhain. This is kind of ‘our time’. While most other Pagan holidays were co-opted by Christianity and dulled down as the years passed, Samhain (and even Halloween) still retains so much Pagan lore and flavor. We have traditions that have…
Magickal Month- October 2019
Welcome to October, now affectionately known as WHY IS IT STILL SO HOT?? Also known as the month of Halloween. I’m drinking my Pumpkin Cream Nitro Cold Brew from Starbucks in leiu of a typical Pumpkin Spice Latte because it’s still in the mid 90s here in Georgia. Anyone who still thinks that global warming…
Creating a Mabon/Autumnal Equinox Altar
This is my favorite sabbat and my favorite time of year! Usually by now, it’s still hot during the day, but the nights have that tiny hint of coolness in the air. We can almost be convinced that the weather is breaking and there will be some relief from the incessant heat. And the Summer…
Magickal Month- August 2019
In August our attention pivots from the work of tending our ‘crops’ (literal or metaphorical) to beginning the harvest. We’re seeing the rewards of all the work we’ve put in over the Spring and Summer, and it feels amazing. We’re also now on the downside of Summer, and though Autumn is still 6 weeks away,…
Magickal Month- June 2019
June is the sixth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calenders. It was named after Juno, the Roman mother goddess, wife of Jupiter, analogous to Greek Hera. Summer doesn’t start until the Solstice on the 21st, but it’s SOOOOOO hot here in Georgia. And worse yet, it doesn’t look like there’s any…
Magickal Month- May 2019
May was named after the Roman goddess Maia, a goddess of fertility and abundance. Several cultures marked May with fertility festivals of some sort or another, and our modern Pagan festival of Beltane is no exception. It’s a celebration of fertility, sexuality, flowers, and love. Spring has sprung, and it’s time to celebrate all the…
Beltane Celebration Bowls Recipe (vegan, vegetarian, and omnivore versions)
Looking for something ridiculously festive and bright to eat this Beltane? Try these. And then go have some fun! 1 cup dried adzuki beans Water for soaking and simmering beans 1 cup dried white quinoa 1 3/4 cup vegetable broth to cook quinoa 1/2 block extra firm tofu 1 clove garlic, crushed and minced 1/2…
Magickal Month- December
December is a month of extremes. There’s the cold and chill outside, and the warmth and comfort of our homes, our families, and our friends. There’s the stress and frustration of holiday shopping, finances, parties, etc., and there are the sweet, happy moments of seasonal joy. It can be incredibly difficult for a lot of…
Greek ‘smudging’ substitute
So I’ve been thinking a lot about cultural appropriation lately. I never used to really worry about using sage or palo santo, feeling like I was OK as long as I honored the First Nations tradition of smudging but without trying to claim it as my own. However, if I’ve learned anything in my practice,…
Magickal Month- October
October is the 10th month of the year, though it’s named after ‘octo’ meaning 8 in the old Roman calendar. Another one of those, right? It was moved into the 10th place with the establishment of January and February as the first and second months in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It was also known…
Magickal Month- September
September is such an exciting month for those of us who love Autumn. While the season doesn’t actually start until the Equinox on the 22nd (at 9:54pm here in the EDT zone), September still feels like that gateway month. We’ve suffered through the heat of June, July, and August, and we can feel the nights…
Magickal Month- August
August was originally named Sextilis in Latin because it was the sixth month of the Roman year. Now it’s the eighth month, but October (Octo= 8) was already taken. Because… Because… *sigh* Here in Georgia, we’re all pretty grateful to have gotten through July. August tends to be a little drier and less humid than…
Magickal Month- July
July is the 7th month of the year, named after Julius Caesar because it was his birth month. The ‘Dog Days of Summer’ begin in July as well. They’re associated with the star Sirius “The Dog Star”, which is rumored to bring drought, lethargy, madness, and bad luck with its return to the night sky….
Magickal Month- May
May was named after the Greek Maia, mother of Hermes, and oldest of the Pleiades. In Greece, she was primarily known as a mother archetype, but in the Roman version, she became connected with several other goddesses, including Bona Dea (Good Goddess), Terra (earth), Fauna (prophetic goddess of the woodlands), Magna Mater (Cybele), Ops (an…
Magickal Month- January
January was named after the Roman god Janus, who was known as the god of doorways, endings, and the new beginnings that follow. He had 2 heads, one looking to the past year, and one looking to the upcoming year, and so he’s perfect for this first year of the month when we’re looking forward…
Autumntide Priorities
The days are getting shorter, there’s a nice breeze in the night air, and DragonCon marks the beginning of the end of Summer. We have Mabon and Samhain to look forward to, which are my two favorite sabbats! While Autumn is usually seen as a time of going within, taking stock, and relaxing into Winter,…
New Channel- Mystical Moon Musings, and a question/challenge/tag thing about Litha!
https://youtu.be/LZk0B8d7BLY
Autumn Scents- Black Phoenix Alchemy Labs
So anyone who knows me knows that I’m obsessed with scents. From incenses to bath products, to candles, I just like it when stuff smells great. And the scents I like change with the seasons. Obviously, Autumn is a great time for anything pumpkin related, but I don’t want to smell that at all in…
Autumn Tide Tarot Reading
I try to give myself a reading at every solstice and equinox, but sometimes I forget. Now that I’m really immersing myself in tarot, it’s a little easier to remember. This reading is for the Autumn tide, or the time between Mabon and Yule. I did a reading in 3 parts, with 4 cards each….