 |
 |
| |
| Departments |
Home
Columns, Special
Topics & Features:
The Columns:
Angels, Guides, &
Loving Spirits:
Angel Blessings:
with Dr. Doreen Virtue
Ask Valerie Morrison,
Internationally
Acclaimed Psychic
Trust Your Vibes
By Dr. Sonia Choquette, PhD.
Internationally Acclaimed Psychic Healer & Author
Love Letters
by Erika Morrell,
Soul Mate Medium™
Astrologer's Notes:
Carin Martin,
Astrologer
Donna Cunningham, MSW, Astrologer
Basil Fearrington,
Astrologer
Diana Stone,
Astrologer &
Huna Shaman
Jeff Jawer
Astrologer
Ray Merriman,
Financial Astrology:
MMA Market Week
Noel Tyl,
Astrologer
Daily Aspect Calendar
by Care
MoonWatching with Dana Gerhardt and Friends
Starlight Musings
by Nancy Sommers,
Mundane Astrologer
Creating Bridges:
The Spiritual &
Philosophical
Act of Power
Discovering the Key to Living Your Sacred Dream
by Lynn Andrews
Avant-Gardening:
Insights
by Frank &
Vicky Giannangelo
From The Heart:
Alan Cohen
Teachings from the Western Mystery Traditions: The Esoteric "Paths of Return"
by Jacquelyn Small, Eupsychia
Spirituality in Daily Life: by Bhikshuni Thubten Chodron
The Conscious Column
by David Ault
Spiritual Mastery
for the 21st Century
Dr. Gwen MacGregor
Encounters on the
Shaman's Path with
Dr. Hank Wesselman, PhD.
Anthropologist, Zoologist, Author, Shamanic Healer & Teacher
The Divine Human
by Ornesha De Paoli
Awakenings
by Karen Johnson
Worshipping by Wondering with
Sankara Saranam, MA Founder of the Pranayama Institute
Wisdom Walks in Circles
by Margaret Lewis
Author & Shamanic Practitioner:
Water For The Dry Sponge: Chronicles and Essays
by Shaun Brown,
Be Well Publications
“I of my own knowledge…”
by Frank DeMarco,
Author & Psychic
Crystals, Minerals
& Gemstones
Light and Love with Crystals, Minerals & Gemstones
by Raven,
Raven Crystals
Furry & Feathered Family Members:
Dr. Carson's Holistic Animal Care
by Dr. Kathleen Carson, D.V.M.
Animal Insights
by Charlene Boyd, Animal Communicator,
talk-to-animals.com
Healing & Alternative
Health:
"Spirit and Practice
of the Wise Woman
Tradition"
By Susun Weed
The Holistic Mystic,
by Lonny Brown
Medical Intuition: Tune
in to Your Body and Improve Your Health
by Caroline Sutherland, Sutherland Communications
Transformational Healing through the Violet Flame!
by Eva Kettles
Herbs for Health
with Kami McBride
Cure Your Cravings
...For Life
Rena Greenberg,
Practitioner of Neuro Linguistic Programming & Hypnotherapist
Humor:
Wake Up Laughing.Com:
Swami Beyondananda
Interviews:
Watch for Upcoming Announcements
Kabbalah:
Kabbalah Revealed:
Rav Michael Laitman, PhD, Kabbalalist
Numberscope Forecast
by Vincent J. Barra
Oracle & Divination Systems:
Be Your Own Oracle
by James Wanless, Ph.D. Creator of the Voyager Tarot Deck
Resources:
Archives
Blessings & Messages
The Book Nook
The Directory
Event Calendar
Historical Notes & Data
The MetaPersonals
S.O.L.A.R.®:
S.O.L.A.R ®
Beyond Materiality. Beyond Spirituality. Toward the Complete Human Being...
by Martin Lass, Emissary
Tarot:
Moment to Moment
by Gigi Miner
Author, Tarot Consultant, & Teacher
Reviews:
Tarot, Cartomancy,
Oracle Decks,
Books, & Software.
by Bonnie Cehovet,
Tarot Educator
Tidbits:
Almanac of the Ancients
by TripleMoonGoddess
News Briefs
Op-Ed
Pearls of Wisdom
by Astro Aeon
& Astro Care
Symbols, Seals,
Amulets & Talismans
The What in the
World Department
Trivia & Life's Other
Novel Moments
Publisher's Corner
General Information:
Advertising Information & Opportunities:
The Directory Advertising Rates
Premium Pages:
Groups 1, 2 & Display
Advertising Rates
The BookNook
Advertising Rates
About
The Meta Arts Magazine
Editorial Submission
Information:
Contact Us
Legal Notices
|
|
|
|
|
|
Almanac of the Ancients:
August 2007
|
|
|
by Triple Moon Goddess |
|
|
Welcome to the month of August. The month of the dog days, which have no reference to heat, but rather to the dog star, Sirius. The days are hot, but the season is waning. Some cool days and cool nights slip in to remind us to get ready for the Holly King’s arrival. He has been on the way since June 21, and will arrive before we know it. The ancients were preparing for harvest, and getting ready to supply themselves for winter. The ancients may seem like they were rushing things a bit, to us today, but then we are a society who has Christmas decorations in the stores by Halloween !
We passed the middle of the year on July 2, and now the summer turns to winter in the northern hemisphere, while winter turns to summer in the southern. Remember that the ancients really saw the year as having two seasons. We still have some summer and fall to get through , but the Holly King always comes galloping up when we least expect him, even if it is just in the form of a plastic Santa display at the local department store !
We finished last month with Lammas Eve, so I suppose that you all know that the first of this month will be Lammas. Lammas is the start of the harvest season. Let us take a look at August before we get into the Lammas celebrations, and find out what the general facts are about this month. Like most months in our current calendar, August derives its’ name from Augustus, or Augustus Caesar. Augustus ruled for 41 years, which is a long time, even in today’s world. He basically created the Roman Republic from the Roman Empire.
The birth stones of August are peridot, and sardonyx, and the flowers for August are poppy and gladiolus. The month comes in under the sun sign Leo the Lion (fire sign), and leaves under the rule of Virgo the Virgin (earth sign). The new moon this month is on the12th, and the Full Moon is August 28. Pagans and others worshiped the following deities over the centuries during August’s rule: Ceres (Roman goddess of plants, mostly cereals), the Corn Mother (Native American and Druid), Demeter, (Greek goddess of grain, fertility and green earth), John Barleycorn (Pagan representation of grain, most notably where it is connected to drink), Lugh (Celtic High King), and any agricultural god or goddess.
The great solar wheel has turned to Lammas, one of the four Grand sabbats celebrated throughout the world to this day. The harvest is upon us, can winter be far behind?
Lammas is celebrated by many cultures in many ways. Churches even distribute food baskets on Lammas. It is from an old tradition that reminds us to not to take a good harvest for granted, and to share with those who were not able to produce crops. This is a way of thanking the Universe for the abundance. The Christians called it “loaf mass” as they tried to blend the Pagan ways into the church. It was a time not only to harvest and to share, but to celebrate and give thanks. A time of fairs, games, festivals and outdoor feasts. Northern Europe dated Lammas on August first because it was halfway between summer solstice and the autumnal equinox. The Anglo -Saxtons called it hlaf maesse (bread celebration).The Celts made the word Lammas, and the church turned it back to loaf mass. Like most things in the Universe, it is all the same thing. Another name for Lammas is Lughnasadh. This honors the Celtic god Lugh/Lug/Llew, his celebration was originally tied more to cereal grains than other crops, but today it is a time to celebrate all foods, from vegetables to fruit, and yes to cereal grains.
During Lughnasadh couples would promise each other a trial marriage that would last 366 days. An oath was made, and the Celtic word for oath is lugio, a possible connection to the name of the god of the harvest. It is also said that in Celtic legend Lugh’s foster mother, Tailtui was forced to clear land and plant crops, she died from exhaustion while doing this. Lugh made an “oath” that she would be remembered each year at the same time for her suffering and death. The Pagans made corn dollies on this day, and they are still made all over the world. The corn dollies represent the Mother Goddess who rules over the harvest. A new one should be made for the celebration, and the old one should now be burned.
Huge celebrations were held by the Celts on the spot where they believed that Tailtui had died. There were games, contests, feasting, and pretty much all of the same things that you would see at a state fair today, minus the carnival rides.
There are rituals this month for remembering the dead along with harvesting and thanks. It was a busy month for the ancients. So what happened after the big Lammas celebration? Let’s look and see!
In Macedonia, Pagans would also celebrate the first as the Day of the Dryads, to honor the maiden spirits who live in and rule over forests and trees.
Today lends itself to many modern celebrations, you can join a Wiccan or Pagan group in their ritual, make corn dollies, deliver food to those in need, help at your church, attend a fair, help with a harvest, eat outside, do some canning, play some games of skill (perhaps a round of golf!), or simply go outside and pick a flower, vegetable or fruit. There are so many ways to celebrate with the ancients today in a way they would recognize. When you do any of these things, you are walking in the shoes of generations who came before you.
The Greeks held a festival from August first through third called Drimes. It honors the transition point of the year. On the Isle of Lesbos, bonfires were lit at crossroads and the people would jump through them shouting, “August, figs and walnuts!”. You may remember from a past article that crossroads were also believed to be the transition point of this world and the “other side”.
The Drimes were the “sharp days”. People were not allowed to wash their hair, chop wood, swim in the sea or do laundry. It is believed that these traditions came from Jewish celebration of Tisha B’Av which falls around the same time.
August first was the start of a period when no meat could be eaten (until the Feast of the Assumption (Aug 15). This tradition came from the ancient Greek celebration of Artemis and Hecate where meat was not eaten from the new moon of August (the 12th this year, until the full moon (Aug 28 this year).
August 2-
Feast of Anahita- The ancient Persian goddess associated with love and the moon, was honored on this day.
August 3-
The ancient Greeks noted the weather on August 3 and claimed that the weather would be the same as that day for the next three months. How many weather prognostications have we seen so far this year!
In Japan the harvest begins with a festival called Aomori Nebuta. Bamboo effigies with painted faces are paraded through the streets in order to drive away the spirits of sleep.
August 4- Jubilation of the Heart of Re- Thought to be the birthday of Re, who later became known as Atum-Re or Ra. He rode the boat of the sun across the sky each day to the Underworld, and then emerged reborn the next day in the sky.
On the first Sunday of August, the Welsh would make pilgrimages to Llyn y Fan Fach. To watch for the appearance from the lake of a fairy who married a mortal, but returned to the lake the third time he struck her. She passed on her herbal remedies to her sons before returning to the lake and they in turn were known as the physicians of Myddfai.
August 6- This day is sacred to the Cherokee Earth goddess Elihino and her sister Igaehindvo, the Sun goddess. She is also the sister of the Corn Mother.
August 7-In ancient Egypt, the cow headed goddess Hathor was honored on this date at the annual festival known as Breaking the Nile. It is a festival that honors all water and river gods.
Adonia- Mourning Ceremony for the god Adonis was celebrated in ancient Greece. The goddess Aphrodite is also honored. This lasted two days and was only attended by women. Statues of the gods were laid out on the streets as if they were dead. All funeral rites were performed.. The women would beat themselves and imitate Venus crying for her lover. A feast was also held at the end of the ceremonies.
August 8-Japanese Dog days. The Japanese tradition says that this day is a time of illness and vermin which are brought out by the heat. They believe that to eat eels at this time cools the body and prevents illness (the though of eating eels has the opposite effect on me).
The Eve of the Festival of Venus- An ancient Roman holiday. The goddess of love was invoked on this night with prayers, songs, drink and love making. Many love spells were cast on this night in Ancient Rome.
August 9- Wiccan/Pagan- Feast of the Fire Spirits- An ancient celebration for the spirits of nature. Salamanders are said to hold the fire spirits. Dried mandrake root or yarrow is cast into fires to honor the salamanders and their spirits.
Sol Indigies- An ancient Roman rite that thanked the sun god of the region. His name could be Helius, Titan or Hyperion. Later on he became associated with the god of light, Apollo. “Sol” was Latin for “sun”. The island of Rhodes had the biggest cult of sun worshipers.
August 10- Ghanta Karna Day- Nepal. This day honors the killing of a blood thirsty Hindu demon (Ghanta Karna) who haunts crossroads (see a theme here?), and is an enemy of the god Vishnu.
Opalia-Ancient Romans would honor Ops on this day. Ops is sometimes known as Opus or Opis. “Ops” means “crops” or “sower of the seeds”, depending on how it is used. She was believed to live in a place under the earth but not quite in the underworld and work from below to make the crops grow. She was considered and “Earth Mother”, and a Great Goddess. Her consort, Consus, was the protector of grains. The highlight of this festival was a chariot race at the Circus Maximus.
August 11- Oddudua, the Mother of All Gods, in honored by followers of Santeria in Africa and South America. She is known to some as Yemmu and began with the Yoruba people. She is said to be the creator of dry land.
August 12- Lychnapsia or the Festival of Lights. It was also known as Isis the Bright or Isis the Luminous One. In Ancient Egypt her idols were carried from temple to temple to recreate her search for her consort and brother Osiris. Dried rose petals and vervain were burned and green candles were lit to honor her.
Hercules the Invincible- The ancient Romans made sacrifices to Hercules on this date. Women were excluded from the rituals. Merchants would all give a portion of their profits to supply this public feast. All animals that were sacrificed during this feast were completely consumed, and there was no restriction on what foods were to be eaten.
August 13- Festival of Hecate- and ancient Pagan festival still practiced by witches today. Hecate is honored as the dark side of the female principle, and considered a protector of witches. She is personification of the moon. Hecate is honored and thanked at moon rise.
Vertumnalia- An ancient Roman festival that again honors Diana , but this time with Vertumnus. The rites were held on the Aventine Hill where his temple was built around 300 BC. Vertumnus was the god of the seasons, plant growth, gardens and trees.
August 13-15- Japan- O-Bon- This is another ceremony to honor the dead. The Japanese move the festival between July 13-15 and August 13-15. The first day they decorate the graves of their ancestors with fruit and lanterns. The second day they set up tamadana (spirit alters) in their homes. They set up a rush mat for their ancestors with fruits and vegetables, horses are made of cucumbers for the ancestors to ride. The third day is the bon-odori, a slow dance of many concentric circles. Later that evening lanterns are lit along the waterways so the spirits can find their way back to the other side, much like the Chinese celebration of the dead on the 28th The Moon of the Hungry Ghosts.
August 14- Hera Thelkinia-The Greeks honored Hera as her personification Thelkinia, the Enchantress on this date.
August 17- Portunalia- Ancient Romans honored Portunus in this date. Portunus was god of the gates, and his symbol was a key. He was said to protect the storehouses that held the harvested grains.
August 19-Vinalia Rustica- The second (or rustic) Vinalia. (The first was May 1). It was a day celebrated by all vintners getting ready to harvest the grapes. The gods Jupiter and Venus were honored at the temple on the Esquiline Hill. This is the oldest known temple honoring Venus and it was built in 293 BC. This was considered by the Romans to be one of the three most important holidays. The people of Latium (central Italy) were also great celebrants of this festival. Lambs were sacrificed there , and women were given drinks of lower alcoholic content.
August 20- Consulaia-To honor Consus, the god of good counsel, secrets, harvests, grain storage, and the underworld. His alter in Rome was underground as he was believed to be a ruler of the underworld. The alter was uncovered twice a year, on this date and on Dec. 19 for a sacrifice in his honor. Horses and other beasts of burden did not have to work on this day.
August 23- Vulcanalia-The god Vulcan , who was the god of fire and blacksmiths was honored with (you guessed it) bonfires. Fish were sacrificed on the bonfires to honor him. Juturna (goddess of the fountains) and Stata Mater (goddess who puts out fires) were also invoked on this day to keep Vulcan under control. There was a tradition later on to pour a good bottle of brandy all around your house clockwise to ask the goddesses to protect it from fire.
August 24- Ops was again honored during Opiconsivia. She had a slightly different role and name and was honored as Op Consiva, a fertility goddess. Worshipers would invoke her by touching the ground. Her alters were heaped with flowers, bread and wine. From her name we get the word “opulent”.
August 25- Niketeria-The Greeks celebrated Nike on this day. She is goddess of victory, and appears with wings.
August 27- Volturnalia- The ancient Romans honored the “God of the Waters” in this day. There was feasting, wine drinking , and dancing in his honor.
August 28- Full Moon:
Chung Yuan- Held on the full moon. Called the Moon of the Hungry Ghosts.
The Chinese frequently honor the dead, and feed and clothe them. This day is a time to share harvest, and is a harvest festival tied in with honoring the dead. At twilight boys light lanterns made of lotus leaves which make a green glow. They chant “Lotus Leaf Candles Lotus Leaf Candles. Today you are lighted. Tomorrow thrown away” Shops and homes are decorated with lotus cutouts. There are special traditions for spirits who may no longer have living relatives, and also for those who have drowned , as it is believed that they have no resting place having not died on the “earth” or ground.
Buddhists make a boat of paper which is usually 30-40 feet long. It is the boat of law to carry them to Nirvana. Away from hunger, and want. The boat is burned in the evening.Although this tradition is still carried out in China (where it found a home about 2000 years ago), it originated in northern India.
Each Buddhist temple has a group called a Yu Lan society to light the lanterns and say the sutras for the departed souls. In Peking the tradition has taken on a festival mood , and many walk along the banks of the Grand Canal with lotus lanterns and set little paper boats with candles into the water to honor the dead .
Footrace of Hera- On this date in ancient Rome, Hera’s footrace was held. It was part of the Olympics and also a full moon ceremony. Only women could enter, and the prize was to become the chief priestess who would oversee all water rights that season.
Artemis-Diana full moon festival- This is the oldest and longest lived full moon ceremony . It is still celebrated today, in many cultures and under other names. It was originally celebrated on the 15th of Metageitnion. The goddesses were invoked for protection from late summer storms that could ruin the harvest. Garlic was left on stones at crossroads (there they are again) to beseech Hecate to not let any “bad” pass into the world. Hecate mediates between the two worlds. In Rome the same type of celebration was held on the 13th of August called Nemoralia. It was the August full moon date if the new moon fell on the first. The temple of Diana was a sanctuary for runaway slaves on this day. All women were also required to wash their hair. A little later, the Catholic church named the 15th as the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, chosen to coincide with the 13th of Ab, the Jewish lunar month.
August 29- China- Birthday of the Kitchen God Zaoshen, also called the Black Lord. His temple is opened for three days, and he is honored , especially by cooks and bakers. A great day for a Bar-b-que!
The month of August was a fun month of feasting, dancing and games. It is the same today. We call them fairs , picnics, and family reunions now. Have a wonderful time as the days grow shorter and cooler. The winter months will be upon you before you know it! Have fun celebrating with the ancients this month! |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Triple Moon Goddess,
Psychic Tarot Consultant
& Author
|
 |
Triple Moon Goddess has been psychic all her life, receiving her first deck of cards, 36 years ago, at age ten.
As a Psychic, she is currently reading on KEEN, Kasamba, and in person, most recently, in Evansville, IN.
In addition to a BA in psychology from Montclair State in NJ., She has studied Mediumship with Denise Ilwaine, and currently studing Reiki.
She is a student who "plays Tai Chi", and enjoys playing with energy.
Triple Moon Goddess also teaches monthly metaphysical classes at the Bead Angel, in Evansville, covering different topics each month. She has also taught Tarot classes and psychic development classes; led "ghost hunts", and "seances".
She has attended many metaphysical classes, both in person and correspondance (before the internet!). She also teaches quilting!
As an avid reader, she loves to pass on everything she can to others.
She was the editor on "C.R.U.M.B.S.," a New Age self help book., and currently writing a book on tarotand readings.
She is the mother of two children, one of which is autistic, and teaches her a great deal about viewing the world through different eyes.
Email:
triplemoongoddessgina
@hotmail.com
Web:
www.Keen.com/
Triplemoongoddess
URL
www.myspace.com
/triplemoongoddessgina
Blog URL
http://blog.myspace.
com/
triplemoongoddessgina
|
 |
You'll find it in
The
Directory! |
|
|
|
|
