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Almanac of the Ancients:
May 2008
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by Triple Moon Goddess |
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May is the month when we really FEEL like it is SPRING. At least in most of the northern hemisphere. Some folks can still actually be experiencing snow at this time of year. Luckily I do not live in one of those places. The ancients were known to be on the move in certain cultures. They migrated with the weather in some areas, in others they needed to just tough it out as there really was no place much warmer to go. Some of the Native Americans of the US had summer and winter homes. They followed the weather and the food. Today we do not have to leave to have warmth and food, although some folks live out of an RV and just go where the weather and the road takes them.
It is still wonderful to see that the great outdoors is again green, with other colors popping up in different places. As I write this in March, my hyacinths are blooming and the forsythia already has yellow flowers all over it. I however, do not live in MN, MI, MO, or any other “colder” atmosphere.The ancients really loved the signs of spring and maybe that is why the “rushed” the seasons with rituals that we have talked about in past articles.
Let’s open a window, and read about some of the rituals, holidays and warm air of spring in full bloom. Summer is just around the corner, and the ancients were hard at work...playing.
May is named after the Roman goddess Maia, the goddess of spring. One of her attributes was that she helped the crops grow, so she is a fitting goddess for this month. She was the oldest daughter of Atlas and one of the Pleiades. She was a bona dea, or good goddess, and the ancients also had celebrations set aside specifically for the bona dea. Only women were allowed in Maia’s temples, and to attend her rituals. It is said that on the first day of May she was honored with the sacrifice of a sow. The fifteenth of May is also sacred to her, although I cannot find a mention of a specific rite for that day.
This month is symbolized by the stones Emerald and agate. Also the hawthorne (or Fairy Tree), and lily flowers.The sign of Taurus the bull is exiting and Gemini is entering. Those of you who like to honor the gods and goddesses that represent the month will have a few to choose frm : Artemis, Diana, Faunus, Flora, Pan, Belenus, Cernunnos, and the Green Man.All those who represent plants and animals.
The largest celebration of May was the first Day. We still celebrate May Day today in some parts of the world. Let us see what the ancients did, and maybe you can incorporate their traditions into your celebration!
Beltane , May first, is one of the four Grand Sabbats. The solar wheel has turned, and many Wiccans and Pagans join in huge celebrations of the day. There were many names for this time , from May Day, Rudemas, Rood Day to Walpurgisnacht. They all came from an ancient Druid celebration , a fire celebration to the Green Man or Horned god. The sun is again born and ruling over the skies, this is the “light half” of the year as the Celts called it.
May Day has many rituals and celebrations attached to it. The easiest is to honor Maia by planting flowering trees, plants and shrubs. If you do not have a patch of dirt to cultivate, buy a plant for a friend who does, or a houseplant for yourself. There are still celebrations today to celebrate the blooming of the flowers from Japan to Spain to Hawaii in the US.
Flora was another goddess honored at this time, and I am sure that you can understand where she got her name and what she represents. Offerings were made to her of milk and honey.The Roman flower goddess and a goddess of spring was a minor goddess in mythology, but she did have her day, and the first of May was it. Unfortunately she shared it with Maia. She brings the springtime to earth. In Greek mythology she was Chloris, and was married to the wind god, Favonius. She has become a word to botanists, and to mean SPRING and flowers to many, so the fame she didn’t achieve in ancient Rome is here for her today. Please give her a word of thanks as you plant a beautiful blooming bit of life!
The Cherokee call this the month of the Flower Moon, and the full moon this month will be on May 20. The moon is also called the Full Corn Planting Moon or Milk Moon by other nations. The name “flower moon” is of course due to the fact that flowers are in bloom in many areas of the US at his time. Next month will be the Strawberry Moon, so be ready for that one!
May Day was a day to not only celebrate the gods and goddesses, but to have fun. The main part of any celebration , no matter what culture it came from , was a bonfire. May Day, as I mentioned earlier, is a “fire celebration”. So bonfires were lit, the Celts let the livestock back into the summer pastures. They drove the animals through the bonfires as they did so. Some say that they believed this would kill parasites on the animals, others say that it was simply a way to purify them spiritually so they would be healthy , procreate and feed the community as the gods blessed them on their passage.
This was the last night that the “dark spirit” of winter could rule over the world, and the bonfires were lit to chase those spirits on their way. To rush in the light. It was also a night of mischief. Gods and godesses walked the earth, fairies played in the fields, and humans danced. Spirits from the other side were free to walk the earth that night. In Germany and that region of the world, the festivities called Walpurgisnacht , and began April 30 with a bonfire, pointy hats, and dancing. The celebrants dressed as what we would think a stereotypical witch would look like, complete with a broom.
Today the celebration is May Day or Beltane. Belenus, the god that Beltane is named for, was a god who was called the “shining one”. Romans claimed to see him before going into battle. He was associated with the livestock that were being herded through the fires, not with the flowers and crops. He was also a god of healing, and thus the healing powers of the bonfires for the animals as they passed through. Beltane however was believed to be guiding the fairies and other spirits who were up to mischief on that night. The Celts in Ireland and Scotland would decorate their houses and barns with crosses made from greenery to protect them and their livestock. It is strange that the same god who purifies them is believed to cause mischief.
Cernunnos was a Horned God, and was more European than British. He is a Celtic figure of regeneration, a usual theme of spring, but was more “popular” around France. His celebrations include honey, dances and celebrations that were re-enactment of a hunt.
The Romans believed that the wandering spirits were humans at this point, not fairies, but they wanted to appease the spirits, or lemures. The festival was called Lemuria. There were rites to appease the spirits , but there was also a feast for the living humans. Beans and salt cakes were offered to the dead, while the living had a much heartier feast. When you were out walking on this night, you needed to have black beans to throw over your shoulder to keep the lemures from following and bothering you. The head of every household was up at midnight to throw beans and recite incantations to scare them away from the household for the coming year.
There are still places in the world today where May Day is marked by dancing around the Maypole. The pole has long colorful ribbons streaming down from the top and flowers woven in. Some societies still attach fertility symbols to the pole and ribbons. The pole is said to represent the Tree of Life, and the re-flowering of that tree with spring. May poles are still a custom in Eastern Europe, home of Cernunnos. Young people would dance around the pole, intertwining the ribbons.
When you combine the May Pole and the Fairies causing mischief on Beltane, you get the Fairy Tree or Hawthorne. Pieces of this tree were carried and placed in the home to ward off evil. The trees were said to be a gateway into the fairy world, and thus the name Fairy Tree. Ribbons would be hung on the trees, and later May Poles, to placate the little people. The name hawthorne comes from hedge thorne, and there are several species of the tree. Maybe your planting on May Day should include a hawthorne species!
Celebrate the month of May with a fire, maybe just to roast the first marshmallows of the season, and plant flowering plants. Try a hawthorne species, or maybe sow some beans to scare away the evil spirits!
But the easiest way to celebrate is to get out into the warm , fresh air of spring and enjoy Gaia and she puts on her summer finery for us all to enjoy with all our five senses. Gaia is beautiful, make sure that you tell her so when she is dressing herself up to look her best for all of us!
Enjoy the weather and the flora and fauna.....and maybe even find a May Pole to dance around!
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Triple Moon Goddess,
Psychic Tarot Consultant
& Author
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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
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