Celtic Tree Month of Holly

* 8th Moon of the Celtic Year - (July 8 - Aug 4)

* Latin name: English Holly (also called Scarlet Oak) - ilex aquilfolium; American holly - ilex opaca. The Holly is an evergreen tree.

* Celtic name: Tinne (pronounced: chihn' uh)

* Folk or Common names: Holly, Scarlet Oak, Kerm-Oak, Holy Tree. Holly actually means "holy".

* Parts Used: Leaf, berry, wood.

* Herbal usage: The leaf of the Holly can be dried and used as teas for fevers, bladder problems and bronchitis. The juice of the fresh leaf is helpful in jaundice treatment. Holly can be used homeopathically as a substitute for quinine. Note: Holly berries are poisonous!

* Magical History & Associations: The Holly, a masculine herb, is associated with the element of fire, and is an herb of Saturn and Mars. The bird associated with this month is the starling, the color is green-gray, the gemstone is yellow caingorm, and the day of the week association is Tuesday.

Holly is the first moon of the dark half of the year, and the Holly is sacred to both the Winter and Summer Solstices. Summer Solstice is the time when in mythology, the Oak King is slain by his twin, or tanist, the Holly King, who rules until the Winter Solstice, when he in turn is slain by his tanist, the Oak King. Tanist is related to the tannin found in an Oak tree; Oak and Holly are two sides of the same coin, the end of one cycle and the beginning of the next.

The Holly is also sacred to the deities of Lugh, Habondia, Tina Etruscan and Tannus. There are special spirits that dwell within Holly trees: the Holly Man lives in the tree that bears prickly Holly, and the Holly Woman dwells within that which give forth smooth and variegated leaves. Holly is also associated with unicorns, since the unicorn is one of the Celtic symbols for this tree - the other symbol is the Flaming Spear.

* Magickal usage: The month of Holly is a good time to do magick designed to help bring about a successful harvest. The Holly has applications in magick done for protection, prophesy, healing, magick for animals, sex magick, invulnerability, watchfulness, good luck, death, rebirth, Holiness, consecration, material gain, physical revenge, beauty and travel. Holly also has the ability to enhance other forms of magic.

As a symbol of firmness and masculine energy, Hollywood was used by the ancients in the construction of spear shafts, which were thought to then have magickal powers. Uses of Holly in protective magick includes hanging a sprig of Holly in the home all year to insure protection and good luck. Holly is also an excellent charm to wear for protection.

'Holly Water' can be made by soaking Holly overnight in spring water under a full moon. This water can then be sprinkled over infants to keep them happy and safe. Holly Water can also be used to sprinkle around the house for psychic cleansing and protection. Holly leaves can be cast around outside to repel unwanted spirits or animals and a Holly bush can be planted close to houses to protect against lightning. Ensure that the Holly has a place in your garden because its presence wards off unfriendly spirits. Do not burn Holly branches unless they are well and truly dead, for this is unlucky. Holly, intertwined with ivy, is traditionally made into crowns for the bride and groom at weddings/handfastings. Holly and Ivy also make excellent decorations for altars. Holly is also a traditional decoration for Yuletide as in sung in the traditional Yuletide song:

"Deck the halls with boughs of Holly, fa la la la la, la la la la."

If you gather nine Holly leaves in complete silence on a Friday after midnight, wrap them up in a white cloth, use nine knots to bind the cloth, and then place them under your pillow, your dreams will come true. When harvesting the leaves from the Holly, remember to ask the tree if it will allow you to take the parts and be sure to leave the tree an offering of thanks when you are done. Holly favors red and yellow stones as gifts.

(from Sarah Nunn, aka Sarah the Swamp Witch.)

A Short History of Medicine

2000 B.C. - Here, eat this root.

1000 A.D. - That root is heathen. Here, say this prayer.

1850 A.D. - That prayer is superstition. Here, drink this potion.

1940 A.D. - That potion is snake oil. Here, swallow this pill.

1985 A.D. - That pill is ineffective. Here, take this antibiotic.

2000 A.D. - That antibiotic doesn't work anymore. Here, eat this root.

Think about it.

“No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves.”

~Amelia Earhart~

Fashion Statement

Thanks to Mrs. B (AKA the Pagan Soccer Mom), I now know how to magically tie my shoes!

Too cute! Check it out here!

My favourite poem of all time.

The Cloud

I bring fresh showers for the thirsting flowers,
From the seas and the streams;
I bear light shade for the leaves when laid
In their noonday dreams.
From my wings are shaken the dews that waken
The sweet buds every one,
When rocked to rest on their mother's breast,
As she dances about the sun.
I wield the flail of the lashing hail,
And whiten the green plains under,
And then again I dissolve it in rain,
And laugh as I pass in thunder.

I sift the snow on the mountains below,
And their great pines groan aghast;
And all the night 'tis my pillow white,
While I sleep in the arms of the blast.
Sublime on the towers of my skiey bowers,
Lightning, my pilot, sits;
In a cavern under is fettered the thunder,
It struggles and howls at fits;

Over earth and ocean, with gentle motion,
This pilot is guiding me,
Lured by the love of the genii that move
In the depths of the purple sea;
Over the rills, and the crags, and the hills,
Over the lakes and the plains,
Wherever he dream, under mountain or stream,
The Spirit he loves remains;
And I all the while bask in Heaven's blue smile,
Whilst he is dissolving in rains.

The sanguine Sunrise, with his meteor eyes,
And his burning plumes outspread,
Leaps on the back of my sailing rack,
When the morning star shines dead;
As on the jag of a mountain crag,
Which an earthquake rocks and swings,
An eagle alit one moment may sit
In the light of its golden wings.
And when Sunset may breathe, from the lit sea beneath,
Its ardors of rest and of love,

And the crimson pall of eve may fall
From the depth of Heaven above,
With wings folded I rest, on mine aery nest,
As still as a brooding dove.
That orbed maiden with white fire laden,
Whom mortals call the Moon,
Glides glimmering o'er my fleece-like floor,
By the midnight breezes strewn;
And wherever the beat of her unseen feet,
Which only the angels hear,
May have broken the woof of my tent's thin roof,
The stars peep behind her and peer;
And I laugh to see them whirl and flee,
Like a swarm of golden bees,
When I widen the rent in my wind-built tent,
Till the calm rivers, lakes, and seas,
Like strips of the sky fallen through me on high,
Are each paved with the moon and these.

I bind the Sun's throne with a burning zone,
And the Moon's with a girdle of pearl;
The volcanoes are dim, and the stars reel and swim
When the whirlwinds my banner unfurl.
From cape to cape, with a bridge-like shape,
Over a torrent sea,
Sunbeam-proof, I hang like a roof,--
The mountains its columns be.
The triumphal arch through which I march
With hurricane, fire, and snow,
When the Powers of the air are chained to my chair,
Is the million-colored bow;
The sphere-fire above its soft colors wove,
While the moist Earth was laughing below.

I am the daughter of Earth and Water,
And the nursling of the Sky;
I pass through the pores of the ocean and shores;
I change, but I cannot die.
For after the rain when with never a stain
The pavilion of Heaven is bare,
And the winds and sunbeams with their convex gleams
Build up the blue dome of air,
I silently laugh at my own cenotaph,
And out of the caverns of rain,
Like a child from the womb, like a ghost from the tomb,
I arise and unbuild it again.

-- Percy Bysshe Shelley

Celtic Tree Month of Oak

* 7th Moon of the Celtic Year - (June 10 - July 7)

* Latin name: white Oak - quercus alba; red Oak - quercus rubra; black Oak - quercus velutina; etc.

* Celtic name: Duir (pronounced: dur). Duir means 'door'.

* Folk or Common names: Duir, Jove's Nuts and Juglans.

* Parts Used: Wood, leaves, bark, acorns.

* Herbal usage: Oaks are known for astringent tonics and therefore tea made from Oak is a good remedy for hemorrhoids. White Oak bark tea helps in sinus infections since it helps unclog congestion. Acorns can be peeled and used to make various homeopathic potions used to treat alcoholism, bad breath and constipation.

* Magical History & Associations: The word Duir, comes from the Sanskrit "Dwr" meaning "door", and is the door to the three worlds of the Shaman.

The Oak is associated with the element of fire and is ruled by the sun. The bird associated with this month is the wren, the color is black, and the gemstone is white carnelian or moonstone.

Oak has been considered sacred by just about every culture that has encountered the tree, but it was held in particular reverence by the Celts and the Norse because of its size, long life, and acorns. The Druids were said to have worshipped in Oak-groves in Gaul. In Druidic times at "Yule" all fires were extinguished, the Druids then lit the new season fires using Oakwood as Yule logs, and all of the people would start their fires from this source.

The Oak tree is sacred to Brighid, the Dadga, Dianus, Janus, Rhea, Cybele, Hecate, Pan, and Erato. In the Vatican, there are statues of the goddess Artemis (often as a perpetual youth) wearing a necklace of acorns. The acorn was under the protection of Cybele (the goddess of Nature). The Oak is also frequently associated with Gods of thunder and lightning such as Zeus, Jupiter, Thor, and the Lithuanian God Perkunas. This association may be due to the oak's habit of being a lightning-magnet during storms.

Specific oak trees have also been associated with the 'Wild Hunt', which is led by Herne in England and by Wodin in Germany. King Arthur's Round Table was said to have been made from a single slab of a giant oak tree.

* Magickal usage: The month of Oak has summer solstice occurring within it, and Oak is a powerful symbol of Midsummer.

In general, Oak can be used in spells for protection, strength, success and stability, healing, fertility, Health, Money, Potency, and good luck. The different varieties of Oak will lend their own special 'flavor' to the magic: Red Oaks energy is a bit lighter and more 'firey' than the other oaks; White Oak is useful for spells requiring strength and solidity; and Brown oak has a very earthy feel, and is useful for grounding. Acorns can be used specifically for magick done to attract the opposite gender, increase income and prosperity, or can be used for their divinatory powers.

Oak is the tree known as "The King of the Grove" and was one of the sacred three: 'Oak, Ash & Thorn'. The worship of the Oak tree may have come from the fact that the acorn was one of the main food sources of the nomadic tribes of prehistoric Europe. In mystic lore the acorn often represented the supreme form of fertility - creativity of the mind. Acorns are used to increase fertility (of projects or ideas, or in matters of human reproduction) and to ease pain. Symbolic of immortality, acorns are especially sacred to the Samhain season, and they can be used to decorate the altar in the fall.

The Oak is a holy tree and is the lord of truth. There is a tradition that the voice of Jupiter may be heard in the rustling of its leaves. It is said that at the summer solstice the future can be divined by listening to the wind as it blows through the branches of an Oak tree.

Oak is also a very powerful herb for protection. The Oak has protected England through the use of its timbers for the building of ships. Oaks are also used as boundary markers for their protective qualities. Acorns placed in a window can ward off lightning or creatures that go bump in the night. Acorns can be carried in a pocket or charm bag to protect the bearer from storms, from getting lost and from evil intent. An oak leaf can worn at the breast, touching the heart, and it will protect the wearer from all deception and the world's false glamour. A handful of Oak leaves put in the bath water will cleanse the bather both in body and in spirit.

Acorns are carried for immortality and longevity, to preserve youthfulness, for fertility, and against illness. Three acorns can be made into a charm for youthfulness, beauty and attainment in life. The three acorns should be tied and bound with the mage's own hair, blessed under the new moon and the full moon, every month of the year, and then the charm should be worn.

It is said that if you can catch a falling Oak leaf you shall have no colds all winter. When a sick person is in the house, make a fire of Oakwood and warm the house with it to 'draw off' the illness.

Acorns can be planted in the dark of the moon to bring financial prosperity. Acorns can also be placed near windows or hung from window shade pulls to bring luck to a house. This custom originates from the Vikings and Druids because of the strength of the oak tree and its ability to attract lightning. They can also be carried to bring good luck.

The Oak is a male wood which is ideal for the construction of any tool that needs the male influence such as athames, certain wands and staffs. The wood of an Oak tree can also be used to make staves, or religious idols. The midsummer fire is always Oak and the need fire is always kindled in an Oak log. When gathering Oak, be sure to pour wine on the roots of the tree to thank it for allowing you to take a part of it. Acorns should be gathered in the daylight, and leaves and wood by night. A waning moon is the correct time to harvest Oak.

(from Sarah Nunn, aka Sarah the Swamp Witch. Photo from Wikipedia.)

"Retro" not always cool.

That last Mercury Retrograde was a hellish one. Never, ever look at an upcoming Mercury Retrograde and say to yourself, "Oh, well -- it never really affects me." That's just asking for trouble.

Without going into too many details, let's just say that the god of communications had a grand ol' time messing up my life (to the point that I'm only ready to mention it now, five days after his reign ended).

On the plus side, life is pretty good right now. I just wish I could decide what to do about the Circle situation. I miss them, but maybe we were only meant to come together for a short time, and then our lives would spin away from each other? No answers seem apparent at the moment. Need to contemplate it a bit more, I guess.