Weodmonath auGuᛥ
August is the eighth month of the year. The name of
the month was changed to August in honor of Augustus Caesar in 8 BCE. It is
considered the busiest time for tourism because it falls in the main school
summer holiday period. Its birth flower is the gladiolus or poppy which
represents beauty, strength, love, marriage and family. The birthstone for
August is the peridot or onyx. The zodiac signs for the month of August are Leo
(until August 22) and Virgo (from August 23 onwards).
It is the month for weeding and harvesting. The
month of Harvest and Freyfaxi (Loaf Fest). Freyfaxi marked the beginning of the
harvest in Iceland. Dedicated to the God of the harvest, it was a time for
celebration with horse races, martial sports, and a feast to Freyr. Thor, as hallower
and defender of the fields, is also honored as is his fair wife Sif whose
golden hair reminds us of the corn.
The Fehu rune f
represents the f-sound. Its name means mobile wealth, similar to English fee
with the original meaning of sheep or cattle. Fehu is the promise of nourishment,
prosperity, growth and stability. Inguz
used for ing (fertility) N. This is a rune of peace and prosperity, also
fertility especially male potency. Naudiz
is the name of the n-rune n,
meaning need, distress, fears, guilt. This
rune represents ‘need’ in all its forms, from the need for food and shelter, to
the need of personal fulfillment.
The Eighth Hall is about the support you receive
from other people. This time also rules wealth of your spouse or partner,
spirituality, insurance, legacies, other people's money, stocks, bonds, taxes,
inheritances, wills, surgeries and astral experiences. It is the time of
regeneration, and covers death, sex, legal matters, and metaphysics. Other keywords
include: transformation, resources of others, sexuality, transmutation,
battles, the Path of Discipleship.
1 Lammas
A day for Ancestors.
Lammas, also called Lughnasadh, falls at the beginning of the harvest
season. Apples are ready and grain is beginning to ripen. The word Lammas derives from the Old English
phrase hlaf-mas, which translates to loaf mass. It is the first of the three autumn harvest
festivals, the other two being the autumn equinox and Samhain. In early Christian times, the first loaves of
the season were blessed by the Church.
The loaf was blessed and in England it might be employed afterwards to
work magic. A book of Anglo-Saxon charms
directed that the lammas bread be broken into four bits, which were to be
placed at the four corners of the barn, to protect the garnered grain.
In
our modern world, it's often easy to forget the trials and tribulations our
ancestors had to endure. For us, if we need a loaf of bread, we simply drive
over to the local grocery store and buy a few bags of prepackaged bread. If we
run out, it's no big deal, we just go and get more. When our ancestors lived,
hundreds and thousands of years ago, the harvesting and processing of grain was
crucial. If crops were left in the fields too long, or the bread not baked in
time, families could starve. Taking care of one's crops meant the difference
between life and death.
Lammas in Norse is compared to Freyfaxi, or Freyr
Fest, marking the beginning of the harvest. As a fertility deity Freyr would be
intimately tied to the land and the food grown upon it. It was a time for celebration with horse
races and a feast for God Freyr. Thor was also honored as is his wife Sif,
whose golden hair reminds us the wheat fields. Traditionally, three stalks of
the first grains are bound together into a sheaf and kept as an amulet of
fortune. Sometimes it was also left in the field for Odin’s horse Sleipnir.
By celebrating Lammas as a harvest holiday, we honor
our ancestors and the hard work they must have had to do in order to
survive. It is a time to perform rituals
dealing with cleansing the home, food, relationships and the environment. A time of making treaties, marriages and a
time for trials. And to give food to the
poor.
I ask for a moment's indulgence to sit by thy
side,
now it is time to sit quiet.
Face to face with thee,
and to sing dedication of life,
in this silent and overflowing leisure.
6 Wane Moon
This
is a time for spells that banish, release or reverse. This is a time to break bad habits and to end
bad relationships.
Hail Manni, God of the Moon!
Forever pursued but never caught,
You turn through the night,
and ward us as we sleep,
Hail Manni God of the Moon!
6 Sif's Day
Sif is a Goddess associated with Earth and
grain. She is the wife of the thunder
God Thor and is known for her golden hair.
While Thor protects and supports society, Sif is responsible for the
unity of the families and tribes within that society. Her long golden hair was
something she prided herself in and it reminded people of the golden harvest.
It was once all cut off by Loki as a cruel prank. She was miserable and crops
would not grow until it was replaced. Thor demanded that Loki replace the hair
or else he would break every bone in Loki's body. The dark months while her hair was gone
became what was known as winter.
Sif has inspired the name of a volcano on the planet
Venus (Sif Mons). The Marvel Comics
character, Sif, is based on the Sif of Norse myth and is portrayed by Alexander
in the Marvel Studios film Thor and its sequel.
Sif of the golden hair, of the fields
of good grain,
whose gentle touch it is that stills the
rage of Thor,
that calms the fury and the madness of
the storm,
merciful one who hears the prayers of
women and men,
lay your hand upon my heart, quiet its
thunderous beating,
grant me peace of mind and soul, O Sif,
I call to you!
The 2015 Perseid meteor shower will peak on August
12 -13. A new moon on August 14, 2015 will create perfect conditions for
observing the meteor shower. Astronomers suggest watching for meteors after
midnight on August 13, 2015.
The Perseid meteor shower, one of the brighter
meteor showers of the year. Made of tiny space debris from the comet
Swift-Tuttle, the Perseids are named after the constellation, Perseus. This is
because, the radiant or the direction from which the shower seems to
come in the sky lies in the same direction as Perseus. The constellation can be
found in the north-eastern part of the sky.
14 New Moon
A
soothing time of rest and planning for new beginnings, new growth and giving
thanks. Start new projects, new love or
new desires.
Our God and Goddess of our ancestors,
everything we accomplish is but a
reflection of Your gifts to us,
much as the Moon only reflects the
light of the sun.
At the new Moon, only the barest sliver
of Moon is visible to us,
and there is much we cannot see.
Today, too, from our separate
communities, we see but a sliver of
the whole. There is much we cannot see.
As the Moon waxes, so too may our
understanding of the wider
world of faith and thought,
particularly, those with whom we
differ.
Renew our lives, we pray,
for a life of peaceful co-existence in
our belief variety;
for a life of goodness.
15 Mimir's Day
Mimir is a primal oracular God who
is renowned for his knowledge and wisdom.
The name Mimer means "the wise one or the rememberer". He is the giant brother of Odin's Jotun
mother Bestla and he is the guardian of the Well of Mimir, under of the roots
of Yggdrasil. He
stands half-immersed in the water and on his powerful shoulders he is
supporting the Kjolen Mountains. It is
said that he has been standing there since the beginning of time and that with
the passing of millennia he became part of the mountain itself.
More than any other being in Norse mythology, Mimir
seems to be regarded as the divine animating force behind the wisdom of past
tradition and its indispensable value as a guide for present actions. Chapter
51 of the Prose Edda relates that, with the onset of Ragnarok, "Heimdall
stands up and blows the Gjallarhorn with all his strength. He wakens all the Gods who then hold an
assembly. Odin rides to Mimir's Well,
seeking council for both himself and his followers. The ash Yggdrasil shakes, and nothing,
whether in heaven or on Earth, is without fear."
Hail, Grandfather
of the Well of Wisdom!
Eyes that see
through the darkness
Of the stone and
water,
We honor your
sacrifice,
We honor your
pain,
We honor that
which was hard-won
Only by losing.
Hail, Grandfather
of the Sacred Spring,
You who have given
much in service,
When the time
comes,
May you bless us
with your wisdom
And may we not be afraid
to pay the price.
17
Eir's Day
Eir is one of Frigg's good friends and handmaidens,
as well as a Goddess of the Aesir; she knew the medicinal properties of herbs
and is so skilled in the healing arts that she is at times even capable of
resurrection. Today do an inventory on the medical supplies. Help those who are
poor and ill.
Although men did practice battle-field medical
treatment, they may not have received much in the way of training for this task
other than what they acquired by doing the job.
Women were the primary medical practitioners. They knew child birth, surgery, wound care,
herbal medicine and death. The Herbarium
of Apuleius lists the various ills and the corresponding plant remedies known
to the Anglo-Saxons. The Vikings also
used charms, prayers and runes to help heal the ill.
Physician of the
Gods,
the Merciful One.
I ask you to speed
medical healing,
to speed the
recovery
of illness or
injury.
I ask you to
inspire the doctors
to do no harm,
and to do well in treating
the one whom I pray for.
Inspire the
doctors to have mercy,
as you have mercy.
Inspire the one
whom I pray for
to be patient and
hopeful.
Hail Eir,
Greatest
Physician.
22 Wax Moon
This
is a time for new beginnings, to conceptualize ideas and to invoke. At this time the Moon represents the Warrior.
Great God of prosperity and stability
I surrender my financial worries to
you, and align myself with
your abundance. As you are the source of all things great and
small.
And I know that you will supply me with everything I need
in order to be wealthy in all areas of
my life.
Replace my fear and worry with trust
and faith
And allow my cup to overflow.
So that I may not only support myself
monetarily
But share my good fortune with others
in need.
Blessed be.
Sturgeon
is the full moon of August. The fishing
tribes are given credit for the naming of this Moon, since sturgeon, a large
fish of the Great Lakes and other major bodies of freshwater, were most readily
caught during this month. The sturgeon
is a valuable gourmet food, as well as source of specialty products including
caviar and isinglass. A few tribes knew it as the Full Red Moon
because, as the Moon rises, it appears reddish through any sultry haze. Plan a
ritual of protection around your home and family.
Father God of Moon and Mother Goddess
of Stars,
bring your presence from afar,
manifest on this your night
and bless me in this sacred rite.
Grant me the knowledge and clarity,
to understand your words to me.
Lend your powers and send your light
aid me in my work tonight.
With love and wisdom please embrace
all within this sacred space.
Divine Friends, I now call to you
bring your message clear and true.
31 Raymond Buckland Birthday
Raymond Buckland (Author),
whose craft name is Robat, is an English American
writer on the subject of Wicca
and the occult,
and a significant figure in the history of Wicca,
of which he is a High Priest in both the Gardnerian and Seax traditions.
According to his written works, primarily Witchcraft from
the Inside, published in 1971, he was the first person in the United States
to openly admit to being a practitioner of Wicca, and he introduced the lineage
of Gardnerian Wicca to the United States in 1964, after having been initiated
by Gerald Gardner's then-high priestess Monique Wilson in Britain the previous
year. He later formed his own tradition dubbed Seax-Wica which focuses on the
symbolism of Anglo-Saxon Paganism.
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