Samhain blessings…
Samhain blessings to everyone in the southern hemisphere, and to those in the north, magical Beltane wishes…
Samhain, the festival of the ancestors and the dead that marks the beginning of winter, falls in early May in the southern hemisphere and early November in the northern hemisphere – and on October 31 in popular culture, where it is celebrated as Halloween. It honours the Wheel of the Year as it turns towards the barrenness of winter, in nature and in our lives, and is a time of withdrawal and withering.
Mythologically, this was when the goddess became the crone, the old one, the wise one – the earth mother who understood, and taught others, that we need darkness and death to have light and rebirth. In some traditions the god descended to the underworld on this day, to await his transformation at the winter solstice; in others he was already there and the goddess returned to be reunited with her consort.
Astronomically, this cross-quarter day falls midway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice. In the southern hemisphere, it’s when the sun is halfway between the Equator and the Tropic of Cancer, on its way north for winter, and it rises in the same position as it will at Imbolc. In the northern hemisphere Samhain occurs six months later, when the sun is heading south from the Equator down to the Tropic of Capricorn.
Samhain, also known as Halloween, All Souls Eve, Day of the Dead, Feast of Spirits, Shadow Fest and Ancestor Night, marks the end of autumn and the start of the coldness and dark of winter. The crispness and vivid flame-coloured beauty of autumn fades as the energy of the earth withdraws and nature starts to wither and die. Animals begin to migrate or hibernate, and while the grass may become green and lush with the onset of rain, many of the trees are stripped bare, with bitterly cold winds adding to the starkness of the season.
This was the third and last harvest of the year, when anything left in the fields, from wheat and oats to turnips and apples, would be gathered in and stored for the barren months ahead. Snow covered the land and fresh food was scarce. Cattle and sheep were brought in from the summer paddocks to the barns, and those who couldn’t find food or shelter were slaughtered and preserved for later eating. Wood was chopped and peat stacked for the winter fires, herbs were dried and food was baked and preserved. Families gathered together to prepare and ready themselves for winter, and there was an air of celebration and abundance even as the hard months approached.
Symbolically the energy is also about preparing for what’s ahead, harvesting and releasing the things you’ve been holding on to and readying yourself for new challenges and experiences. Winter is a season of introspection and darkness, both metaphorically and literally, which encourages you to slow down and withdraw a little to conserve mental energy. It’s a time for inner reflection and contemplation, of studying the Mysteries – of your magical tradition or your life – and scrying for answers and illumination. At each of the four cross-quarter days the veil between the worlds was considered to be thinner than usual, and at this one people connected with the energy of the ancestors, the spirits and the dead, calling on them for wisdom and knowledge about the future as well as the past.
Samhain was the Celtic New Year, the most important, sacred and magical celebration of the pagan calendar. Rituals were performed, elaborate feasts were held, and hearth fires were extinguished in every home so they could be relit from a special druidic fire in each community, which brought blessings and new light to the coming year, and rekindled the hopes and dreams that had been slumbering.
In the northern hemisphere, today is Beltane, also known as Bealtaine (bright fire), May Day, Walpurgis Night, the Festival of Flowers and Floralia. It marks the first day of summer, and the evidence of new life is everywhere, in abundant blossoms, the hatching of birds, and bees pollinating flowers. The seeds planted in spring have germinated and sprouted, and the land is warm, buzzing and green. Brightly coloured flowers were traditionally brought inside to symbolise fresh beginnings and the power of nature, and pretty white blossoms were gathered from the sacred hawthorn tree, which was associated with Beltane and used for love spells, in marriage rituals, to make wands as well as for protection and healing. Women would also bathe their faces in the dew gathered from their garden on Beltane morning to harness the energy of youth.
A Beltane recipe…
Beltane marks the first day of summer, and is representative of vitality, fertility and the energy of the sun, so its foods include luscious fruits like cherries and strawberries, green leaf, herb and flower petal salads, oat or barley cakes, dairy foods and honey. Mead, a type of honey wine, is popular, white wine, white grape juice or mead is often infused with sweet woodruff and served with strawberries to capture the essence of the season, and fruit juices and light floral teas match well too. Herbs of the season include sweet woodruff, meadowsweet, calendula, marjoram, thistle, angelica, apple, cinnamon, vanilla, rose, violet, jasmine, all-heal, cinquefoil, clover, honeysuckle, ivy, lilac, rowan and St John’s wort.
Beltane is a festival of love and romance, and roses and other flowers can be added to your food, used as a garnish or table decoration, woven into a garland for your hair or used in spells for love, which can be as simple as lighting a pink candle and making a wish or soaking in a bath filled with pink rose petals. You can also leave a little plate of nuts, berries and flowers out for the faeries, as this is another cross-quarter day when the veils are thin, and their energy can be drawn upon. Dress in long, swirling clothes with flowers in your hair and dance barefoot on the grass, soaking up the vibration of the earth and of this powerful, potent time.
Edible Flowers
Many flowers are edible, and summer is the perfect time to add some pretty petals to your recipes and strew them in salads. Some edible flowers include marigolds, nasturtiums, violets, pansies, primroses, calendulas, carnations, jasmine, sunflowers, dandelions, lemon verbena, lavender and hibiscus, as well as the flowers of sage, thyme, dill, chives, basil, coriander, bee balm (wild bergamot), sorrel, rocket and borage, plus zucchini and squash blossoms, apple blossoms and banana blossoms. Do always make sure your flowers are fresh and pesticide-free, and that they are the type you think they are, as some plants are poisonous. With some flowers, such as roses and chrysanthemums, only the petals should be consumed. For others, such as violets and nasturtiums, the whole flower can be eaten. And with others, like dandelion and calendula, you can eat the whole plant, although sometimes the petals are the tastiest part.
Flower butter: Combine 250g of butter with half a cup of chopped flower petals, and leave, covered and in a cool dry place, to stand overnight so the flavour of the flowers infuses the butter. Stir again then refrigerate. Use this pretty butter on breads, scones and muffins, and in cake, cookie and dessert recipes.
Floral Ice Cubes: Half fill an ice-cube tray with water and allow to freeze. Once frozen, place a single violet flower, apple blossom, jasmine bloom or rose petal into each ice-cube hole, top up with water and freeze again. Serve in drinks to add a sweet summery vibe and a celebratory look to the meal.
Crystallised Flowers: Beat an egg white and a few drops of water until foamy but not stiff. Using a small paintbrush, paint clean dry flowers such as violets, geraniums, pansies and rose buds with the egg white mixture, then sprinkle with super-fine sugar (use icing sugar or just blend white or raw sugar in a blender), covering the whole surface of each blossom. Leave to dry for a day or two in an airtight container, then use the gorgeous flowers to decorate cakes, ice-cream, desserts and drinks.
Rose Petal Biscuits
Ingredients:
200g butter
½ cup icing sugar
1 cup plain flour
1 tblsp lemon zest
1 tsp rose water or pure vanilla essence
Handful of rose petals (chemical free)
What to do:
Cream the butter and icing sugar, then fold in the sifted flour, lemon zest and rose water or vanilla essence. When well combined, gently stir in the rose petals. Cover the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or so to keep its shape while baking.
Roll out onto a floured board to around 1cm thick, and use a cookie cutter or the mouth of a glass or a jar to shape into cookies.
Place on a lightly greased cookie tray and bake in a preheated 180C oven for around 20 minutes, or until firm and golden. Cool on a wire rack then serve on a pretty floral plate.
A Samhain recipe…
Samhain, the festival of the Ancestors and the dead that marks the end of autumn and the beginning of winter, honours the Wheel of the Year as it turns towards the barrenness of the coldest season, in nature and in our lives, and is a time of withdrawal and withering. It is the third and last harvest festival of the year, when anything left in the fields, from wheat and oats to turnips, apples and pumpkins, would be gathered in and stored for the desolate months ahead. Pumpkin pies, apple fritters, roasted turnips, butternut pumpkin casseroles, grainy breads and muffins, nut dishes and other comfort foods align with the earth’s energies at this time, along with mulled wine, cider and warming herbal teas.
Herbs of the season include nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, mugwort and wormwood (both good scrying herbs), sage, mint, chrysanthemum, mullein and thistle, and spicy drinks are popular.
This cross-quarter day is also the time when the veils between the worlds are thinnest, when some believe our Ancestors walk freely among us, along with restless spirits, so many Witches leave out offerings of food. Set an extra place at the table for your loved ones who are no longer with you, and honour their memory by telling stories about them and reminiscing about their life. This aspect of the Sabbat led to the images of ghosts and ghouls, Witches on broomsticks, sugar skulls, hollowed out gourds and jack-o-lanterns that are so closely associated with today’s Halloween celebrations.
Pumpkin Fritters
Ingredients:
2 cups mashed pumpkin
½ cup self-raising flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Pinch of salt
Pepper, curry powder, chilli flakes or any herb or spice you like
Oil or butter for cooking
What to do:
Combine all ingredients thoroughly, and shape into small round balls, around a tablespoon full in size.
Spoon the mixture into a heated, oiled frying pan and cook for two minutes on each side, or until golden brown.
Apple Cinnamon Fritters
Ingredients:
1 cup plain flour
1 tsp cinnamon
2/3 cup water
1 tblsp macadamia oil, plus extra for frying
2 eggs, separated
2 green apples
What to do:
Mix together the flour and cinnamon, then slowly stir in the water and oil. Add the lightly beaten egg yolks and stir well. If you prefer a sweeter taste, add some brown sugar to the batter.
Peel, core and thinly slice the apples.
Whisk the egg whites until peaks form, fold them into the batter.
Dip the apple slices in the batter, then fry until they are golden brown on each side. Serve with lemon juice and brown sugar.
Lughnasadh kitchen witchery…
Lughnasadh ~ Summer’s End
Seasonal foods and herbs play a large part in witchy celebrations, so below are a few of the Lughnasadh recipes I experimented with for Witchy Magic.
And an Imbolc one for my friends in the northern hemisphere…
Lughnasadh marks the end of summer and the first harvest festival, and it has long been a time of feasting and of thanksgiving for the life-giving properties of the grain. In honour of the Celtic Sun God Lugh, people sacrificed the first sheaf of corn, the first wheat stalk, the first fruits, the first loaf of bread, back to the land and to the Earth Mother. Today, the beginning of autumn is still a time of first harvests. Fruit picking, grape harvesting and wine making begins, and golden wheat fields cover the paddocks. Wild berries hold the energy of this season – blueberries, blackcurrants, raspberries, gooseberries, elderberries, sloe (blackthorn berries) – all lusciously ripe and bursting with flavour, along with grapes, pears, apples, nuts, seeds and warming gingerbreads.
Sunflower seeds are gathered, and fruit and vegies are preserved to eat throughout winter.
Herbs include ginger, basil, vervain, elder, comfrey, ginseng, calendula, meadowsweet, yarrow, mugwort, milkweed as well as hops and chamomile, which some traditional cultures made dream pillows from in order to promote sleep and ease insomnia. Herb gathering and drying continues at this time, to prepare for the winter, and magical oils and essences are made from fresh herbs for healing and spellwork in the coming year.
Grains play a big part at this time of year – another name for Lughnasadh is Lammas, from the Old English for loaf feast, and all kinds of breads, cakes and muffins are baked from the abundance of grains – wheat, corn, rye, oat, barley, rice. You can bake bread as part of your ritual, or buy prepared dough and then divide it into three and add different seeds or grains to each one, changing the colour so you can plait the three strands together before baking.
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Gingersnap Cookies
Ingredients:
✩ 185g butter, softened
✩ 1 cup brown sugar
✩ ½ cup golden syrup
✩ 1 egg, lightly beaten
✩ 1 tblsp grated fresh ginger
✩ 2 cups plain flour
✩ 1 tsp baking soda
✩ 1 tsp ground cinnamon
✩ 1 tsp ground ginger
✩ ½ tsp ground nutmeg
What to do:
★ Cream together the butter and sugar, then stir in the golden syrup. Add the egg and the fresh ginger, and mix well.
★ In another bowl combine the flour, baking soda and spices, then gradually fold it in to the butter-sugar mixture. Knead dough into a ball, cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour or so.
★ Roll into teaspoon-sized balls and place on a lightly greased cookie tray, with space between each one. Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly browned. Serve warm, fresh from the oven, or allow to cool on a wire rack.
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Candied Ginger and Ginger Tea
Ingredients:
✩ 1 cup thinly sliced fresh ginger
✩ 4 cups water
✩ 2 cups raw sugar, plus extra
✩ Pinch of salt
What to do:
★ Place the ginger slices in a pot, add 2 cups of water and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and leave to simmer for around 15 minutes.
★ Drain the liquid into tea cups and drink, adding a touch of honey if you wish. Ginger tea is warming, soothing and good for an upset tummy, and tastes wonderful. You can also allow the ginger water to cool then serve over ice, garnished with fresh mint leaves.
★ Add sugar, salt and 2 cups of water to ginger in pot and bring to boil. Continue boiling, stirring occasionally, until syrup thickens.
★ Remove from heat and drain the ginger syrup into a jar (it can be used in cooking or poured over cakes, pancakes or other desserts).
★ Coat the slices of ginger in sugar, and leave on a wire rack overnight to dry out. Store at room temperature in an airtight container, or leave the ginger in the syrup and store in the fridge – it will last for several months.
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Basil Tea
Basil tea is light and savoury, with a soothing effect on digestion and tummy upsets as well as on sore throats and mouth ulcers. It has also long been used to relieve anxiety and insomnia.
✩ Place half a cup of fresh basil leaves in a teapot, and pour 2 cups of boiling water over them. Top with the lid to retain the essential oils. Allow to steep for five minutes, then strain into cups.
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Imbolc Recipes
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Lemon Balm Bread
Ingredients:
✩ ¾ cup milk
✩ 1 cup fresh lemon balm, plus 2 tblsps
✩ 1 tblsp fresh lemon thyme
✩ ½ cup butter, softened
✩ 1 cup sugar
✩ 2 eggs
✩ 2 cups plain flour
✩ 1½ tsps baking powder
✩ Pinch of salt
✩ Zest of one lemon
✩ ¼ cup icing sugar
✩ 2 tblsps lemon juice
What to do:
★ Combine milk, one cup of lemon balm and the thyme in a saucepan. Gently bruise herbs to release the oils. Bring to the boil then remove from heat; cover and allow to cool. Strain and reserve the liquid, then discard the herbs (strew them on your garden).
★ Cream the butter and sugar, then beat in the eggs one at a time.
★ In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, a small amount at a time, alternating with the reserved milk. Chop remaining 2 tablespoons of lemon balm and add to the batter, then stir in the lemon zest.
★ Pour batter into a greased and floured loaf pan. Bake at 165C for 45 minutes, or until wooden toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.
★ Combine the icing sugar and lemon juice, mix until smooth, then pour over the cooled bread if desired.
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Bride’s Bread
Soda bread is made from buttermilk, flour and salt, with baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) instead of yeast – the buttermilk acidifies the baking soda and helps the bread rise a little, although it’s still much flatter than a normal loaf. Soda breads include Australian dampers, Scottish bannocks, Irish soda breads and other similar loaves, and are quick to make, requiring very little mixing or kneading.
Imbolc is dedicated to Bride, the Maiden Goddess, and you can dedicate your loaf to her by adding any seeds you like – sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, poppy, linseeds, caraway – or make it a sweeter loaf by adding raisins and a spoon or two of honey.
Ingredients:
✩ 1 cup plain wholemeal flour
✩ 1/3 tsp baking soda
✩ 1/3 tsp salt
✩ Handful of seeds
✩ ½ cup buttermilk
What to do:
★ Combine the dry ingredients, then stir in the buttermilk. Mix until well combined, shape into a rounded loaf and place on a greased baking tray. Cut a deep cross in the top of the loaf, which helps it cook through. Bake in a preheated 200C oven for around 30 minutes. Tap the bottom of the loaf to test it – if it sounds hollow it’s ready to eat! Butter with your fresh butter and eat warm!
✩ You can also make buttermilk by adding a teaspoon of lemon juice to 1 cup of milk and letting it stand for five minutes, or buy it at the supermarket, although this obviously has more additives.
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Bride’s Scones
Ingredients:
✩ 50g butter
✩ 2 cups self-raising flour
✩ 1 cup buttermilk
✩ 1 tblsp honey (or more to taste)
✩ 1 tsp pure vanilla essence
What to do:
★ Rub the butter through the flour, then add the other ingredients and mix well. The mixture should be quite wet.
★ Knead lightly, then shape into balls and flatten a little. Place on a greased baking tray and glaze the top of each scone with milk.
★ Bake them in a preheated 220C oven for around 15 minutes, or until golden brown and firm, and cooked right through. (The size of each scone will influence the cooking time.)
★ Serve the scones warm from the oven with fresh butter.
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Imbolc Tea
✩ 1 tsp chamomile flowers per person
✩ 1 tsp finely sliced fresh ginger per person
✩ 1 tsp honey per person, to taste
✩ 1 cup boiling water per person
Pour water over the chamomile and ginger, steep for five minutes then serve hot with honey, or allow to cool and serve over ice. Red clover, dandelion and nettle teas are also good choices at this time of year. Red clover is a blood purifier that has traditionally been used as a cough remedy and to ease respiratory problems and skin inflammation. Dandelion is a great detoxifier, playing an important role in liver cleansing programs, and eases digestive disorders and reduces inflammation. And nettle has anti-inflammatory properties, boosts immunity and helps ease the physical effects of stress.
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Make Your Own Butter
You may have accidentally discovered how to do this while whipping cream for desserts. All you need is some heavy whipping cream and a glass jar with a lid that seals tightly. (Or you can use hand-held beaters or a blender, but the jar option is more fun!)
✩ Pour the cream into the jar, no more than half full, and start shaking vigorously. Depending on how much cream you used, it can take from 10 minutes to half an hour, but it’s good for the arm muscles! It will start to form into yellow clumps – this is the butter. The liquid is buttermilk, so drain it off and use it in cooking (it’s yummy in pancakes, and can also be used to make soda bread).
✩ If you want it to keep for some time, place the butter in a strainer and rinse it with water, kneading any extra buttermilk out. Add a touch of salt if you want to (it will preserve it for longer), or add some honey if you’ll be using it for sweet treats, some herbs for savoury toast, or garlic if you want to make garlic bread.
Lughnasadh blessings…
Wishing all my friends in the south a magical Lughnasadh, and those in the north an enchanting and enchanted Imbolc… On this day of gratitude and thanksgiving, I am grateful for my love-filled life, and all the blessings I have – a loving hubby, close family and friends, clean water, good food, good health, a job that pays the bills, a wonderful home, the right to choose, the right to vote, the right to an education, access to health care and (for the most part) equality…
From Into the Mists…
The ritual Carlie attended was Lughnasadh, also known as Lammas, which is celebrated in the first week of August in the northern hemisphere and the first week of February in the south, and marks the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. It’s the first harvest festival, traditionally a time of feasting and of thanksgiving for the life-giving properties of the grain, as well as a recognition of the cycle of sowing and reaping of the crops – and of the symbolic things you grow and create in your life.
It’s a day of harvesting the fruits of your labours and acknowledging your successes and what you’ve achieved in the past year. Celebrate the goals you’ve reached and have your own festival of gratitude, in whatever form that takes. Toast your success, throw a party or do something special to mark the occasion. Make a list of all the things you’ve gained over the past year – the gifts you’ve been given, the new talents you’ve developed, the friends you’ve made, the experiences you’ve had, the healings you’ve received – and give thanks for it all.
Then, out of gratitude and in the spirit of the ancestors who shared the bounty of their harvest with those less well off, pay your good fortune forward. Donate to a local charity, as Rose and her friends do, lend to a business in the developing world, or give your time to help someone, ensuring the energy of abundance continues and is strengthened. Give joyfully, with no expectation of receiving anything in return. And work out small ways you can make a difference to the people around you all year long as well.
As the energy begins to subtly slow, this is also a time to be patient and to trust that everything is as it should be, because there are still harvests to come. Not everything has to be achieved right now – some things take longer to manifest. The lesson of the Wheel of the Year is that everything continues, everything happens when it should, and everything is eternal.
Happy New Year…
Wishing everyone a magical night tonight, as we farewell the old year, and all the good, bad and strange we’ve been through, and welcome in a new one.
I am grateful for a magical 2015 – for the good things and the bad things, the new friends and the lost friends, the successes and the struggles, the inspiration and the exhaustion…
And now we are on the cusp of a new year. It’s strange… Technically it’s no different today than yesterday – Chinese New Year is far more meaningful energetically, being celebrated on the spring new moon – and yet there is still the energy of stepping through a doorway, of releasing the year that has gone and welcoming the grand potential and promise of a new one, of being grateful for love deepened and dreams lived and friendships made and goals achieved and lessons learned and wisdom gained… and even the less-than-stellar moments of dreams frustrated and loss felt and pain suffered. It’s all part of the magic and wonder and adventure of life…
May 2016 be filled with love and joy and enchantment, and passion and dedication and inspiration, and may you fight to make your dreams come true.
Autumn and Spring Equinox Blessings…
Equinox blessings to you!
Today is the day of harmony and balance, when the sun is directly above the equator and there are 12 hours of light and 12 hours of dark. In the southern hemisphere it is the autumn equinox, and in Australia the moment of equinox is 8.45am AEST today, Saturday March 20. This means that from this day forward, the nights will be slightly longer than the days, and growing longer. It’s the middle of Autumn, and the crisp chill in the air should return soon, along with the beautiful autumn colours.
In the northern hemisphere today is the Spring equinox, the midpoint of spring, and the start of lengthening days and abundant growth… It’s also the new moon, which holds its own magic within it. Wherever you are in this beautiful world, have an enchanted weekend! xx
T
he autumn equinox, known as Mabon and celebrated between September 20 and 23 in the northern hemisphere and March 20 and 23 in the south, is characterised, like the spring equinox, by the length of day and night being equal as the sun travels back across the equator to the other hemisphere. From this point on the days will become shorter and the weather will get cooler, but today is the moment of balance in nature and within – a time of harmony and gentle calm.
Mabon is the time to honour your achievements, experiences and wisdom, and to ensure balance in your life by integrating all the parts of your self. On this day, when all is balanced, witches traditionally renewed their magical commitments, and you can renew any vows you’ve made or pledge a new one, be it to do with magic, love, friendship, career or anything else. It’s also a harvest festival, a time to further celebrate your achievements and feel fulfilment from each one, releasing what no longer serves you in order to move forward. In the wild, old growth is cleared. In your life, cut out anything that’s holding you back, draining you or preventing new life and love from flourishing, whether it’s work, people, a belief system, regret or the past.
As the shadows lengthen, it’s also a good time to scry if you want insight into your future. If you can, light a fire and stare into the flames, allowing your mind to go blank and your vision to blur a little. Note any images you see. Or go outside and watch the clouds scuttling across the sky and analyse the shapes you see within them. Without thinking about it too much, write down what they mean to you.
Pyromancy (fire reading) and nephomancy (cloud reading) are forms of divination that have been used for millennia. You should eventually develop your own dictionary of symbols, because you know better than anyone else what each symbol means to you, but you can begin with standard readings, such as a heart indicating new romance, a cat referring to the need to trust your intuition, a tree meaning you’ll make new friends and a plane foreshadowing travel. You can also use oracle cards or any other form of divination, tapping in to your intuitive powers in the most effective way you know how, and letting the truths of your heart and soul reveal themselves to you.
The spring or vernal equinox, also known as Ostara, is celebrated between March 20 and 23 in the northern hemisphere and September 20 and 23 in the south. It’s one of only two times in the year when the length of day and night is exactly equal, as the sun sits directly above the equator on its journey north or south, creating equal light and dark in both hemispheres. On a personal level it’s a time of balance and harmony, of union between the physical and spiritual, which can be harnessed to anchor your dreams in reality and enhance your own inner harmony as the balance of universal energies is reflected within. Relationships are harmonious too, making it a good time for weddings and for healing rifts.
It’s also a time of growth and fertility, when crops are sown, the buds on the trees open, birds build nests and lay eggs and new life is celebrated. Thanks was traditionally given to the fertility goddess Ostara, whose symbols were an egg and a hare, and who is still honoured around the world today, albeit unknowingly, in the form of chocolate eggs and the Easter bunny. Energetically it’s also a very fertile time, as the seeds you previously sowed of your goals begin to sprout and gain momentum. Paint some hard-boiled eggs or buy or make the chocolate version, meditating on your own metaphorical fertility and your ability to manifest dreams into reality. Choose an affirmation relating to your desired outcome, write it down and pin it up where you’ll be able to see it every day.
Go outside during the day and breathe in the fresh spring air, filling your heart with new inspiration as you fill your lungs with oxygen. In many ancient cultures, including the Romans whose calendar ours is based on, the spring equinox was the first day of the year, and the sense of new hope and optimism reflected in this time remains today. It’s a celebration of new life, hope, passion, growth and energy.
Dark Moon blessings…
Wishing everyone much love, and blessings of the dark moon, as we approach tomorrow’s new moon and Chinese New Year. Now is a time to reflect, and to be brave and look within, before embracing the new energy and the passion and inspiration of tomorrow. May you journey within with love and wisdom, and find the strength and courage to look into the shadows at this potent time – made even more powerful with the introspective energy of New Year’s Eve. Bright blessings, and the most magical month and year ahead, filled with love, inspiration, creativity, passion and joy…
Lughnasadh Blessings… and an enchanted Imbolc to those in the north…
Today is Lughnasadh – in the southern hemisphere anyway – the first day of autumn and the first harvest festival, a day of celebrating the things we have metaphorically harvested, the things we’ve achieved, the gifts we’ve received, the experiences we’ve had, the talents we’ve developed and the things we’ve learned…
I am so grateful for all the many blessings in my life. For my beautiful husband, my loving family, my dear friends who mean so much to me. For the blessings of my health and the strength of my body, for a job that pays the bills and still allows me time to write my books… For the opportunity to help others who need it through time, money and/or awareness…
It’s also the full moon today, a time of magic and potential, so I’m wishing everyone a wonderful, magic-filled night. May all the wishes you whisper to the moon come true, and you be blessed with love and inspiration…
* Lughnasadh, or Lammas, which is celebrated in the first week of February in the southern hemisphere and August in the north, is a cross-quarter day marking the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. It’s the first harvest festival, traditionally a time of feasting and of thanksgiving for the life-giving properties of the grain, as well as a recognition of the cycle of sowing and reaping of the crops – and of the symbolic things you grow and create in your life.
It’s a day of harvesting the fruits of your labours and acknowledging your successes and what you’ve achieved in the past year. Celebrate the goals you’ve reached and have your own festival of gratitude, in whatever form that takes. Toast your success, throw a party or do something special to mark the occasion. Make a list of all the things you’ve gained over the past year – the gifts you’ve been given, the new talents you’ve developed, the friends you’ve made, the experiences you’ve had, the healings you’ve received – and give thanks for it all. Then, out of gratitude and in the spirit of the ancestors who shared the bounty of their harvest with those less well off, pass on some of your good fortune. Make a donation to a local charity, lend money to a business in the developing world or give your time to help someone, ensuring the energy of abundance continues and is strengthened. Give out of grace and for joy, not with the expectation of receiving anything in return. Work out small ways you can make a difference to the world and the people around you all year.
As well as a time of feasting and thanksgiving for the harvesting of the crops, and recognition of the eternal cycle of sowing and reaping, Lughnasadh is also about the symbolic things you grow and create in your life. It’s a day to harvest what you planted earlier in the year and celebrate your successes. Make a list of all the things you’ve gained – the goals you reached, the gifts you’ve been given, the new talents you’ve developed, the friends you’ve made, the experiences you’ve had, the healings you’ve received, the opportunities you’ve pursued – and how you have developed and changed as a result of them.
Create a ritual of appreciation that is meaningful for you. You may want to journal about it, exploring in depth the things you’ve learned and the ways in which you’ve grown, send thank you cards to people who have helped you work towards your goals, start a gratitude diary or write a poem that outlines all that you’re grateful for. We may no longer be so connected to the production of our food, as in days gone by, or believe that our prayers or sacrifices influence the success of a crop, but appreciating what we have and giving thanks for it is still a beautiful way to live, and can increase our own attitude of abundance.
Also acknowledge all the things you’ve achieved so you can share your successes with others. Don’t be modest or downplay how far you’ve come, because you’ll inspire other people with stories of your breakthroughs, your dedication and details of how you overcame the obstacles you faced. Your successes will help them realise they can also pursue their dreams, and will hopefully give them the motivation they need to get started on their own journey.
Don’t ever diminish yourself or your achievements, or let anyone else do so. Be proud of your light, your talents and all your accomplishments, and always allow yourself to shine brightly and illuminate the darkness for others. As American author Marianne Williamson says: “Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, and as we let our own light shine, we give other people permission to do the same.”
Now too, as the energy begins to subtly slow, it’s a time to be patient and to trust that everything is as it should be, because there are still harvests to come. Not everything has to be achieved right now – some things take longer to manifest. The lesson of the Wheel of the Year is that everything continues, everything happens when it should and everything is eternal.
In the northern hemisphere it is Imbolc, the festival that marks the beginning of spring, and celebrates the fact that the days are lengthening and the light is returning, illuminating the land and our own hearts.
Mythologically, this was when the goddess transformed into the maiden and waiting bride, signified by the new blossoms and the quickening energy within the earth, and the infant god continued to grow in power, represented by the longer days and increasing strength of the sun. Astronomically, the cross-quarter day of Imbolc falls midway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. In the southern hemisphere the sun is in the middle of its journey back from the lowest latitudes to the equator, and rises in the same position as it did at Samhain, when it was heading south from the equator towards its Midwinter point.
Energetically it’s a time of awakening, renewal and re-emergence, as nature fills with life force and begins to quiver with the energy to grow again, and we too start to emerge from the chill of winter, shaking off our inertia and lack of motivation and beginning to re-engage with the world. It’s also a time of purification and cleansing after the long dark of the winter months, of stripping away the old so the new can emerge. Imbolc is one of the four fire festivals of the year, and great bonfires would be lit not only in celebration but also for purification, so cleansing has always been an important aspect of the day.
Imbolc remains a day to honour the fertility of the land and our own selves. As the first signs of spring start to manifest, and the earth quickens with an energy that can be tangibly felt, it’s a powerful time to do healing work of any kind, and send energy to friends around the world. You can also increase your knowledge in an area you’re interested in, expand your creativity and tend to activities that are overlooked in the busy months of summer – making candles, sewing dream pillows, grinding herbs and blessing the seeds you’ll plant in spring…
* From Seven Sacred Sites: Magical Journeys That Will Change Your Life.
A beautiful review of Seven Sacred Sites…
So touched by a lovely review for Seven Sacred Sites: Magical Journeys That Will Change Your Life in inSpirit magazine.
Serene Conneeley’s book Seven Sacred Sites is a powerhouse of memories, ancient knowledge and wisdom, and will take you on a personal journey of discovery.
As you turn through each page in this magical book, Serene paints the landscape as only she can; her pen is the artist’s paintbrush and her words are the scholars of ancient times’ teaching.
As you take a journey around the world exploring Machu Picchu in Peru, monuments of ancient Egypt, Stonehenge, The Camino in Northern Spain, Hawaii, Avalon in England and Uluru in Australia, your soul will refuel itself and leave you wanting to journey there in person. Each site you visit imparts its wisdom, ancient knowledge and traditions upon you. I found myself being drawn back in time, back to truth and beauty when I read this book. From the moment I picked it up my travel plans for the future expanded as I yearned to step foot on the sacred ground.
If you are travelling to any of these areas this book is a must, but even if not, this book is perfect for anyone wishing to gain the understanding of forgotten culture and traditions. The history included in the book gives credit to Serene’s meticulous attention to detail, and allows the reader to immerse themselves fully.
Beautiful seems too simple a word to describe this book, yet it describes perfectly all that Serene captures and conveys to the reader as they journey with their mind, body and soul to seven Sacred Sites.
You can read more about Seven Sacred SItes: Magical Journeys That Will Change Your Life at SereneConneeley.com.
serenesblessedbee 