Beltaine, also called May Day by many Christians. This Sabbat celebrates the fertility and union of the Horned God and the Goddess. At this time, life is renewing itself. Birds and animals are mating. In the fields, newly planted seeds are beginning to grow. Great fires are lit honoring the fertility God Belenos. Some leap the fires to show the exuberance of the season. A Maypole is erected and bright ribbons are hung on it. The Maypole, a phallic symbol, represents the masculine. The soft colored ribbons are the feminine. The union of the two symbolizes the union of the God and Goddess. This is the time to fertilize your…

Samhain: Shadowfest (Strega), Martinmas (Celtic/Scottish) Samhain, popularly known as Halloween, is the Witches’ New Year. This is the last of the three harvest Sabbats marking the end of the growing seasons. Celtic custom decreed that all crops must be gathered by sundown on April 31st. It is a time when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest. Deceased ancestors and other friendly spirits are invited to join in Sabbat festivities and be reunited with loved ones. In Ireland it is still custom to leave candles in the windows and plates of food for the visiting spirits. Keep a fire lit or a candle burning all…

Derives it’s name from the eighth month of the oldest Roman calendar, Octem. Moon: The Blood Moon – The name Blood Moon comes from the custom of killing and salting down live stock for the upcoming winter months, not from sacrifice as some think. Astrological Signs: Libra, Scorpio. Nature Spirits: Frost faeries, plant faeries. Herbs: Pennyroyal, thyme, catnip, uva ursi, angelica, burdock. Colors: Dark blue-green. Flowers: Calendula, marigold, cosmos. Scents: Strawberry, apple blossom, cherry. Stones: Opal, rose sapphire, tourmaline, beryl, turquoise. Trees: Yew, cypress, acacia. Animals: Stag, jackal, elephant, ram, scorpion. Birds: Heron, crow, robin. Deities: Astarte, Belili, Cernunnos, Demeter, Hathor, Horned God, Ishtar, Kore, Lakshmi, the Morrigan, Osiris, The…

October 1 On this date (approximately), hundreds of thousands of Muslims make a pilgrimage to the city of Mecca to kiss and touch the Black Stone (one of the original building blocks of a veiled shrine) and to worship their god Allah. They then drink some water from the nearby sacred Well of Ishmael, and journey up into the hills of Safa and Marwa to recite prayers. October 2 Guiding Spirits Day. On this day, light a white candle on you altar and give thanks to your spirit guide (or guides) for guarding over you and guiding you through your spiritual development. If you wish to communicated with or meet…

Other Names: celtic ~ Summer’s End, pronounced “sow” (rhymes with now) “en” (Ireland), sow-een (Wales) – “mh” in the middle is a “w” sound – Greater Sabbat(High Holiday) – Fire Festival Oct 31-Nov 1(North Hemisphere) – Apr 30-May 1 – The Great Sabbat, Samhiunn, Samana, Samhuin, Sam-fuin, Samonios, Halloween, Hallomas, All Hallows Eve, All Saints/All Souls Day(Catholic), Day of the Dead (Mexican), Witches New Year, Trinoux Samonia, Celtic/ Druid New Year, Shadowfest (Strega), Martinmas or Old Hallowmas (Scotttish/Celtic) Lá Samhna (Modern Irish), Festival of the Dead, Feile Moingfinne (Snow Goddess), Hallowtide (Scottish Gaelis Dictionary), Feast of All Souls, Nos Galen-gae-of Night of the Winter Calends (Welsh), La Houney or Hollantide…

Growing Where They are Planted An important part of connecting with our kids when it comes to spiritual matters is to find things that interest them. This is a topic we will explore for a couple of issues but first we all need to do some extra footwork. It is amazing how many parents assume they know what their kids are thinking but yet they never ask. We would be surprised at some of the answers we get when we ask our kids their thoughts, not only on spiritual matters but also on life issues themselves. Usually kids have very spiritual insight into life without relating to it as such.…

On a long hot summer day, Nadia and her fellow young sea nymphs swam and played in the ocean. Then they decided to go into the cove and tease the human children from the village. This is something they did regularly. See the sea nymphs were magickal creatures that had been around long before humans and felt superior to them. As they approached the cove, they heard the familiar laughing and splashing of the same children that were usually in the cove. They pulled the same tricks they pulled most days. They tugged on their legs under the water. They pulled their hair. They took turns doing the various things…

So You Call Yourself an Elder? For any of us who have found this path on our own, we know how hard it can be to find someone to work with us in learning our craft. In some ways it can feel like the impossible task to find a qualified person in the community that teaches or mentors. I was recently speaking with a fellow Wiccan, with whom I am currently mentoring, and she told me a story that really bothered me. We have spent many nights talking about how hard it is to find someone to work with who is trustworthy and not psychotic. She was talking about a…

Tarot: Self Help, Self Knowledge or Divination Tool? According to some different Tarot schools, this can be understood as an instrument of self-help, self-knowledge or divination. It’s not rare to find those who defend it from one perspective, while others see or feel opposing views. For me, this is not relevant, maybe not even correct. I consider Tarot all these. Which must be clear in the reader’s and querent’s minds as they use it in that moment and for their own personal reasons. A Code of Ethics must guide the individual activity of Tarot reading. As a self-help tool, the reader uses Tarot for her/himself in order to go inside,…

I am a magician of over 30 years of experience with removing curses, disharmonies and other spiritual problems. I plan to touch upon many subjects in this column but they will all relate to spiritual problems and upsets. I feel these problems are running rampant while everyone is saying if you think positive bad things will go away. People block themselves and the energies block them so they have these problems. It is past the point where they can think positively. The only way to help with these problems is working upon your inner self and knowing yourself. You can overcome any outside forces and be a success in what…