Written by Mama KellyTags:Candlemas, crafts, ideas, Imbolc, videos, youtube

A wonderful way to start off the New Year is finding ways to honor the Goddess in Her many aspects throughout the year. I found a nice collection of Feast Days for various dieties (list was extracted from pantheon.org) that is very useful. 

Below are some days for January and February, for the complete list for the year go here: Feast Days.

JANUARY
January 2 – Advent of Isis, the Egyptian goddess of love.
January 3 – The festival of Pax the Roman goddess of peace.
January 6 – Feast of Kore, the celebration of Kore’s, the Egyptian of fertility and grains, return to earth after six years of exile in the underworld.
January 7 – Sekhmet, the Egyptian New Year’s Day.
January 8 – Festival of Justitia, the Roman goddess of justice.
January 11 and 15 – The Carmentalia, festival of Carmenta, the Roman goddess of childbirth.
January 16 – The Festival of Concordia, the Roman goddess of harmonious relations.
January 17 – Good Luck Day, the festival of Felicitas, the Roman goddess of good luck.

February
February 1 and 2 – Imbolc, the Celtic festival marking the period of lactation of the ewes.  Also the festival of Brigit, the Celtic goddess of healing, fertility, and patroness of smiths.
February 12 – The Festival of Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt (known as Diana to the Romans).
February 17 – The festival of Fornax, the Roman goddess of bread-making.
February 22 – The festival of the goddess Concordia, the patron of good will and favor.

Bright blessings now and always, Lady Rose

Written by Lady RoseTags:goddess

La Befana (Yuletide Giftbringer Crone Witch) who brings gifts to children on the  Eve of the Epiphany is celebrated today in Italy & elsewhere.  There is historical evidence that she is a form of Strina, an ancient Sabine Goddess of Strength & Endurance.

BEFANA appears to be heir at law of a certain heathen goddess called Strenia, who presided over the new-year’s gifts, ‘Strenae,’ from which, indeed, she derived her name. Her presents were of the same description as those of the Befana figs, dates, and honey. Moreover her solemnities were vigorously opposed by the early Christians on account of their noisy, riotous, and licentious character.

Befana means “Epifania”-”Epiphany” which is a Latin word with Greek origins. It can mean the “festival of” or “manifestation”. In the Catholic Church it means the Re Magi also known as “the wise kings” of baby Jesus.

In popular folklore Befana visits all the children of Italy on the eve of the 6th of January to fill their socks with candy and presents if they are good or a lump of coal or dark candy if they are bad. Being a good housekeeper, many say she will sweep the floor before she leaves. The child’s family typically leaves a small glass of wine and a plate with a few morsels of food, often regional or local, for the Befana.

She is usually portrayed as an old lady riding a broomstick through the air wearing a black shawl and is covered in soot because she enters the children’s houses through the chimney. She is often smiling and carries a bag or hamper filled with candy, gifts, or both.

Wishing every one a happy new year and bright blessings, Lady Rose

Written by Lady RoseTags:12th night, ephiphany, goddess, Yule

Well the bug that Princess Nature shook off for the most part after a day home from school resting has apparently taken up a nice cozy residence in my lungs. I was only able to make i through 5 hours at work as my voice gave out and all the talking for my telemarketing job kept triggering my cough.

In that spirit, this week’s Pagan Video Tuesday is a collection of videos that relate to making herbal remedies for colds and flu.

Stay well

Blessings

Mama Kelly

Care for some herbal cough syrup or garlic oil?

How about some Elderberry tincture?

How about making your own decongestant chest rub?

Written by Mama KellyTags:cold, flu, herbal, herbalism, medicine, pagan video tuesday, remedies

Simple Full Moon Ritual – as you sweep your home chant the following, ending with visualizing sweeping the negativity out the front door and off the porch (or stoop) and taking a few moments to visualize your home filling with the bright light and blessings of the full moon:

With this Broom, I sweep tonight
Cast out Darkness, raise the Light
All within, blessings surround
Healing, love, and joy abound
A sacred home, this shall be,
As my will, so mote it be.

Wishing everyone a joyous Full Moon, Lady Rose

“Full Moon Power, Full Moon Light, Full Moon Magic on Full Moon Night!”   (~Selena Fox)

REMINDER – ENTER 2Witches.com Contest TO WIN A SEASONS OF THE WITCH 2010 CALENDAR (deadline Dec. 17)

Written by Lady Rose

For this week’s Pagan Video Tuesday I share a collection of videos that touch on the subject of why a person would leave the religion they were raised in and turn instead to a Pagan path.

I personally have not yet had time to view them myself, but I hope you find them enjoyable.

Blessings

Mama Kelly

“Michael Gorman, “The Druid” tells the story of his spiritual journey from Catholic to Fundamentalist to Druid.”

SybilSilverPhoenix “details (her) reasons for coming to the Path of Wicca and some the ups and downs (she’s) had along the way”
view part 2

Paganperspective “share(s) … why it is (he) call(s) myself what (he) do(es)”

Written by Mama KellyTags:druid, pagan, paganism, video, wiccan, youtube

While Samhain was only a few days ago we all know that Thanksgiving will fast be upon us.  With a few weeks to prepare it is a fitting time to consider what traditions you might want to add to your own holiday dinner, while keeping in mind that a ritual need not be formal or lengthy to be powerful.

Fill a bowl with pieces of construction paper cut into the shape of autumn leaves.  Over the next few weeks encourage your family members to write the things they are grateful for on them and place them back into the bowl, unsigned.  During your meal, and perhaps for the rest of the weekend, make a point of pausing to read these statements aloud.

Alternately (or also), pick up an inexpensive journal and over the course of the holiday weekend encourage your family members to write a paragraph (or more) of their favorite memory of the previous year.  Keep the journal with your holiday table trimmings and add to it each year.

Make a point of donating food at a local collection spot (school, library, supermarket, church).  Bless the food at home first though with words along the lines of  “may you never hunger, may you never thirst.”  Encourage the kids to help pick out the foods to donate and bring it to the donate site.

Remember it’s never too late to start a new tradition.

Blessings

Mama Kelly

Written by Mama KellyTags:simple rituals, Thanksgiving

I have been a bit remiss in my blog posting as well as my blog reading.  My laptop is sick and wont be repaired for a couple of weeks.  Right now we are waiting for the girls’ computer to get out of the shop and I’ll wait a couple of weeks before putting mine in to save us the sticker shock.

My time on the one remaining computer in the house is limited as I am sharing it with 3 other people and I am generally not able to get on it in the evenings very much and can’t get on it at all in the morning.  I do plan to work my way back to your regularly scheduled programming soon though – one way or another.

For this week’s Pagan Video Tuesday I share a piece I found on Hecate’s blog a couple of days ago.  While I watched it my heart swelled and my eyes filled with tears.  Yes because it was beautiful and moving and touching in so many ways but also because I long so much to be part of a Pagan community again.

I miss having a group of people to grapevine about the circle with.

I miss having people to sit and toast the Gods and Goddesses with.

I miss having no excuses when it came to honoring the Esbats and Sabbats.

I miss not being a Witch alone.

I spent a few moments on Samhain evening listening to the wind rushing through the dying leaves and whispered my wishes to my ancestors.  I asked them to pull some strings for me.  Desires that revolve around hearth and finances and a home of our own, one day, in the country.

I forgot to ask for this one thing for myself and so I whisper it here in cyberspace and pray that my ancestors don’t mind pulling another string or two that will bring some likeminded folk my way.

I have family.

I have friends.

But, frankly, I’m still feeling a bit lonely.

In any case – may the dance spiral on – may the circle never be broken – may we each find renewal and healing and hope.

Blessings

Mama Kelly

Written by Mama KellyTags:pagan, pagan video tuesday, paganism, video, wicca, witchcraft, youtube

In the cool of the evening
They used to gather
‘Neath the stars in the meadow
Cirlced near an old oak tree
At the times appointed by the seasons
Of the Earth and the phases of her Moon

In the center often stood a woman
Equal with the others
And respected for her worth
One of the many we called the witches
The healers and the teachers
Of the wisdom of the Earth

And the people grew
With the knowledge she gave them
Herbs to heal their bodies
Spells to make their spirits whole
Hear them chanting healing incantations
Calling forth the wise ones
Celebrating in dance and song

Isis, Astarte, Diana
Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna (x4)

There were those who came to power
Through domination
They were bonded in their worship
Of a dead man on a cross
They sought control
Of the common people
By demanding allegiance
To the Church of Rome

And the Pope he commenced
The inquisition
It was a war against women
Whose power they feared
In this holocaust
In this age of evil
Nine Million European women died

And the tale is told of those
Who by the hundreds
Holding hands together
Chose their deaths in the sea
While chanting praises
Of the mother Goddess
Their refusal of betrayal
Women were dying to be free

Isis, Astarte, Diana
Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna (x4)

Now the Earth is a witch
And the men (we) still burn her
Stripping her down with mining
And poisoning her wells
Still to us the Earth is a healer
A teacher and a mother
A weaver of a web of light
That keeps us all alive
She gives us the vision
To see through the chaos
She gives us the courage
It is our will to survive

Isis, Astarte, Diana
Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna

By: Charlie Murphy ©1991

Written by Mama KellyTags:pagan song

Much of the Wiccan Year Wheel is based on an agricultural lifestyle in the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere – in which there are four distinct seasons.

The Sabbats remind us of the cycles of these seasons and of nature itself.  They reflect the times to plant and to harvest; the times when livestock are born, weaned, and slaughtered; and the times when we will know plenty or know only want.

They remind us of our our own life cycles as well that we are each born, live, only to ultimately die.  They remind us of the simple fact that there will always be times when we will be forced to live off what we have been able to store or starve.

And while Lughnasad and Mabon are fairly obviously harvest festivals, this is not necessarily so with Samhain.  In my part of the world, the trees are losing their leaves and growing more bare each day,  gardens are essentially bare, the nights are turning cold.  Traditionally it is time to remember our beloved dead, to contemplate our pasts and our futures, and to dole out candy offerings to costume bedecked children.

Beyond that though, Samhain is (as I was taught long ago) a blood harvest.

In the times of our ancestors this time of year meant culling ones livestock.  Sacrificing these animals was not only as a way to have meat to preserve and last the coming cold season, but was done out of necessity.  Most people simply lacked the means to support the animals until spring came again.

Here, North of the Equator, we approach that time in only the span of several days.  And while most of us do not keep our own livestock, or slaughter our own animals for meat there is wisdom in reflecting on this practice nonetheless.

Have you done enough to see you through the coming dark season?

Have you put aside enough to sustain you through the coming months?

Are there things that you might need to sacrifice or cut out of your life in order to survive the long Winter ahead?

Just some food for thought

Blessings

Mama Kelly

Written by Mama KellyTags:pagan, samhain, wicca