The Wine Moon

The waxing crescent should just be visible tonight in the sign of libra. The next two days are auspicious for performing magic in connection with the arts, justice, partnerships, emotional balance, peace and love.

This new moon is the wine moon which was believed to be the moon blessed by the Gods and under which, after consuming copius amounts of wine, the Celts practised various methods of divination.

Raise a glass of rich red tonight and toast Dionysus.

Season of Fire

We are entering the last month of the season of fire before the mellower times of autumn come into play.

Fire comes to us in many forms during our earthly journey. From the power of the mighty sun, to the gentle flicker of a candle flame, from the explosive nature of the volcanoe to the warmth of a winter fire and from the fury of a lightning storm to the magical effect of fire through water which provides the beauty of a rainbow.

These last days of summer encourage us to weave our magic in connection with job offers, career, new projects, law making, or indeed anything which requires passion and commitment for fire denotes change and speeds its arrival.

Fire

In flickering flames I flirt, flambyant, fleeting, gone.

In lava lakes I lie, languid, lambent, waiting.

In boiling blood I bide, boundless, bellicose, fervent.

All taken from 'Mrs Darley's Pagan Elements'

Bidding Farewell to the God

Lughnasadh is upon us. It begins at sunset tonight (1st) and ends at sunset tomorrow. The word itself derives from the Irish Celtic God Lugh, who, in actual fact had very little to do with the corn harvest, but was a popular and heroic God often referred to as the shinning one and for whatever reason gradually became associated with the sacrificial aspect of the God.

Lughnasadh celebrates the beginning of the corn harvest, the last sheaf of which was thought to contain the spirit of the corn God. As such, the reaper who cut it down was considered to have taken the life of the God and it was not therefore an auspicious act to participate in. It therefore became general practice that when everything was cut except the final sheaf, that all the reapers would stand blindfolded in a semi circle and hurl their sickles at it, thus no one would know who had taken the Corn God's life.

Once cut however, the sheaf took on a different aspect altogether and was taken home by one of the reapers to be 'dressed', i.e. made into a human shape or tied with red ribbons and took pride of place at the harvest supper, sitting next to 'the master'. It was often known as a 'kern baby' and is where our term 'corn dolly' derives.

Simple corn dollies can be made at home and are still used by farmers today to bring fertility to their cattle. Fertility and abundance can however come in many different ways and should you decide to make your own dolly, even if it is simply tying together a few pieces of corn with a ribbon, make sure you hang it by the hearth until the spring equinox, at which point the seeds should be scattered on the earth to bring you abundance for the summer.

Over the next couple of days give a moment of thanks to the Goddess for the corn which sustains us and to the God as his blood is spilled upon the earth to bring us fertility for the year to come.

The Night of the Black Moon

Today sees the arrival of the 'Black Moon', the second new moon this month, a rare event which only happens approximately every two and a half years.

Mrs Darley used to say that the Black Moon was the temptress, one who bewitched and beguiled and in recognition of this we made pentagrams (5 pointed stars) from twigs and twine in order that we might admire the cresecent moon's beauty but not become overwhelmed by her.

Tonight also sees the peak of the Capricornids meteor shower with some slow moving yet brilliant fire balls.

Enjoy all the gifts of the skies tonight.

For more information on moon phases and Her effect on the psyche read, 'Mrs Darley's Moon Mysteries'

Heavenly Delights

The first meteor display of the summer season is almost upon us and, if the skies remain clear it should be quite spectacular.

The 28 and 29 sees the peak of the Delta Aquarids shower where up to 20 yellow meteors per hour should be visible in the eastern sky after midnight. The 29 and 30 brings the Capricornids shower which again are yellow in colour but travel much slower than the Delta meteors. They are less in number per hour but can produce some magnificent fireballs.

Meteors are beautiful to watch and despite our scientific knowledge of knowing what they are, still have the ability to fill us with wonder at this beautiful universe of which we are a part. Enjoy!

Healing Through Smell

When asked which sense could be dispensed with if needs be, most people would initially opt for their sense of smell, but our sense of smell is invaluable to our safety, our appetite and our emotional and psychological wellbeing.

Without smell we would not be able to detect food that is off, smoke from a house fire, or gas from a leaking pipe. Without smell our appetite would be less regulated and we would only be able to distinguish between salt, bitter, sweet, sour and savoury, we would not have the added benefit of flavour.

Perhaps most importantly however is the fact that inhaling specific aromas, especially those which come from good quality essential oils can have a profound effect on the way we feel. Let's take lavender oil for example.

When we inhale lavender oil (two drops on a tissue or six on an incense burner with water is all you need) the Raphe Nucleus gland in the brain becomes stimulated which then releases the neuro chemical Serotonin into the blood stream which brings about feelings of relaxation, alleviates anger and aids restful sleep.

For more information on the healing powers of smell read 'Mrs Darley's Pagan Healing Wisdom'

Healing through Hearing

The sense of hearing is the 4th sense to develop in the womb at around 16 weeks and is responsible for the sounds we hear at that time becoming deeply embedded in our subconscious. These include the sound of water, a heart beat and the human voice and, thereafter throughout our lives we respond either positively or negatively to these sounds according to our experience in the womb.

Sound therapists have discovered that although when these primordial sounds are either slowed down or speeded up, the conscious mind fails to recognise them, they are still recognised by the subconscious mind. When recordings of people speaking are doubled in speed and raised by 3 octaves they sound like birds and when raisedby 8 octaves they sound like crickets. Conversely when the voice is slowed down to twice normal speed and reduced by 3 octaves it sounds like dolphins, whilst at a reduction of 8 octaves it sounds like the ocean. Perhaps this answers the question of why we are soothed or ruffled by the sounds of nature according to our pre birth experiences.

'Every night I come to hear painted words fall from your lips upon the canvas of my imagination......' (The Troubadour)

All extracts from the brand new 'Mrs Darley's Pagan Healing Wisdom'