Lenten Moon ~ Worm Moon ~ Crow Moon

The Full Moon in March sees the earth re~awakening, the ground softens and warms and earthworms begin to leave their castings as they process the soil. Other creatures begin their own Spring rites: the cawing of Crows herald ~ the Crow Moon. The Icy crust of snow that has formed from the repeated thawings and freezings ~ the Crust Moon. And the time of tapping the maple trees for their sweet sap ~ the Sap Moon.

The Old English name, was the Lenten Moon and was considered as the last moon of winter.
The name for this moon is taken from this period of time known as Lent.
There are traditionally forty days in Lent, which marks a time of fasting from foods and abstinance from festivities along with other acts of penance. The three traditional practices to be acted upon with zeal during the period of Lent, are Prayer: representing justice towards God ~ Fasting: representing justice towards the self. Almsgiving: representing justice towards those less fortunate.
In modern times, the quitting of a vice, is seen as something that will bring them closer to God, and the time or money that it would have consumed, would be donated to a charitable purpose instead.

Naughty or Nice ?

December 6th was the feast day of St. Nicholas, who was the Bishop of Myra in Turkey during the 4th Century. He was known for his kindness and many legends are told of him.
He is said to have saved three girls from prostitution and provided them with dowries, then rescued three men from the gallows after being wrongly accused, he is also said to have saved three sailors from drowning.
But he is most popular for his are his gentle love of children.

 In the European folklore of Holland, Belgium and Germany, he is associated with giving rewards on his feast day, to those children who have been good throughout the year.
On the eve of the 6th, children leave their shoes on the doorstep, to be filled with presents.
And in Germany, Austria, Hungary and Italy, it is believed that St. Nicholas is accompanied by a mythical creature known as Krampus a demon like figure. Krampus is a warning to naughty children, whom he punishes for their bad ways.

The word Krampus originates from the old German word for claw - Krampen. In the Alpine regions, traditionally, young men dress up as the Krampus on the evening of 5 December, and roam the streets frightening children with rusty chains and bells. Images of Krampus usually show him with a basket on his back used to carry away bad children and dump them into the pits of Hell.

Samhain

From Oct 31st to November 2nd is the festival of Samhain ( pronounced Sow-en ) and is the beginning of the Celtic winter and the Celtic New Year.
The word Samhain, means summer's end, the time when the flocks and herds are brought back from their summer pastures and like-wise it is believed that the ancestors will return and be welcomed at the family hearth.

Animals would be slaughtered for the harsh winter to come or cleansed ritually by the Halloween fires before being stabled in barns.
Now is the time for the Goddess to leave her creation for three days and this is when the otherworld releases fairies and mischievous spirits as well as the benign family ancestors, for it is now that the veil that seperates these two worlds is at it's thinnest.

The focus of this time is upon remembering those family ancestors, for looking back to the past and also forward to the future.
A time for over-coming fears, especially those concerning ageing and mortality, for releasing the past and the hurts that reside there and also the need for control that only serves to restrict you.

An opportunity to use divination to see what the future may hold.

*HAVE A HAPPY HALLOWEEN*

Day of the Dead

From October 31st to November 2nd, the people of Mexico celebrate el Día de los Muertos - the Day of the Dead! The festival is a traditional and beautiful celebration of the lives of those who have passed on and allows the living to remember them in their own way. The festival encompasses bright costumes, dancing skeletons, candy skulls, showers of marigolds and the odd indulgence in a tequila or two.
So sit back and enjoy the music and the show.