Super Moon Saturday

The full moon on Saturday May 5, 2012 is commonly called a "Super Moon" because the moon is closest to the earth in its orbit, making it appear larger and brighter than normal.  Because the moment of perigee (Moon being closest to earth) and the moment of the full moon will occur so close together this Saturday (less than 1 minute apart, actually), we will (assuming Mother Nature plays along) get to see a larger, brighter moon than we have during other "Super Moon" events in recent years.

Here is an informative article on the "Super Moon" from Smithsonian:
http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/science/2012/05/the-biggest-supermoon-in-years-is-coming-saturday-night/

So, get out there and dance in the moonlight, cast a spell, do some divination, or charge your favorite crystal, because Saturday night will be full of power!

Goddesses of Spring

Goddesses of Spring

By Lisa Michelle

Even though the weather this year seems determined to skip over spring and launch straight into summer, spring is an important part of the yearly cycle and has a large amount of mythology, folklore, and ritual attributed to it.  After all, spring marks the end of the cold dark days of winter and the beginning of new life in the agricultural world.  The spring goddess is generally depicted in maiden form, renewed from her crone self from the winter months, but not yet the mother of abundance that she will be once summer gets underway.  Today, let’s look briefly at a few of the goddesses of spring.

Flora

Flora is a Roman goddess of spring and flowering plants.  She is quite an ancient goddess as the first known occurrence of her festival was in 240 B.C.E.  Flora was depicted by the Romans as a maiden wearing light yellow or light green spring clothing, a crown of blossoms, and carrying bouquets of flowers. Honey, being made from the pollen of flowers, was considered one of her gifts to man.

Her festival, the Floralia, was held between April 28 and May 3.  By the time of the Roman empire, her festival was marked with chariot races and bawdy theatrical performances.  People wore brightly colored clothing and carried wreaths of flowers, indulging in drink, merriment, and activities of an amorous nature, not unlike the Western European festival of Beltaine.  During the height of the Roman empire, the Floralia gained a reputation for being even more wild and licentious than Saturnalia.

Persephone

Persephone is a Greek goddess of spring growth who was worshipped alongside her mother Demeter in the Eleusinian Mysteries. This agricultural-based cult promised its initiates passage to a blessed afterlife.  She is also Hades wife and Queen of the Underworld.  Persephone was also known as Kore, which means the maiden, and was considered the goddess of spring's bounty.

Long ago while playing in a flowery meadow with her Nymph companions, Kore was seized by Hades and carried off to the underworld to be his bride. Her mother, Demeter, despaired at her disappearance and searched for her the throughout the world accompanied by the goddess Hecate bearing torches. She refused to let the earth fruit until Persephone was returned. Zeus consented, but because the girl had eaten food of the Underworld--a handful of pomegranate seeds--she was forced to forever spend a part of the year with her husband in the Underworld. Her annual return to the earth in spring was marked by the flowering of the meadows and the sudden growth of the new grain. Her return to the underworld in winter, conversely, saw the dying down of plants and the halting of growth.

Blodeuwedd

Blodeuwedd is a Welsh goddess, created out of nine types of flower blossoms to be the wife of Llew.  This was to circumvent a curse laid on Llew by his mother, Arianrhod, that he would never have a wife from any race then on the earth.  Unfortunately, Blodeuwedd fell in love with another man, and plotted with him to murder Llew. She was punished for this by being turned into a night-bird, the owl.  Blodeuwedd represents temporary beauty and the bright blossoming that must come full circle through death; she is the promise of autumn visible in spring.

References:

Goddess Invocations: Blodeuwedd. Available at

http://www.goddesswithin.co.uk/blodeuwedd_new.htm.

Grimassi, R. Beltane. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2001.

McCoy, E. Ostara. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2003.

Persephone, Greek Goddess. Available at http://www.goddessgift.com/goddess-

           myths/greek_goddess_persephone.htm.

Spring Goddesses. Available at http://www.goddess-guide.com/spring-goddess.html.

Spring Prosperity

By Lisa Michelle

Spring has long been associated with fertility and prosperity, new growth and abundance to come.  We all need a little help with prosperity and success at some time or another.  The following is based on a spell I created last spring for our trip to Sedona.  We activated the spell while on Bell Rock, which is a powerful vortex site in Sedona, AZ. 

One word of warning, be mindful of what you put in your prosperity pouch.  A certain friend, who was with us, used a Polish coin in her pouch, because she is of Polish ancestry, and the coin is one of the few that still contains actual silver.  The next morning, our hotel was over-run with a Polish biker gang.  Obviously, they were themselves prosperous as they had some very nice bikes and could afford a trip for the whole group to ride around the American Southwest; however, this was not, I believe, what my friend had in mind for her prosperity spell.

You will need:

A lighter or match

1 green candle
A small amount of patchouli oil
A small green or blue and green cloth pouch
Gold or yellow ribbon or thread to tie pouch closed
Small pieces of sodalite, tigers eye, and/or citrine
A small amount of some or all of the following herbs:
          Agrimony
          Cedar
          Bay
          Cinnamon
          Patchouli        
          Dill Seed
If financial prosperity is wanted, a coin
Paper and Pen

Create sacred space and/or call a circle using whatever means is most comfortable for you.  You can call the quarters and their elemental energies and whatever form of deity that you personally work with.  Take the green candle and anoint it with the patchouli oil.  Hold it in both hands and think of your intention. Imagine yourself with that intention fulfilled.  How does it feel to have attained your goal, prosperity, success, etc.? Channel that feeling into the candle. When you feel the candle is “full”, light the wick and set it in front of you.

On the paper, write your specific goal for prosperity and success.  Do you want a better job, spiritual or emotional growth, physical health? Fold the paper and place it inside the cloth pouch. If you are using a coin, place it in the pouch. A coin with your birth year on it can be a very powerful prosperity talisman.  Place whatever crystals and herbs you have from the list above into the pouch as well.  Here are the correspondences for each:

Sodalite: to expand your fortune

Tigers Eye: to bring wealth and success, to get everything in order
Citrine: To align with the energies of the sun and its bright blessings
Agrimony: To understand blocks to prosperity
Cedar: To attract wealth
Bay: To attract success
Cinnamon: To attract good fortune and fire energy
Patchouli: To manifest desires
Dill seed: To bring increase

Close the pouch with the ribbon or thread, and hold it in both hands.  Again, think of your intention/goal.  Imagine yourself with that goal fulfilled, and push that feeling into your prosperity pouch.  When you feel the pouch is charged, pass it above the candle 3 times.  Burn the candle as often as you like, focusing and meditating on your goal each time, until the candle is burnt out.  Bury what is left of the candle somewhere in the ground. 

Keep your prosperity pouch close, either carrying it with you throughout the day, or keep it by your bed.  When you feel it needs to be recharged, anoint another green candle and repeat the procedures above.  Good luck!

References:

Cunningham, S. Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn  Publications, 2002.

Cunningham, S. Magical Herbalism. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2010.
Om, M. Energy Essentials for Witches and Spellcasters. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2010.
Penczak, C. The Witch’s Coin. Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 2010.

Technology/Facebook: Pages vs Groups

If you use Facebook, you might be wondering what the difference is between Pages and Groups. From first glance, they might look exactly the same; however, there are some significant differences. In this article, I will briefly summarize Pages and Groups, as well as, highlight two of the differences that might be more worthwhile to SIPA members.

PAGES: General
Summary: Pages are for organizations, businesses, or bands to broadcast information in a more official manner to anyone that wishes to connect with them. Also, page admins can amp up the experience by adding applications (similar to FarmVille). Pages can only be created by official representatives.
Features: Photos, Events, Links, Likes, RSS Updates
Privacy: Public

GROUPS: General
Summary: Groups are for people with shared interest to communicate. Anyone can create a group.
Features: Photos, Chat, Events, Docs
Privacy: Open, Closed, Secret

Differences between Pages and Groups go beyond what is noticed by comparing the above. In an attempt to not make this super boring, I am jumping forward to the point of this article. From my understanding, privacy is very important to some in our community. Thus the two key differences for SIPA members: Privacy & Communication.

Privacy:
Any interactions with Pages are accessible by anyone on Facebook. Any interactions with Groups are limited to the current settings of the group.
Anyone can LIKE to join Pages. Members must be added by other members to join Groups.

Communication:
Only members can post to Groups but anyone can post to Pages.
Official announcements will be easier to spot on Pages since wall posts are divided by 1) official posts and 2) "Everyone (Most Recent)".

What does this mean to SIPA members? Currently our Group is set to 'Open' and our Page is always public. If you are concerned with someone knowing your spiritual path, you might want to create an alias to communicate with us. If you are not too concerned, please join our Page so you don't miss any announcements!

Furthermore, if you have any concerns about your privacy, contact me. I'll help. Peace.

Welcome to the SIPA blog!

Welcome to SIPA's new blog, a place for members to contribute their own work whether it be pagan-related fiction, poetry, or an information article they have written (yes, I totally snarked this description from Lisa's post on Facebook! LOL). Keep an eye out for more posts very soon!