We are also announcing the winner of last week's Saga's Cottage giveaway (see Saga's Spirit for the reveal). Of course, Karen, La'Trice and I have you covered on all your standard faves, so if you're ready, let's dig right in!
Happy Birthday this week to Shelly Gross, Nick Hanson, Stacey Austin, Dora Vandenburg, Moryanna Wyzard, Lydia Davis, Vicky Hollar, Bill Ladowski, and Crystal Harper. May this be your best birthday ever, and may your next year of life bring you joy, peace, success, happiness and all the most wonderful things in abundance!
In the News
The Hammer of Witches
Paganism: An Overview of One of the Least Understood Modern Religions
Families of witch-hunt victims ostracised in Gumla
Woman Accused Of Sexual Abuse Told Children She Was A Witch
Finland makes it official: First Neopagan Religion (4th paragraph)
Pagan Lore with Karen Szabo
Sunday, February 9
In northern Norway, the Narvik Sun Pageant is held annually on this date in honor of the ancient Pagan Goddess who rules over the Sun. The festival, which has been celebrated since pre-Christian times, begins at sunrise and continues throughout the day until the shadows of evening darken the sky.
Monday, February 10
An ancient African festival marking the beginning of the fishing season and the New Year is celebrated annually on this day by members of the Kebbawa tribe of Nigeria. The ancient gods of their religion are honored and invoked, and traditional fish ivinations are performed.
In pre-Christian times, the Goddess Anaitis was honored on this day in the country of Persia (now Iran). She was a deity who was said to have possessed great powers over the Moon and the seas.
Tuesday, February 11
Each year on this date, millions of faithful men, women, and children make a pilgrimage to the shrine of Our Lady in Lourdes. A spring in the village of Lourdes, France, is believed by many to possess curative powers. The pilgrims bathe in the water in the hope that it will heal their illnesses and disabilities.
Wednesday, February 12
On this date in the year 1663, the infamous clergyman Cotton Mather was born in Boston, Massachusetts -- a birthday no Witch would ever celebrate! His writings and sermons condemning the practice of the Old Religion contributed greatly to the hysteria of the 1692 Salem Witch-hunt. Cotton Mather died in Boston, one day after his birthday, in the year 1728.
Thursday, February 13
On this date, an annual holiday called the Parentalia was observed in ancient Rome. It lasted until the twenty-first of February and was a day for families to honor and commemorate their deceased loved ones, particularly their parents. During the week of Parentalia, all temples in Rome were closed and all wedding ceremonies forbidden. Ancestral tombs were visited and offerings of wine and flowers were made to family spirits.
Friday, February 14
Today is Saint Valentine's Day. This is a day dedicated to all lovers, and the traditional time for Witches around the world to practice all forms of love magick and love divination. This day is sacred to Juno-Lupa, the she-wolf Goddess of the ancient Roman religion. In early times, she was honored annually on this day by a women's fertility festival and the sacrifice of a female wolf.
Saturday, February 15
On this date in ancient Rome, a festival known as the Lupercalia (Feast of the Wolf) was celebrated to honor the god Lupercus and to mark the beginning of Spring. The festival which was a rustic ritual of both purification and fertility magick, also included the sacrifice of goats and dogs to the god Faunus (identified by classical writers as the horned goat-god Pan). During the orgiastic festival, young men would choose their sexual partners by drawing the names of young women out of a bowl.
Have a wonderful week, everyone -- see you in the next edition of the Stew with more Pagan Lore!
Karen
Sparkle & Shine with Sosanna
Love – An intense feeling of deep affection
So, it is February. Generally everyone’s thoughts turn to love. According to Kay Jewelers anyway. I thought for my posts this month I’d like to talk about the things in my life that I love. Yeah, yeah, I know fluffy, smooshy, ishy, gishy stuff. But at some point we have to break down and share these feelings.
Each day in our lives is precious and every day that passes without sharing our feelings with those we care about is a day wasted. So this month, watch out… Sosanna’s getting lovey dovey.
As my first post, I’d like to say how much I love my online friends and family. Each one of you have contributed something special to my life. I have a new respect for politics and the value of really understanding the electoral process. I have learned that even though I’m happy with one child, there are many out there that long to have more. Some that feel their life is really defined by motherhood. I have learned many lessons from my friends.
We root for different ball teams, and have different favorite foods, yet still as friends we have come together to support one another through thick and thin. Sending energy where needed and even a bouquet of flowers just when the day seemed darkest.
We’ve worked together to feed feral cats, and to help me with their care. You’ve shared my space when my feelings were hurt and been there for me when name calling ran rampant.
You shared your music and your sense of self to help me understand how to be a better me. You add your like to my wire wrapping and praise my pots supporting me more than I could ever imagine.
From the magical to the mundane, from the rescuer to the witch, I love and appreciate each and every one of you.
Just for a moment, take your left hand and place it on your right shoulder, covering your heart. Now with the left, do the same to the opposite side and squeeze.
Sending you love and a great big hug.
Namaste & Blessed Be
Sosanna
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My shop – www.facebook.com/sosannascloset
My Blog – www.confessionsofamodernwitch.blogspot.com
ANNOUNCEMENT:We're making a change here at The Stew. Cap'n Dave is now Cap'n Graybeard and he's changing his byline as well. Uncharted Seas will be known as "Graybeard's Grotto". Same great blogger and content; new name and blog destination :)
Graybeard's Grotto with Cap'n Graybeard
Ah, February. That strange month when pull a rodent from its burrow so it can see (or not see) its shadow and then get drunk on champagne before breakfast and polka, watch athletes in full body armor chase a lopsided ball around with their hands, spend tons of money on wine and champagne and calligraphic cards with sappy poetry and chocolate and carriage rides in the 12° winds through slush-covered streets, and wonder if it’s this year or next year that has that funky extra day…
Well, hey…we’re humans. We’re weird that way.
Heck, we can’t even pronounce the month correctly.
So while everyone else is talking about love and roses and cherubs and planning that romantic rendezvous, I took a decidedly more different route. You see, to me, this whole business of candy hearts and Cupid’s arrows never really did factor into my life beyond wondering why there was a day that seemed to advocate sexuality and indulgence that was named for a possibly non-existent saint from a religion that frowned heavily upon the these very things. Oh, the romance part was sweet…but why only just one day out of the year? As I wrote before in another blog post, shouldn't we just be spontaneous and keep romance alive all year long?
Eh, maybe I’m just a romantic.
So, while others are going into their cellars and kitchens and pantries, while potions are being brewed, incenses formulated, and oils blended, I went into the library instead and delved into the annals of time to find just what this crazy month was really all about. What I found may very well change how you look at the shortest month of the year!
Hint: it has to do with the title. Intrigued? Then read on, intrepid soul!
There and Back A'Hen: Just a Bunch of Clucking Nonsense with Melissa Chicky Cassick
That’s the theme this week, and you know what? I love it. I love Valentine’s Day, and I love hearts, and I love *LOVE*. And in the spirit of how those words flame within me, let me tell you about my love. It’s timely for me to talk about my romance -- my love, my heart, my valentine -- because our anniversary is this week as well, on February 12.
I met Brian in a karate class. Do you believe in love at first sight? I don’t. He does – he tells me he fell the minute he saw me. I did not. I was unhappily married to someone else, with two children. It would be nearly two years before I was free to ponder what the friendship and devotion of this man could mean to me.
And then one day: clarity. I suddenly saw that this man was everything I wanted in a best friend, partner, and lover. He was kind. He was warm. He was intelligent. He was witty. He was generous. He was beautiful. And he understood me, through and through. What on earth was I waiting for?
I waited for certainty, and that is what he was rewarded with. Had I promised him forever a year earlier -- or even six months -- I never could have kept my word. I waited until no more doubt clouded my mind, no more lingering whispers of my inadequacy as a woman hissed in my brain. And here is the amazing part: soon after I came to that realization, a miracle happened. I had struggled with infertility issues to have my older children, and returned to my usual absence of cycles for nearly two years, but to my tremendous surprise, I was pregnant. Crying with joy, he said, “I know I have asked you four times already, but now will you marry me?”
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On a very cold February evening, we promised ourselves to one another, “…as long as our souls exist.” We kissed. We ate cake. We danced. The church was full of friends and family, who had watched and waited. The room was full of bright candles, and colorful Valentines decorated by my children. My belly was full of Matthew, who looks at our wedding pictures and tells me, “I was dancing inside you, because I was so happy!” My heart was full of wonder and gratitude.
This was my journey, my love story. It was only the ending of the very first chapter. We write a new one every day.
Mid-Air Moxie with Adelina Soto Thomas
When thinking on inspirational words of love, one of my favorite sources to refer to is Rumi. He was a 13th century Persian poet, theologian, Sufi mystic and spiritual teacher. His writings have always been inspirational to me, especially on the topics of spirituality, self and Love. I want to share some of my favorites here, in the hopes they inspire you as well.
"Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it."
So often in our lives- on TV, movies, music, the internet, books-we hear of the search for Love. Rumi tells us that our search is in all the wrong places. Look deep within and know yourself. Have you built walls within to keep Love out? Have you built walls within to prevent yourself from feeling and sharing love? Can you see the kind of walls you have raised? Time, money, anger, fear, etc are several kinds of barriers to Love. If you see the walls you have put up, how do you get beyond them? Rumi has given us the answer to that as well: Love is the bridge between you and everything.
"I belong to no religion. My religion is Love. Every heart is my temple."
Long before Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama said ‘My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness’- we have the wisdom of Rumi. He believed and taught that Love inhabits all beings and is the language of the Universal Creator. Rumi spoke of Universal Love as the life force which moves all beings. How much simpler would the world be if we lived as though Love were our religion? How much different would our relationships be-from those with our co-workers to our friends and family- if we believe every heart were filled with Love that we hold sacred inside us?
"When the rose dies, it falls open, spreading perfume. You will become a window in every house. You will be a rose garden in every field."
Even in grief, there is Love. This quote speaks to me especially, about how to carry on in Love when we lose those dear to us. We share the Love that we felt for our dear departed ones. We open the window to admire the beauty of the Love we shared that we see in the world. We spread Love’s fragrance with others so they will also breathe it in. We continue to grow as the roses do, sharing the perfume of Love wherever we are, and letting that Love enhance the lives of all. In this way, Grief is transformed by and becomes Love. No matter where we go, who is with us, or who leaves us…we will always be surrounded by the beauty and fragrance of Love.
"‘Now’ is where Love breathes."
Be in this moment. Be in this day. Be fully present to those near you. Awaken your senses to the sights, smells and sounds around you. Touch the beauty in the world. Let it fill you with joy. Breathe it in…THAT is Love. It is everywhere if you only let yourself be in Love.
"Wherever you are, and whatever you do, be in Love."
Saga's Spirit with Loren Morris
Today's blog will have a couple of recipes that get a nice beginning from slow-cooking bones, and I'll show you how to make a home protection bottle using bones.
We certainly have had the bitter cold this winter, haven't we? The cold has made me want to make all different kinds of soups or chili. I love soup or chili on a cold, winter day.
This month's moon has several names: Snow Moon (I think I don't have to say how accurate this name is this year), Hunger Moon, Blackbear Moon, Starvation Moon, and Wind Moon. The name that I am going to go with is Bone Moon.
Winter was especially hard for the indigenous peoples. This month their food stores would be getting low before the spring came and they often depended upon bone soup and bone marrow for survival. They were smart in their eating. Bone marrow soup is one of the best things that you can consume. It provides excellent nutrition.
Read more at Saga's Cottage Blog
And the Brighid's Day Giveaway winner is... Johanna Lawson
Congratulations, Johanna! Your gift is winging its way to you as we write. Thanks to all of you who participated last week!
Visit my shop: Saga's Cottage
Sunshine's Meanderings with Kathleen Lane
Valentine's Day has always felt strange to me. My grandmother was a Quaker and she was of the firm opinion that the Pope was the antichrist. But somehow St. Valentine's Day was a holiday she didn't have issues with. I never have figured out her reasoning on what was "OK" and what wasn't. One year, my grandfather helped me pick out a valentine handkerchief for her and when she passed on 60 years later, she still had it.
Being a Baby Boomer, I grew up in a time of making your own cards and decorating them with lace and sparkly stuff. I can remember plagiarizing shamelessly from poems for the sayings on my cards and being so proud of them. We made heart shaped cookies and decorated them with that awful icing that turned into cement and sprinkles. Gram always made heart shaped red velvet cupcakes and decorated them with white icing.
As an adult, I questioned her about why it was an acceptable holiday and she got very defensive about it, so the issue was simply shelved. With Gram, there were a lot of subjects that were not discussed. She had no issues with May Day, but my father did. He claimed it was a Communist holiday and wouldn't let us put out May Baskets.
Across the country, school children will give cards to their friends and classmates and never give a moment of thought to the origin of the custom, and maybe it really doesn't matter where it came from. It is a celebration of love and friendship and caring and when you come right down to it, that is really all that matters.
The Spice with La'Trice Lott
Lentil Tacos
Ingredients
•¾ cup chopped, onion
•2 cloves garlic, minced
•½ tablespoon olive oil
•½ lb. dry lentils, picked clean of stones and floaters
•1 tablespoon chili Powder*
•2 teaspoon ground cumin*
•1 teaspoon dried oregano
•2 cups homemade veggie broth (you can use store bought)
•1 cup salsa
*I’m highly allergic to cumin, so I replaced the chili powder with smoked paprika and the cumin with ½ teaspoon of cinnamon.
Directions
Pour oil into a heated skillet and add onions. Sauté until onions are tender. Add garlic and spices. Cook for an additional minute, until garlic is fragrant.Place lentils in slow cooker. Add onion mixture. Pour in broth. Cover and cook on low for 5 – 6 hours. During last 15 minutes stir in salsa.
Serve with your favorite tortillas and taco toppings.
This Week in Astrology
 |
| Josephine Wall- Aquarius |
All Times Eastern Standard
Mercury is Rx until February 28
Jupiter is Rx until March 6
Sunday, February 9
Moon VoC (Void of Course) from 4:09pm through the rest of the evening
Monday, February 10
Moon VoC until 1:32am then moves into Cancer
Waxing Gibbous Moon 3:46pm
Tuesday, February 11
All's Quiet in the Heavens
Wednesday, February 12
Moon VoC from 5:51am-2:15pm then moves into Leo
Mercury back in Aquarius (Rx) 10:29pm
Thursday, February 13
All's Quiet in the HeavensFriday, February 14
Full Moon in Leo 6:53pm
Saturday, February 15
Moon VoC 12:33am-2:55am then moves into Virgo
Weekly Horoscopes from DarkStar Astrology
The Weekly Divine with Kallan Kennedy
Tarot: Three of Cups
Key words: Abundance, celebration, merriment
The three of cups is a welcome card for this week. For those of us who've been struggling for awhile, it heralds an end to troubles and a time of celebration and abundance. It is also a time of family, friendships and harmonious relationships. This begins a new period of creativity and finding new outlets to express it.
This is a time when many will experience great joy and satisfaction with their lives. It is a time to feel gratitude for the life you've been given and to share it with others.
Totem: Buffalo (Bison)
The American buffalo is actually a bison, is the totem of Abundance.Buffalo's message includes manifestation, protection, earth creativity, feminine courage, abundance, knowledge, generosity, hospitality, sharing work, courage, strength, challenge, survival, giving for the greater good, formulating beneficial plans.Buffalos have large heads that symbolize intelligence of a higher order, their strong bodies ground them to the earth. They are the uniting force between things earthly and un-earthly. Both the male and female buffalo possess horns and humped shoulders. In humans, the shoulders store our personal energy which expresses itself through our hands. Anything we physically touch or hold on to is linked to our personal energy.
Shoulders bear responsibility as well as positive or negative emotions. Whatever is felt inside is projected to the outside. ‘I feel like I’m carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders.’Buffalo will show you how to free yourself from your burdens by focusing your energy in a balanced way. The horns grow toward the sky, hinting at a connection with a higher intelligence.
Buffalo's humped shoulders and horns indicate stored-up power. When threatened, they create a defensive circle in which cows encircle the calves, and bulls encircle the cows. This symbolizes the buffalo's mutual respect for all, their communal family sense, and their natural instinct to protect, defend and honor life. When provoked, buffalo can be unpredictably dangerous.
Those who carry Buffalo as a totem are usually those who hold themselves to very high standards, and who have created their own honor code or follow a traditional one. They have a strong connection both to "God" (The Mystery, Great Spirit, Goddess, etc...) and to Mother Earth.
Buffalo people have an innate awareness of how to bring about abundance in their lives. They know that through their connection to both Spirit and the Mundane, they can make manifest their heart's desires with almost no effort. They only need to remember who they are to make it happen.
Buffalo's message for this wee: This purports a time of abundance and blessing; and, it heralds an end to the lean times.Celebrate and remember to give thanks!
Kallan has been practicing the art of divination through tarot and totem readings for more than 20 years. If you would like a reading, please visit her website, Secret Services to order.
REMINDER! There's still time to get in on the Tarot/Totem Birthday Giveaway! Scroll down the page to the last blog entry entitled Friday Frolic: It's my birthday! Let's have a giveaway! to enter. I'll be drawing a winner tomorrow morning (Monday, February 10) and announcing here on the blog.
That's it for this week's Stew. Mull. Digest. Enjoy!
The Sunday Stew is a free, e-publication delivered every Sunday as a loving gift to the Pagan community. All submissions are the intellectual property of their authors, and opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the blog owner. All photos are used with permission.
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