Volume 13 Issue 2
Imbolc 2016

Seasons of the Moon is a quarterly online magazine published by students and members of The Order of The White Moon, an eclectic international order of women dedicated to The Goddess. The Order provides personal empowerment and priestess training, and operates local groups. All contributions are original material submitted by our students and members. (We do not accept outside contributions.) Please direct comments and questions to the Ezine Editor.

Seasons Of The Moon Editor and Council:
Ajna DreamsAwake
Kerritwyn Ceannaire, Moonwater Chalcedony Ashwood, Sea Dragon, Etain Feohwynn, Mystic Amazon, Maeve Cliodhna MoonBird

Imbolc 2016

Holy Days
Imbolc-L'fheill-Brighde, Morrigan
Goddess Work
Prayer for a Lost Soul, Peace Whitehorse
Sacred Sites
Uluru, Ajna DreamsAwake

OWM Awareness
OWM Happenings, Ka Wahine Ahi

The Bardic Soul:
Poetry and Song for the Spirit
Really Been Loved, Crystal Spiritweaver
Rhiannon of the Birds, Mystic Amazon
Herne Invocation, Mystic Amazon
Happy All Snakes Day, Peace Whitehorse
Prayer for our Animal Kin, Peace Whitehorse
Prayer Against the Elements, Peace Whitehorse

Holy Days

Imbolc-L'fheill-Brighde

Customs and Rituals

During the night before Imbolc in the Highlands, they prepared a bed for Bride. Old women made a figure of Bride from plaited sheaf of corn or formed of oats and dressed her with clothes. (You can as well use porridge or flour and water to form the figurine). Men then placed Bride on the elaborate bed. (You can use a basked looking like a bed or a cradle) They adorned it with ribbons, crystals, early flowers, seashells. On Bride’s breast a small crystal or a shining sea shell was placed, representing the guiding star of Bride.

When the Icon of Bride was ready, a crone opened the door and softly called into the night: “Bride’s bed is ready”. Another crone behind her said: “Let Bride come in, Bride is welcome!” Then the woman at the door called out: “Bride! Bride! Come thou in - thy bed is made!” They preserved the house for the trinity. Then they placed a white peeled wand of Hazelwood in Bride’s hand. On the hearth, they levelled the ashes. Next day they carefully searched the ashes for signs left by the goddess. Wand marks ensured good luck, but a footprint was even better.

When no signs were found, Brides favour had to be gained by offering incense and keeping the hearth fire burning all night and by offering a cockerel, burying it alive at the junction of three rivers. We have to consider the time and circumstance back from when these customs originate. I am sure you will find plenty of possibilities to offer without harming an innocent life. Since time is nowadays very precious, whereas a cockerel wouldn’t cost us much effort and money to buy, I would suggest to fabric some little token for the goddess and bury it at a crossroads, or, if you are lucky and have such a place like the junction of three rivers, of course that is a perfect place.

There are also other variations. In one, women took the figure of Bride for a walk around the village, entering each house. They had to offer a gift like food, drink, beautiful objects like a nice pebble, a special flower. . . then the women met in a house for the feast of Bride. At a later hour, the lads came and asked permission to join. All together they share in drinking, dancing and feasting until the morning. When the sun was dawning they formed a circle and sang a hymn together to greet the day. The leftovers and foodstuff they distributed as gift to the poor. Ribbons at doors and windows were left for Bride to touch them at night and which were then collected and kept in order to help with headaches or other troubles that occurred over the year.

My name is Morrigan. I am a Priestess of Morrigan and practice Shamanism, Runes, Tarot and Usui Reiki. I am a sister in the Sacred Three Goddess School.

Goddess Work

Prayer for a Lost Soul

Great mother Goddess, Great father God,
[NAME] has lost [HIS/HER] way.
[HE/SHE] cannot find [HIS/HER] path.
Comfort [HIM/HER] today.

Take [HIS/HER] hand
And touch [HIS/HER] eyes
That [HE/SHE] may see
Through the tears [HE/SHE] cries.

[HE/SHE] feels alone,
Abandoned and small.
[HE/SHE] cannot feel
Your presence at all.

Wrap [HIM/HER] in Your loving arms,
And whisper that [HE/SHE] is not alone.
I ask this all of the Horned One,
And Maiden, Mother and Crone!

Peace Whitehorse is a graduate of The Sacred Three Goddess School and a High Priestess in the Order of the White Moon. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and her Shetland sheepdogs, and is active in Sheltie Rescue.

Sacred Sites

Uluru

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, 350 km southwest of Alice Springs is home to one of the largest monoliths in the world. Uluru, once known as Ayers Rock, is the literal and symbolic heart of Australia. When viewed from above, Uluru actually looks like a giant red Heart.

Uluru rises more than 318 m (986 ft.) high with a circumference of 8 km (5 miles) around and a depth of almost 6 km (3.5 miles) beneath the surface of the desert. Uluru is an inselberg, an "island mountain", the remains of what was once a mountain range. It is at least 500 million years old and was originally part of the ocean floor. As the waters receded, erosion took most of the mountain range, leaving behind the red monolith.

20 miles (32Km) west of Uluru, in the Valley of the Winds, lies Katatjuta, sometimes referred to as The Olgas (Many Heads). Uluru’s Sister Mountains are a collection of 36 dome-shaped rocks which looks like a women. Katajuta is considered a sacred place for women’s dreaming, a place to connect to Goddess energies.

Uluru is full of caves, canyons, cracks, water holes and other natural formations, as well as ancient paintings and carvings depicting Dreamtime myths dating back thousands of years. An interesting feature of Uluru is that it changes colours throughout the day. Its quartz contains reflective minerals that react to the position of the sun. Some even report a light source emanating from the rock at certain times of the year.

Archaeological evidence has shown that the area around Uluru has been inhabited for at least 30,000 years. Uluru was the site of sacred ceremonies, many of which took place within the caves of the monolith.The Anangu people are the traditional landowners of Uluru and continue to care for the land in the same way their ancestors did, by following the Tjukurpa (the Dream time).

According to the Anangu: "The world was once a featureless place. None of the places we know existed until creator beings, in the forms of people, plants and animals, traveled widely across the land. Then, in a process of creation and destruction, they formed the landscape as we know it today. Anangu land is still inhabited by the spirits of dozens of these ancestral creator beings which are referred to as Tjukuritja or Waparitja."

Tjukurpa (pronounced Ôchook-orr-pa’), also known as the Dreaming or Dreamtime, is the foundation of the people's culture. Tjukurpa refers to the period when ancestral beings created the world. But it is so much more than a creation myth. The stories are “everywhen”, referring to the past, present and future all at the same time. It is the law for caring for one another and for the land. Tjukurpa tells of the relationships between people, plants, animals and the physical features of the land. This knowledge never changes, it always stays the same. Performing ritual constantly restores and renews the life and spirit of the land and ensures that the mythology is not forgotten.

A long time ago, in the Dreamtime, before there were people or animals, plants or any other thing, there was the Rainbow Serpent which was the mother of us all. Before the sun and the moon came to be, She moved through the darkness, creating mountains and hollows wherever she went. After a time, the Rainbow Serpent decided that it was time to create life for the world. So at the place called Uluru, she gave birth.

The Rainbow Serpent is the bringer of life and is also linked to the cycles of the seasons as well as reflecting the importance of water for all living beings. When a rainbow is seen in the sky, it is said that the Rainbow Serpent is moving from one waterhole to another. The Rainbow Serpent is also identified as a healer and can pass on these skills to humans through a ritual.

Because of its connections with fertility, the Rainbow Serpent is often illustrated as a vagina. Rock art depicts the Rainbow Serpent with mouth open and tongue out to represent the vaginal opening and streaming menstrual blood. Menstruation is sacred to the indigenous peoples because it signifies that a woman is able to create life, elevating her to the same status as the primordial life bringer, the Rainbow Serpent.

As the keepers of this land, the Anangu work hard to protect their cultural and spiritual heritage and ask that visitors respect the site by not taking photos of certain areas, by not touching or defacing the rock art, by not climbing Uluru or removing stones or sand from the sacred site. This last request has led to the phenomenon known as Uluru's Sorry Rocks. For many years, visitors from around the world have been mailing back rocks they had removed from Uluru, usually accompanied by a letter of apology. We can all learn from the Anagu, to see the sacred in all things and to walk and act from a place of reverence.

http://rollerbaggoddess.blogspot.ca/2012/05/uluru-and-treading-lightly-what-does-it.html
http://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-places-oceania/uluru-ayers-rock-0083
http://learnline.cdu.edu.au/tourism/uluru/downloads/UKTNP%20Sorry%20Rocks%20-%20FAQ.pdf
http://www.crystalinks.com/ayersrock.html
http://www.parksaustralia.gov.au/uluru/
Sacred Places of Goddess: 108 Destinations. Karen Tate

Ajna DreamsAwake is a High Priestess and founder of Dark Moon's Heart School. Her personal journey of self-discovery continues as she supports and guides women along their own healing paths.

OWM Awareness

Happenings in The Order of the White Moon

Student Achievements

OWM students have been growing wonderfully in their spiritual practice.

Dark Moon's Heart student Kimberly has completed Level 1 of the White Moon studies to become an Initiate of the Order. You can see her gorgeous project on Quan Yin in our Goddess Gallery at https://orderwhitemoon.org/goddess/quan-yin/index.html.

Diana has completed Literata's Introduction to Herbalism course. She told me that it was excellent! We have several short courses available to OWM students, members and seekers from everywhere. You can see our offerings on the Training page at https://www.orderwhitemoon.org/schools/index.html#short.

Welcome New Students!

We are delighted to welcome each and every one of our new students. We are always happy when sisters find their way to OWM!

More about OWM

If you're not an OWM student and you'd like to learn more about the Order of the White Moon, the schools offering Traditional White Moon Studies, or browse the Goddess Gallery, we welcome you to learn about us!

May the Peaceful, Compassionate and Healing Presence of the Goddess be with you now and always.

HP Ka Wahine Ahi is the President of the Board of Directors and the Head of the Order. She teaches White Moon lessons to women in the school that she founded, The Sisters of the Rising Moon School of the Feminine Divine.

Follow us on Twitter at @OrderWhiteMoon for regular updates on Seasons of the Moon, the Weekly Tarot Zodiac and other OWM's public outreach programs. OWM's public Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/orderwhitemoon. Visit and like us!

The Bardic Soul: Poetry and Song for the Spirit

Really Been Loved

Link to listen:
https://soundcloud.com/mysticalstrings/really-been-loved

1. Have you ever heard a songbird that was sad?
Or seen a worker that made the Queen Bee mad?
Well I don't believe you have
'Cause they really, they really been loved.

2. Have you ever seen a weed that wouldn't grow?
Or found a river that suddenly refused to flow?
O I bet the answer is no,
'Cause they really, they really been loved.
And they know it, they really, really been loved.

Refrain:
O we all look for warmth, closeness and affection.
And we crave that spark! of physical connection.
When we let go and let Nature unfold perfection,
We know we really, we really been loved.
In every fiber we really, really been loved!

3. 'Cause nothin else asks, "What's in it for me?"
Nature ebbs and flows cause it's pure and free.
Same is true for you and for me,
'Cause we really, we really been loved.
Why don't we act like we really, really been loved?
Refrain: (Twice)

It's time we act like we really, really been loved! 'Cause we really, really been loved!

Crystal is a Level 1 student in The Sacred Three school. Music has always been important to her and is a joyful expression of her spiritual path.

Rhiannon of the Birds

I saw you riding by on your horse
You were wearing flowers in your hair
And white birds flew, singing, overhead;
Your horse was prancing with joy
And you sang along with the birds.
Rhiannon, Rhiannon!
Your laughter rings out like bells
As the animals follow along with you;
Behind you green grass shoots come up,
Bright red apples gleam from the trees.
The young foals and newly-born animals
Come up to you to be blessed,
And the sounds of fluttering wings
Herald the fairies coming to join you.
Queen of Faeries, Otherworld Queen

Your eyes shine like the silver Moon.
Lovers lay back against the trees
Watching the faeries dance and sing;
And like us, they await your blessings
Moon Goddess, Rhiannon of the Birds.

Herne Invocation

Herne, Hunter!
I don't know much about you
I know you are protective
And can be wild when hunting,
Enjoying the chase
And the baying hounds.
You are the Lord to the Lady,
Living in the forests
And the wilds of nature,
The Sun to her Moon.
Teach me to understand
And to connect with you,
So that I can learn and grow
In spirit, and joyous freedom.
Perhaps my lover is close to you
Even if he doesn't realize it.
He loves being outside,
And is akin to Chiron,
The Wounded Healer.
Please draw closer to me
Along with your Lady,
So I may know the mysteries
Of the Elements,
The secrets of the Stars,
And the hidden wonders
That are in Nature.
May I touch your antlers?
They may be soft or fierce,
But you are my Father, so
You will not turn on me
Even when you are running
In your Wild Hunt
(If I am very careful)!
May I join the hunt?
I would not wish to kill,
But to run and howl
Would be so freeing,
The pagan blood,
So long denied
And even unknown,
Would wake in me at last!
Take us with you!
My lover could ride with you,
And I could ride with
The Lady and her maidens!
My soul may be timid,
But I can learn.

Call to me, Wild Ones!
And I will answer.

Mystic Amazon is a High Priestess of the Order of the White Moon and an Ordained Minister, currently teaching at Sisters of the Rising Moon School. Her hobbies include writing, folk art, folk magick, Reiki, and reading.

Happy All Snakes Day

Wearing the green
On Saint Paddie’s Day
To honor the Snakes
That were driven away.
Some say it’s not so,
And some say it’s true.
Decide for yourself
What your heart tells you.
The snakes were the Pagans,
Driven out by the Church.
But some did survive
On the moors and the firth.
Whether it’s true,
Whether it’s not,
Paganism near died
And was almost forgot.
Even today
The Church would rip up
By the roots anything
That does not fit their cup.

We still must be wary,
We Pagans today.
So we’re wearing the green
But it’s in our own way!

Prayer for our Animal Kin

Goddess we honor You and all of Your creation!
But the weather outside now is hurtful and harsh
To those that have no shelter from the elements
In the fields and woods, on moors and marsh.
By the uncaring, the heartless and the thoughtless
There are human-owned animals that are left outside
And they suffer the most, not being used to the elements.
Show people this is wrong and to bring those souls inside.

For those left alone to brave the out-of-doors,
Wrap them in Your arms so warm and tight.
Give them Your care and warmth and protection.
Keep them well and safe each day and each night.

Prayer Against the Elements

Great Goddess of the Moon and the Earth,
Your work is splendid and pleasing to the eye.
With a wave of Your wand the Earth trembles.
In Your hand is the power to live or to die.
Goddess we ask Your blessed protection
From the awesome elements of Your way.
Keep us safe in body, soul and mind.
Safe keep our homes and our animals today.
Should waters flood, or blizzards rage,
Should destruction be all around us,
We trust in Your kindness and caring.
May Your love for us ever astound us!
We give You all praise and glory,
We sing of Your blessings each day and night.
We trust in You with all that we are
That all will be well, and all will be right.

We thank You for Your tender care,
And for Your presence fierce and wild!
We thank You for Your protection of us,
Holding close woman, man and child.

The articles featured in Seasons of the Moon are written and/or submitted by members of the Order of the White Moon and are their own intellectual property. Please feel free to share this publication but do give credit where credit is due and link back to the source.

Thank you for reading, we hope that you have enjoyed it just as much as we have enjoyed presenting it to you.

Many blessings to you and yours,
Seasons of The Moon Staff

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Volume 13 Issue 2 Imbolc 2016