Astro Reading for Everybody for September, 2009

The New Moon Occurs on September 18

Mercury is retrograde this month from September 7 through 29. This means that the planet appears to be moving backward in the sky.

Mercury is a planet related to business and communications, and a retrograde Mercury means communication problems and errors, especially related to business. Everyone should avoid business negotiations during this time, and should particularly avoid signing contracts until October, if possible.

From September 12 through 17, the moon is waning. This is a time to prepare for new beginnings. The best day to begin a new venture of any kind is the first day after a new moon. The new moon this month occurs on Friday, September 18, so Saturday, September 19 is a great time to start that diet, draw up that business plan, or propose marriage.

Once the new moon has taken place, and the project is begun, you should move forward during the next two weeks, through early October, but do so being aware of the retrograde Mercury that will foul up communications, and the Saturn-Uranus opposition that makes for radical and unforseen changes.

A few days after Mercury comes out of the retrograde phase and becomes “direct,” around October 2, the time will be especially right for dealings in Cancer-style businesses—real estate, home décor, food, etc. It's a great time to list your house for sale, redecorate your living room, plan a banquet, etc.

Enjoy!

Full Moon Irish/Celtic Love Spell

Full Moon Irish/Celtic Love Spell

 

By Hepzibah (©2009)

 

As most of you know, on Friday, September 4, there will be a full moon.

 

This Full Moon Irish/Celtic Love Spell can be performed on Friday or Saturday, but it will work for the current full moon only. This love spell can strengthen existing love, turn friendship into love, or attract a new or reluctant lover. Aine (pronounced Ahn-yah), the moon goddess of the Irish Celts, is the one invoked here, and because Aine is a benevolent goddess, the spell will be successful only if the love you request is pure on your part and is beneficial for you.

 

Read the spell all the way through once before beginning it.

 

You will need:

• A clean bowl
• A bottle of water (any brand is okay)
• A flashlight
• Corn meal, or anything made of corn (a corn muffin, kernals of fresh corn, corn pollen, etc.)
• An envelope
• Tape or safety pins
• A picture of your beloved, or something small he or she has owned or touched.

You must perform the spell after sunset, when the full moon is in the sky. You can do this spell in any place at all, such as your own back yard or a parking lot. If the sky is overcast, the spell will be weakened, but it is worth performing anyway. If the weather is rainy, and particularly if there is lightning in the sky, the spell will not work, so don’t bother with it.

 

Before leaving home, put the picture or the object belonging to your beloved into the envelope, and put the envelope over your heart. Secure it in place by gently taping it to your body, or by pinning it to your shirt over your heart. Make sure it is held in place firmly enough that it will not come off as you walk out into the night.

 

Stand with the bowl and the bottle of water at your feet. The flashlight should be in your pocket. Holding the cornmeal (or other corn product) in your left hand at arm’s length from your body, turn slowly to your left making a complete circle, scattering the cornmeal in a circle around you. The circle need not be perfect, and if there are gaps, or if you run out of cornmeal before you complete the circle, that’s okay.

 

Pick up the bowl and the bottle of water. Pour some water into the bowl, and hold the bowl in both hands in such a way that you can see the reflection of the full moon in the water, or so that you can see in the water the light from the full moon hidden behind the clouds.

 

As you gaze at the moon’s reflection in the water, focus your mind on your beloved. Visualize the two of you happily together.

 

Say the following:

 

“Goddess Aine (ahn yah), moon goddess of the Irish Celts, my love is pure for __________ [say the name of the beloved here, or, if you don’t know the name, describe the person (“the cute blonde barrista at Starbucks”)]. Therefore, Aine, use your power to grant me the pureness and goodness of this love.”

 

The water has now taken on magical qualities from the power of Aine and of the moon. Drink some, but not all, of this magic water—as much as you wish to drink, as long as you don’t drink it all. As you drink, feel the power of the moon goddess flowing into your body, into your heart, and into your beloved’s heart through the object you have placed over your own heart.

 

Now hold the bowl in your dominant hand (the one you write with) so that you can again see the moon’s reflection. With your other hand, shine the flashlight into the sky in the direction of the moon. This will get Aine’s attention.

 

Say a second time, as you focus your thoughts on your beloved:

 

“Goddess Aine (ahn yah), moon goddess of the Irish Celts, my love is pure for __________ [say the name of the beloved here, or, if you don’t know the name, describe the person (“the cute blonde barrista at Starbucks")]. Therefore, Aine, use your power to grant me the pureness and goodness of this love.”

 

Stand for a moment, gazing directly at the moon, contemplating your beloved and the purity of your love.

 

Finish by saying, “Thanks and praises be to you, gracious goddess Aine.”

 

Pour the remaining water from the bowl onto the ground. Keeping the flashlight on, return home. Take the picture or object from over your heart and put it in a safe place in your home. Once you have done this, turn out the flashlight.

 

You have now completed the spell, and you may pursue any activity you wish once it is completed.

 

If the love is indeed pure and good, Aine will grant your wish. If the wish is not granted, either your feelings are not sufficiently pure, or the beloved is not good for you. In either case, if the wish is not granted, you should seriously consider moving on, away from this loved one, before the next full moon.

Full Moon This Friday--Party Time!

There's a full moon this Friday, September 4, 2009.

The full moon at this time of year was named the "hazel moon" by Celtic Druids, after the hazelnut tree.

Some Native American tribes also call this the "nut moon" or the "little chestnut moon"; others say it's the "corn maker moon" or the "corn eater moon."

Therefore, on Friday for good luck you should eat nuts, especially hazelnuts, and anything containing corn. Or combine the two with, say, a smear of Nutella on a corn muffin.
For the Druids, this moon symbolized the life force within each of us.

So this Friday is a great time to stand in the light of the full moon and make a vow to renew your personal power, energizing yourself for the months between now and the new year.

As with any full moon, it's party time!

Avoid working during a full moon, and do something fun--even if it's as mundane as watching your favorite DVD.

And if you're clueless about how to celebrate, go into your back yard at midnight, look up into the night sky, throw your head back, and howl at the beautiful September moon!

Sometimes They Lie

The Nechung Oracle

There's a story about the Dalai Lama that appears in the film Kundun and in his autobiography, as well.

It goes something like this:

The Dalai Lama had just arrived in a place where he feared his enemies might try to assassinate him. So he called his soothsayer or channeler, the Nechung Oracle, to him, and asked, "Shouldn't I leave this place immediately?"

The soothsayer went into a trance, and the spirits spoke through him, saying to the Dalai Lama, "No, you should just settle in, because you're going to be here for a very long time."

The next day, the Dalai Lama was invited to attend an event at which he feared he might be killed. So again he called his soothsayer, asking, "Should I attend this event?"

Again the soothsayer went into a trance. The spirits spoke again, saying, "You must leave this place. This very night! Leave! Immediately! Get going, right now!"

The Dalai Lama fled successfully and arrived safely in India, where he lives today.

Now obviously, the advice given in the second instance ("leave immediately") is a direct contradiction of what was said just a day before ("settle in because you're going to be here for a very long time").

What's up with this? Are the spirits actually lying? If so, why? Can they not be trusted to tell us the truth?

The Dalai Lama explains, as follows (I'm paraphrasing here):

In times of stress, when they believe it is in your best interest, the spirits will lie when asked for advice. If I'd been told at the first inquiry that I'd be leaving the very next night, I might have begun packing, or acted otherwise suspiciously, attracting the attention of my enemies who could have assassinated me on the spot. So the spirits speaking through the Oracle told me, for my own protection, that I'd be in that place for a long time. Because I believed them, I did nothing that aroused suspicion, and this saved me from danger. Thus the spirits saved my life with their lie.

Perhaps this explains why sometimes the predictions of even the best psychics fail to come true.

It might sound like a cop out, but it makes sense to me!

Here's a video clip of the Nechung Oracle in action: